Finding a crack in your pool is unsettling. Many are only in the plaster and are a sign of age. Others run through the concrete shell and get worse with every season of North Texas soil movement. Telling them apart early matters.
Surface Cracks
Fine, shallow cracks that look like a spider web or an eggshell pattern are usually in the plaster only. They are common in older surfaces and don't leak. They do tell you the plaster is aging, and they tend to stain and roughen over time.
Structural Cracks
A structural crack goes through the shell itself. These are the ones to take seriously.
- The crack is wide enough to catch a fingernail, or is getting longer.
- It runs through the tile line and up into the coping or deck.
- One side of the crack sits higher than the other.
- The pool is losing water.
- It follows a straight line across the floor or up a wall.
What Causes Them Here
Expansive clay soil is the main cause in DFW. It swells when wet and shrinks when dry, and the pool shell is caught in the middle. Leaks make it worse by soaking the soil unevenly. Hard freezes, a deck pushing against the pool, and simple age all add to it.
Why It Shouldn't Wait
A structural crack lets water out into the soil behind the pool, which moves the soil more, which opens the crack further. Left alone, a repair that could have been limited to one area can spread to tile, coping and decking.
How Cracks Are Repaired
We start by working out whether the crack is in the surface or the shell, and whether it is leaking. Surface cracking is dealt with when the pool is replastered. A structural crack is repaired in the shell itself first, and the surface is finished over it. You get a clear explanation of what we found and a firm price.
Found a crack?
Send us a photo or call. We'll tell you whether it's cosmetic or needs attention.