Quartzon Pool (6 month's) old with light grey patches

catzbat · Postby **catzbat** » Sun 09 Jan, 2011 02:12

why does light gray plaster is turning to white patches on plaster ?

Guest · Postby **Guest** » Wed 26 Jan, 2011 22:59

I have a quartzone pool and it has been a disaster from day one. Dont even go there is my suggestion but if you want to see how bad it looks and you live in sydney I am happy to show you. email ido@bigpond.net.au for an appointment.

J from Adelaide · Postby **J from Adelaide** » Fri 28 Jan, 2011 02:38

I had quartzon put in 5yrs ago....yeah like many others I have been very disappointed. I wish I had just resurfaced with marblesheen! It stains easily and does not maintain an even smooth surface. Parts of it calcify and rough the surface off. Certainly would not recommend it. Be careful of some pool shops...they may be on commission to promote it!! Stick clear!

kiwi · Postby **kiwi** » Fri 04 Mar, 2011 17:31

What is Quartzon lets be honest it is a trade name for a product that has very little Quartz in it lots of Oxides to provide a colour, it is pre mixed and cement is added, what is the shelf life of the product at the time application.
The blotchy looking finisishe are far to common for such an exspencive product and dont forget you have to add there costly Cal Stop every 6 months. Go to poolquartz for the ultimate 100% Quartz plaste :thumbup:

Quigon · Postby **Quigon** » Mon 09 May, 2011 23:51

Hi Folks,

Check out this technical report which is one of the best I have found on the subjects raised on this thread.

http://www.cmc-concrete.com/CMC%20Publi ... 20ICMA.pdf

It makes interesting reading!

Anon!

dave the pool guy · Postby **dave the pool guy** » Tue 21 Jun, 2011 02:27

do not use quatzon, i'm a pool guy and I hate the stuff, you guys are wasting your money. best way to attack this problem is strip the pool out and choose a different surface, choose tile or NZ pebbles.

Snowman 21 · Postby **Snowman 21** » Mon 03 Oct, 2011 20:31

Had a pool fitted with quartz on 3months ago and like many of your posts the pool started to go blotchy after a few weeks.pool company didn't add cal-stop,quartzon rep has had a look, have now added cal stop and 6ltrs of acid which will remove the stains(they said) no difference.pool company are now playing the water is at fault card( water is tested by a pool shop every week to keep ph perfect).so I feel this could turn in to a long drawn out battle over a new pool that looks like a stained coffee cup

Postby **czechmate** » Wed 05 Oct, 2011 15:54

When you ask for a remedy please at least include your location.
Quartzon is an australian product, though it was registered here in the US in March of 1999.
It looks similar to the DiamondBrite product.
Treatment with acid is best done immediately after filling the pool on the fresh application.
You can find more in detail procedure and also helpful comments in the archive under my login name.

alexaki · Postby **alexaki** » Mon 24 Oct, 2011 17:40

I have had a new quartzon pool for 15 months now...NO issues as mentioned here....I maintain my water balance perfectly....PH 7-4-7.4 TA 100-140, CH 200-250, CYA 35 I also brush the surface every month...so far so good!..I dont think the maintenance on Quatrzon is any higher than other pool surfaces

RoyInAdelaide · Postby **RoyInAdelaide** » Mon 24 Oct, 2011 21:48

I had a calypso Blue Quartzon pool installed 3 years ago and last summer started having a black stain around base of pool. No amount of brushing would remove it. used ZedZed60 (lots of it) , Cal-Stop and keep levels spot on but can't move it . Only option is to drain and try acid washing - What if that doesnt work ? . I sympathise with everyone on here - I feel we have been sold a dud but no-one admits the responsibility. Our old marblesheen was easier to maintain and it was 20 years old.

If anyone has any ideas ........

alexaki · Postby **alexaki** » Tue 25 Oct, 2011 01:15

RoyInAdelaide wrote:I had a calypso Blue Quartzon pool installed 3 years ago and last summer started having a black stain around base of pool. No amount of brushing would remove it. used ZedZed60 (lots of it) , Cal-Stop and keep levels spot on but can't move it . Only option is to drain and try acid washing - What if that doesnt work ? . I sympathise with everyone on here - I feel we have been sold a dud but no-one admits the responsibility. Our old marblesheen was easier to maintain and it was 20 years old.

