We posted a blog article this past Spring titled Eliminate Pool Deck Trip Hazards Before the Summer. In case you missed it, here’s an excerpt…
There are a couple very common causes for the soil washout that creates the environment for a sinking pool deck slab:
- Cracks in the pool structure leaking water into and soil and washing it out.
- Loose back-fill on sloping properties.
The first cause is pretty self explanatory. The second cause may need a little elaboration. Basically, if a pool is built on sloping property, the construction team will back-fill soil onto the side of the pool that needs it. If this soil is not compacted properly, it can start to washout over time.
Regardless of the cause, soil washout removes support from the pool deck slab and creates the condition for sinking.
In our blog post Atlanta Area Pool Deck Repair, we describe the GCS pool deck repair process from an actual job…
We repaired the problem by first filling the void with high strength polyurethane foam, and then leveling the sunken slabs. The foam strengthens the soil as it cures, to prevent it from washing out. In addition to the incredible strength of the foam, its light weight provides an advantage over alternate methods such as “mudjacking” with cementitious grout. Heavier cement-based grouts will often sink or slide over time.
An additional advantage was the reduction of trip hazards due the leveling of the slabs. Potential injury and litigation risks due to unlevel slabs were eliminated.
This repair took a maximum of about 6 hours. The pool deck was ready for use 30 minutes after the crew cleaned up and left. The customer was happy with the efficient and thorough repair job.