Spray Deck Crack after 3 weeks

[cbh09]

Hi everyone,

First time poster here looking for some help. My wife and I recently renovated our very old pool including a substantial concrete deck that surrounds it. The final walkthrough was 2 weeks ago. So far I have no issues with the plaster job but the spray deck is already exhibiting a thin hairline crack running across a significant portion of the step. I noticed this about 3 weeks after the decking folks finished. Is this a workmanship issue? We did get a substantial dip in temperature here (from mid 80s to mid 50s) recently, but that was about 3 weeks after the deck was completed. I'm disappointed and it has me spiraling and questioning the workmanship of the entire project.

The pool contractor says they can get their sub out in two weeks to look at it but honestly the relationship has soured to the point that if this is something I can remedy myself with a little epoxy and paint (which the sub left, so I have the right colors) I'd rather just do that.

Any thoughts on whether this is normal or what the best remedy would be are much appreciated. Thanks!

 

[ajw22]

Cracking is what concrete does. Those shrinkage cracks are normal.

Why Concrete Pool Deck Cracks? (Best Ways To Prevent!)

Concrete pool deck cracks occur due to concrete shrinkage or ground movement but are not a cause for concern unless structural in nature.

thepoolanddeck.com

 

[cbh09]

Thanks very much for the prompt reply @ajw22. Just to clarify, no new concrete slab was poured. The existing spray deck coating was ground off and the new grey/white color scheme was laid down. Even though it has only been 3 weeks, these cracks in the spray deck coating are to be expected? It's hard to convey tone; I'm not being sarcastic there, I genuinely know next to nothing about this stuff.

I've attached some wider photos so you can see where this occurs. It's very close to the downspout discharge, which I bet only exacerbates the problem, and we have had some heavy Texas fall thunderstorms in the past 3 weeks.

The bottom line is that I have young kids and plan to be in this house for a while so I'd like to protect this recent investment as best I can. I'm still waiting to hear what the sub says when they get out here but in the meantime:

1. Would painting over the cracks directly with what the sub left make any difference, or will they just open up again in a couple weeks? Are the cracks too thin for any sort of epoxy or sealer (which I would then paint over)?

2. Do you think installing my other 90 degree downspout discharge would make sense (the one facing left in the attached photo)? I'm actually very impressed with whoever poured the concrete originally. Rainwater does a marvelous job of walking down toward the bottom of the photos and out into the grass easement between houses. Directing the water out the other direction would move it away from this crack I'm talking about, but means my outdoor patio furniture will get wet. However, it doesn't touch the ground except for teak wood legs so it's relatively water resistant.

Again, thanks for the input!

 

[JoyfulNoise]

Who is the manufacturer of the product? Is it SGM or some other vendor? Perhaps go to the vendor and ask them? Seems like this should be covered under a warranty as this is such a new installation.

 

[ajw22]

Those cracks are in the concrete. Unless the manufacturer says the spray coating is flexible and will cover cracks the existing cracks will show through the coating.

There are specific concrete crack filler products. But they are for wider cracks and the crack has to be prepared so the filler will adhere to it.

I have no idea what the sub left but you need to review the products for suitability to fill thin shrinkage cracks.

 

[cbh09]

All I know is we chose two colors (Arizona sugar and Tweed grey) from samples provided by the pool contractor. A quick google search of those doesn't lead me conclusively to any particular manufacturer. I've left a message with the decking subcontractor inquiring who the actual manufacturer was. Good idea and thanks for pointing this out as a possible option. The sub just left two small, unmarked bottles of the aforementioned colorants and said they could be used for touch up as needed.

Part of why I'm annoyed is this was one of the uglier parts of the deck pre-renovation and so we were excited to get it fixed. You can see the large, chipped/cracked section along the left side of the attached photo. This is precisely where the new hairline crack is. Crack remediation was included in the scope of work so maybe this one just wasn't addressed as well as others. It almost seems like maybe it was at one point an expansion joint that was and has now again been spray-decked over?

 

[Cena_sea]

Hope they are able to fix it for you. Overall it looks really nice and new except for the larger cracks.

We did both pour concrete and concrete pavers. I’m wondering if polymeric sand is an option. I think there’s sand fillers for cracks but the color needs to match closely. Our gray sand is darker in contrast to the paver colors so it actually slightly highlighted any hairline imperfections (paver guy warned me they would try to pull any cracked pavers as they install but a few will get through). The sand was compacted in but no overcoat. I don’t believe you paint over sand because eventually you’ll need to add more sand. We didn’t do a coating on the concrete but I do think you have to recoat coated concrete every so often so sand might be an issue during any future recoat.

 

[cbh09]

just want to say thank you to everyone for your time, input, and suggestions! Hopefully we get some resolution, but I guess if not I’ll just wait until it widens up and then fill it with some crack filler and paint over it. Cheers everyone!

 

[Toxophilite]

With a pre-existing crack that large, the slab was separated. There's really no remediation that would put it back together. Just leveling and fill. So, if the ground moved below it with new moisture, the two sections of slab move with it, though not necessarily same amount, and any topping on top would crack.