Orlando pool resurfacing
The waterline band takes the worst of evaporation, splash-out and calcium scale. Soft carbonate scale often cleans off; hard silicate scale and worn, cracked or loose tile usually mean a new band. Old tile and mortar come off to the bond beam and new impervious glass or porcelain tile is set and grouted.
The row of tile at the top of the pool wall lives where water, air and sun meet. Every day some water evaporates, and the minerals it carried stay behind; high pH makes dissolved calcium drop out of the water faster. The result is the white or grey crust that builds up along the tile line. Sprinklers and splash-out keep wetting and drying the same band, and a pool that is topped up often with fill water keeps adding calcium. Tile that has been scraped hard for years, grout that has washed out, or tiles that have popped loose from the bond beam are all reasons to take the band off and set a new one.
Not every crusty tile line needs new tile. A drop of dilute acid on the deposit tells you what it is. Calcium carbonate fizzes, is relatively soft, and usually comes off with acid-based cleaners and patient scrubbing. Calcium silicate does not react to acid; it forms slowly over years into a hard grey layer that needs pumice, abrasive pads, or bead blasting with fine glass media at low pressure. If the tile underneath is sound, cleaning may be all it needs. If the glaze is worn through, tiles are cracked, or the tile is dated and the pool is being drained for a new interior anyway, replacement makes more sense.
Waterline tile should be rated impervious, meaning it absorbs almost no water. Glass tile is non-porous and resists staining; porcelain pool tile is dense, low-absorption and comes in more textures at a lower cost per square foot. Natural stone looks good but is more porous and needs sealing. A darker or textured tile hides light scale better than glossy white. Step-edge and bench trim tiles are worth replacing at the same time, since a contrasting edge marks each step for swimmers.
The water is lowered below the tile line, or the pool is emptied if the interior is being redone at the same time. Old tile and mortar are removed back to the concrete bond beam, loose or hollow areas are repaired, and the new tile is set and grouted with materials meant for continuous immersion. Coping sits directly on top of the tile line, so when the coping stones are cracked or loose, replacing the coping in the same job avoids disturbing the new tile twice. For a pool that only needs its stains lifted, an acid wash and drain-clean can also take the carbonate scale off the tile.
What sets the schedule? How many linear feet of tile, whether the water only needs lowering or the pool is being emptied, the condition of the bond beam behind the tile, the tile chosen and its lead time, and any coping work above it.
These usually come up in the same drain, and can be quoted from the same visit:
Loose, cracked or separating pool coping removed to the bond beam and reset in travertine, pavers or concrete.
What it involves →A thin layer of stained plaster removed with diluted acid, or a no-acid drain-and-clean to reset tired water.
What it involves →Worn, etched or stained plaster chipped back and replaced, with the drain-down managed for Central Florida’s groundwater.
What it involves →Free estimate
Tell us where the pool is and what you’re seeing. We’ll call back to book a look at the pool and bring finish samples.
We’ll call to set up a time to see the pool. To talk sooner, call (689) 305-2500
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