Take that resurfacing every five years advice with more than a little skepticism. I have a gunite pool built in 1969 in the Boston suburbs that has never been resurfaced. Swim in it everyday in June, July and August

Clients with pools w/ colored plaster often rave about how much they love the color of their pool. I've never heard anyone with a white plaster pool rave about it. Your landscape designer can help you decide how important the pool color is relative to everything going on around it. If you're not working with a landscape designer on a pool project, you really should be.

Weird, my pool has white gunite, never has been re plastered in 15 years & it looks very aqua blue.... hmmm, maybe because I live in a very sunny climate? Idk, bout I do have blue tile around the perimeter. I would ask your company for photos of pools they've built with white plaster. I think colored liners (viny) , like in pools I've seen in the East, look unnaturally too blue, I saw one that looked garish.

Thanks I appreciate the feedback. I am going to try to go by a white gunnite pool to see one in person. The additional cost is not for a liner; it is a color additive that is put in the topcoat. I have seen some that look good but I am just not sure it is the best way to spend our budget. It seems an unreasonably high cost.

This is our project, we are renovating a barn into our home.

Can you swim at least 6 months out of the year? A pool is a royal pain to keep up, make sure it is really worth the hassle. I wish we didn't have one.

The original plaster pool method (still used in many countries) contained asbestos in the mix. This additive has been banned in the USA resulting in a far inferior finish.

http://www.poolhelpforum.com/viewtopic.php?t=11054

Casandra...our pool will serve a dual purpose. The first is the obvious but also the neighborhood where the barn is located has no fire hydrants so the pool serves a vital function in the case of a fire. Without a pool the fire department needs to bring water trucks in before they can do anything. With the pool they can start pumping water as soon as they get there. After a neighbor without a pool had a fire about a month ago, I am sold on the pool!

Ah, then that makes it worth the hassle. Ours, quite frankly, is not that great of a deal. And the previous owners that put it in, for some dumb reason, decided that out of 21 acres, it needed to go 8 feet from the back door! (Eye roll emoji needed:)