Cracked Fiberglass Stairs - Best Epoxy? Help me plan?

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C

capricatunes

Bronze Supporter
Jun 3, 2020
51
Minneapolis
Pool Size
30000
Surface
Vinyl
Chlorine
Liquid Chlorine
Hey all,

Thanks in advance for your time and help. I've read just about every "Cracked Stairs" post on the forum and learned a great deal already.
  • I have a 5" horizontal crack on the second step of my stairs (Fiberglass, vinyl pool).
  • The stairs have clearly shifted over time. They seem both not level, and they've been pushed up (or the concrete surrounding has dropped). I just bought the house last year. First full summer with the pool.
  • Where the crack occurred does not have any support beneath it. It clearly flexes when weight is applied. I'm not sure about all the steps yet; I just discovered the leak right before dark tonight.
So, my questions:
  1. I'm hoping to apply a temporary patch to get us through the summer at least. What epoxy (or other material) would you recommend, if any?I've seen references to Atlas putty, JB Weld, Aquabond, and a few others.
    1. Note: there is no way I'll be able to prevent people from applying weight to this area in the future, so whatever I apply probably needs to handle some flex. Does that even exist? Is this a terrible idea?
  2. I was looking into Home - Pool Step Specialists, any new reviews about these guys?
  3. I do have a great pool store that has helped with repairs on the past, so I'll be giving them a call for ideas on a permanent fix.
This one feels discouraging :-( We replaced the liner at the end of last summer so I'm like, "Darnit this would have been good to fix then," and my kids are really enjoying the pool this year so I don't want to lose a week or two of swim time to drain the pool and get a fix - and I do not want to deal with getting my water chemistry right again after a new fill (not to mention the money). Oh, and with COVID, our local pool stores are slammed, so I'm thinking I may be forced to make a temporary fix to get through the summer somehow.

Thanks much. I will post a photo tomorrow if helpful. FWIW it looks a lot like this one: Crack in steps
 
JamesW said:

Put it on thick and wide and it should hold for a few years.

Make sure that the step is clean and dry and give the epoxy overnight to dry.
Click to expand...
Thank you!

1. If I decide to try and cut a hole in the steps and backfill as I've seen recommended on other posts, do you have a product recommendation for patching the hole that results?

2. Would you recommend trying this epoxy and just seeing what happens? Or, is a more robust repair (involving backfilling this tread/multiple treads) likely necessary?
 
To create structural fill, you probably need to do a fiberglass mat and resin layer.

I don’t have any way to determine if the backfill would be necessary.

Backfilling should give you the best structural support if you can do it correctly.
 
JamesW said:
To create structural fill, you probably need to do a fiberglass mat and resin layer.

I don’t have any way to determine if the backfill would be necessary.

Backfilling should give you the best structural support if you can do it correctly.
Click to expand...

Thanks, James. I think it's likely necessary, because it bends and bows when weight is placed. And, I'll attach a photo here - you can see how the stairs have shifted.

When backfilling, does it just keep happening over time? I'm not sure why this happened in the first place, so I wondered when reading all the backfilling DIY posts if the sand just erodes again over time? In other words, if I put sand under the stairs, what's to stop it from being washed away again? Does that depend on the material you use to backfill?

Thank you!

P.S. The one photo with the crack looks funky because I covered it with a vinyl patch and glue in the dark last night to staunch the leak. It helped quite a bit. But, the crack is about 5" wide I think.

IMG_2365.jpg
IMG_2366.jpegIMG_2367.jpegIMG_2364.jpg
 
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