If anyone has any ideas ........

Hi Roy...any chance you could post a link with some pics of your pool stain....?

dontgetquartzon · Postby **dontgetquartzon** » Mon 09 Jan, 2012 18:37

HI All,
Yes to all of this persons comments.
In our first years of Quartzon pool surface the pool had to be acid washed twice!couldn't understand why?so I the customer had to find out through my pool shop and they had said high calcium leaching out of the surfce!The other eas they left the pool hose in the shallow end and left a hose mark on the surface??I could go on about the whole Quartzon pools stuff but any new customer thinking of getting this srface HIGH Maintence pool.eg Calcium leaching,high pH,Staining,Calcium hardness through the roof levels..etc

czechmate wrote:
Pool User wrote:Scaling or high pH and TA with metals or calcium

Seriously now.
It is a common practice in the pool industry to acid wash the newly applied plaster to clean from plaster residual and expose the new surface. The concentration of muriatic acid and technique applied is crucial as well as the experience of the crew.
From all the modern surfaces applied today the dark colored plaster is the most demanding on lot match and the perfect mixing during the application process and then also very touchy about acid washing. In your case it may be the combination of both.
Since the plaster application is usually supervised by the owner or company foreman and the acid wash almost never, I suspect that the crew washed from the deck by buckets, acid mix was not uniform and the exposure time to the harsh acid mix was uneven and possibly too long in places, where it sat prior to following wash down.
There is no easy fix for improper work procedure. Acid wash is fairly demanding procedure on old white plaster. It takes even more experience to wash properly fresh Diamond Brite or Pebble Tech.
The gray or dark plaster is sort of crap shoot, depending on quality of the crew and almost always with some deficiencies.
The industry does not always inform the potential customer of the downfalls in selecting some of the exotic surfaces now available. It is mostly left to the buyer to do diligent research prior to spending their hard earned money.

kiwipool · Postby **kiwipool** » Tue 11 Dec, 2012 00:08

So many complaints about Pool Plaster maybe there is an answer coming.

The sooner you look at the date the Quartzon was packed and the date it was applied to the pool you will find out why there are issues with it with discoloration ect.

The cement has already started hydrating so the surface will erode away. Al products that have cement added to them have a shelf life and depending on the storage conditions this can be 3 months Oxide used as the coloring agent is also effected by the hydration of the cement as well, then as for the acid wash just ask yourself.

The product called Armadillo Pool Quartz which is 100% Quartz has no oxide and the cement is added on the day of application that is the same as in the days of Marble plaster. This product due for release in the USA in 2013 has been undergoing testing in New Zealand for more than 12 years and can provide a long term color fast more durable finish.

silas · Postby **silas** » Fri 14 Dec, 2012 03:12

RoyInAdelaide wrote:I had a calypso Blue Quartzon pool installed 3 years ago and last summer started having a black stain around base of pool. No amount of brushing would remove it. used ZedZed60 (lots of it) , Cal-Stop and keep levels spot on but can't move it . Only option is to drain and try acid washing - What if that doesnt work ? . I sympathise with everyone on here - I feel we have been sold a dud but no-one admits the responsibility. Our old marblesheen was easier to maintain and it was 20 years old.

If anyone has any ideas ........

The facts about Cal Stop is that it will last only a couple of weeks as it is VERY Chlorine sensitive. Scale Tec is the produst to use.

boss71 · Postby **boss71** » Mon 21 Jan, 2013 05:36

Brown/grey cloudy stains. This is sometimes caused by calcium carbonate covering dirt or algae on the pool interior. Although calcium carbonate is always white, in some cases, it presents as brown or grey because the dirt discolours the calcium carbonate which gives a brown appearance. This brown appearance cannot be removed with traditional treatments such as chlorine and firm brushing because calcium carbonate does not react to these chemicals. I am not saying this is THE answer to all the problems mentioned here but it is surprising how often calcium is involved in Quartzon issues. and some other websites that pop up with a Quartzon search are worth a look. New Quartzon pools often need a lot of acid to keep the pH in check even when Calstop is added from the beginning.