Cracked and sunken concrete

6 years ago

Hi,

We just bought a house with concrete on the pool deck and patio which is sinking and cracked at some places. I completely underestimated the amount of work it will need.

had a quote from a company who said they can do Poly foam to life and make it even then fix the cracks.
another company who uses mudjacking told me it is not a good candidate for lifting because of very bad shape.
quote for complete removal and replace with concrete or pavers made my head spin. it's like the cost of a new pool!

Would appreciate any advice. All of them told me none of this is structural compromise. it's all an eyesore and the previous owner had it like this for decades.
This might sound silly but can't pour concrete on top existing and level it out?

Featured Answer

PRO

Mystic Pools, LLC

6 years ago

Was there a pool inspection performed prior to purchase? Or a home inspection?

This would have been brought to your attention.

Pouring concrete on top of existing will fail. A wood deck over top will fail despite pressure treated material being used.

Either tear up and replace with concrete or with pavers. But, you must also bring the pool up the current National Electrical Code requirements regarding bonding. You'll need an electrician experienced with pools to perform this.

The pool is probably 30-40 years old, and so is the plumbing. We see lots of pools just like this one. Anytime we replace patios, we generally upgrade the plumbing and address other options such as adding LED lighting or a line for an auto cleaner. No sense in putting new concrete over old plumbing. If there is a leak, the patchwork on the concrete will look awful.

Your pool has the old style 8" aluminum coping. We also replace it with a masonry material such as natural stone or some style of brick. The liner is addressed at the same time.

Water is getting between the back of the coping and the concrete and will continue to settle and compromise the pool wall as well.

Yep, it's a can of worms and a big expense.

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Comments (8)

millworkman
6 years ago
"This might sound silly but can't pour concrete on top existing and level it out?"

Sure you can, but in short order it will look exactly the same only thicker and more to demo and pay for disposal (concrete is heavy so.......).
nid15
Original Author
6 years ago
it's a 1970 house, wouldn't it have sunk as much as it could by now?
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greg_2015
6 years ago
You're just talking about the three concrete pads in the foreground of the first picture, right? I'm not sure why you added the second picture.

Are you sure it sunk? The curb looks pretty even the whole way across. I'd think that it was originally poured that way.

How much were you quoted to replace that?

What about just getting it removed and put grass back there if it's too expensive to redo?

Or build a raised wooden deck on top of it?

What are you envisioning using that area for?
nid15
Original Author
6 years ago
The concrete around the pool has sunk so the pool coping is above the concrete. it has sunck quite "evenly" all around.
30k for pavers, 22kfor replace and repour , 10k by the poly foam guy. mudjacking guy said it can't be lifted.
nid15
Original Author
6 years ago
Thanks for your detailed reply. Now I know why I see so many Ad's for pool removal companies! Previous owner had changed the liner 4-5 years back.

What are the cons of doing a mudjacking or Poly foam lift besides having ugly areas of concrete? Will it bring it up to a point where it touches the coping and pitch changes so the rain water goes away from pool wall? How long will it last before it starts sinking again? Will it damage plumbing?
PRO
Mystic Pools, LLC
6 years ago
I have no experience with mud jacking or the poly foam lift. From a common sense construction point of view, I don't see this being a viable solution. Others may argue.

In my 35 years + in this trade, I've seen plenty of quick fix solutions that have no real longevity.

If left, it will continue to settle and crack and further compromise the area around the pool.

Water around the steel pool panels and their supports could rust and fail.

This happened to one of my customer's pool about 25 years ago. Same issue with patio as yours. The wall support(s) failed and the wall buckled. The pool was removed and filled in and I lost my customer. They did not replace the pool.
nid15 thanked Mystic Pools, LLC
nid15
Original Author
6 years ago
Thank you for your insight.

Would love to hear from anyone who has tried mudjacking vs Polyfoam around the pool and its longevity.