swimming pools.

[baz1967]

hello to you all. any advice on tilling a swimming pool, 12m x 5.5m x 1.8m deep.the job is to start mid may so got plenty of time to get my head `round it.thanks in advance for any help.. darren.

 

[sranners]

make shore you use a good quality addy and i would put in a epoxy grout in.
Thats all iv got, never done a pool. Think about the epoxy

 

[White Room]

Why an epoxy, the substrate shoud be holding the water

 

[sranners]

strength and contamination, it is also the most resistant to cemicals

 

[White Room]

Bal say their standard grout can be used in swimming pools, also with mapei a lot of their materials can be used in swimming pools but not necessary an epoxy grout

 

[sranners]

In bals list of grouts you could use is:
bal super flex
micro flex
grout with addmix gt1
easy poxy and good old standard bal grout.

 

[TrumpersUnited]

it depends on the situation, if the PH levels are liable to change then you would be best of using epoxy but if the PH levels are checked on a regular basis then just use flexi grout. If its a new pool allow shell to stabalise for at least 6 weeks before rendering then leave another 2 weeks before tiling, tile with a good cement based tile adhesive, then grout 3 days after tiles are fixed,fill the pool up to 0.75 metre per day and gradually upping the temp at a rate of 0.25C per hour.

 

[Dave Ramsden]

I once used standard BAL grout to finish a swimming pool and its had no problems what-so-ever for the last 5 years...

As for tips,
- Make sure all the coping tiles are completley level and paralel,
- Start from the top course working side to side and to the floor.
- Use plenty of chalked lines and preferably a laser level to keep track of square
- Always makes sure internal corners are plumb as it will show on completion
- As for tiling the floor I kinda messed up a bit in the last 3-4 sq m but just keep throwing lines down and checking constantly

 

[Deleted member 1779]

As Dave said. The levels are CRITICAL. Water will settle over a large area at the top. If you can get the coping stones spot on and the top 5 lines of the mosaics right then a lot of what goes on under the water line is distorted to the eye.

Take extra care to set out at the top.

The top five rows of mosaics are critical on the water line...

 

[murf]

you should also try to achieve full contact with
the adhesive. this is usually done by backbuttering the
tiles as well as spreading on the walls and floors.

 

[LM Ceramics]

i personally would use an expoxy grout for pools ive only ever worked on one when i was an apprentice as mentioned the levels are critical they need to be bang on

 

[Spud]

i have tiled a few pools and have one coming up in a couple of weeks time, if you read the back of most grout bags you will find that most grouts are fine to use in swimming pools, i set this kidney shaped pool out with a water level tiled with spf white adhesive and grouted with bal white grout

 

[baz1967]

thanks for all the advice.like lm ceramics,i did a pool 20 years ago as an apprentice,of course i was not the main man on the job. now i am the main man,any **** up is all on me!! i am looking forward to the challenge.the photos above are great,you must be real proud of that job.will invest in a water level for the top courses of tile {100% **** on,the old ways are the best!]and get a rep to call in and offer advice on grout etc,and ask him to give me guarantees on his products,do you think?.