Gunite Pool & Spa Renovations
Why have Patrick’s Pools renovate and marble dust your old Gunite pool?
An old, outdated gunite pool can be brought back to look just as good as any brand new pool built today. New coping, tile, and a fresh marbledust go a very long way towards making your pool look new again. Upgrades like elaborate entrances, waterfalls, sheer descents, fountains, and spas can easily be added to give the pool an entire new dimension. Just like the pools we build, our pool renovations are done with nothing but the best products and attention to detail. Our creative designs coupled with state-of-the-art updates will not only provide a more modern, more attractive poolscape, but will also save time & money, enhance comfort & safety, and ensure a backyard resort that’s simply more enjoyable. A full array of pool renovations & modernizations can include:
- Design modifications to shape, depth, and style
- Custom tile, stone, brick, and masonry
- Expert patio repairs and replacements
- Spas, waterfalls, fountains, and lighting
- Resurfacing with resilient color quartz finish
- Color changing lighting
- Energy saving hybrid pool pumps
Slide 1
Patrick Kenney found this old gunite pool on Dune Road in Westhampton Beach, Southampton abandoned for a number of years before renovation. The pool had been sitting half full with bay water that had come up through the hydrostatic valves. The new homeowner wanted to do a simple straight forward renovation on the pool and a bigger modification on the gunite spa located next to the pool.
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As you can see the spa was in pretty bad shape when we first arrived. The old marbledust was breaking off in chunks and there were several large holes in the shell of the spa.
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The new homeowner decided on a complete makeover of the old spa. He wanted all the options of one of our new spas. His number one concern was that the original spa only had four return jets and he wanted to make sure that he would be getting a really great massage. We planned on a total of 22 hydrotherapy jets. Here we have 3 new jet locations marked.
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Here we have finished drilling a trio of hydrotherapy jet holes. We use a water cooled diamond bit core drill to go through the concrete walls and steel rebar inside the walls of the spa.
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After drilling our holes for the new Waterway air and water hydrotherapy jets we demolish the old floor of the spa to make room for our new channel drain and floor return system. The new floor will include 4 air and water foot massagers.
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Now its time to cut out a channel for our new gunite skimmer. The old skimmer was in bad shape and it also was installed so that the face of the skimmer was showing inside the spa. Our new gunite skimmer that we are installing is recessed behind the spa wall so you can’t see it. It’s a much cleaner look.
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Here is our new gunite skimmer mounted in place. We will now tie in a steel rebar cage around the skimmer and into the rear of the spa wall. Then we pour a concrete block around the skimmer so that it stays attached to the spa wall.
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Here is a wild floor plumbing system we installed to flow enough water to our new 3 hp variable speed pumps while remaining code compliant with what limited space we had. The floor plumbing system also includes 4 air and water hydrotherapy foot massagers. With no available room to stand, much of this plumbing system was built hanging up side down. Notice how all drains are perfectly straight and aligned and all spacing is exact.
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Here we have added our new step entrance to the spa and our new spa floor. As you can see we have also added a spa light niche that will hold an LED color light and have permanently plugged two holes where returns used to be located.
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After all new spa additions and changes have been completed we install a bond coat on the spa shell so that the new marbledust makes a good bond with the spa and won’t flake off years down the road.
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Here is the spa after its fresh marbledust. It has come a long way since the “before” picture at the top of this post. Notice the crystal clear water that is achieved through the saltwater sanitation.
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This is the “after” picture of the gunite pool after it has received new tile and a fresh new white marbledust.
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This is the newly renovated spa in action. All 22 of the Waterway hydrotherapy jets are shooting a swirling mixture of pressurized air and water. This spa gives the user an unmatched massage.
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A few years later the homeowner decided he wanted a new deck and for his pool to have new rainbow stone coping, porcelain mosaic tile, and a blue marbledust. The coping stone is actually petrified wood. Here we are adding a third skimmer to the pool. We also replaced all underground plumbing and the original two skimmers.
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Choosing the coping stone and tile. To the left are the original tiles. On right we have 2 glass mosaics and a porcelain mosaic. The homeowner ended up choosing the tile on far right.
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These are the different shades of blue marbledust the homeowner was given the choice of.
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Here is the fresh new blue marbledust installed on the pool along with the new mosaic porcelain tile and rainbow stone coping.
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This is the finished product. I need to go back and take some pictures on a nicer day.
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Of course the spa had to match.