PEBBLECRETE / MATERIAL LIBRARY

Application Techniques

Plan the work beneath and around the pool finish. These checks help the project team prepare for professional application.

What needs to be ready beneath the finish?

A decorative finish depends on the construction beneath it. PebbleCrete does not replace structural repairs or the project’s required waterproofing system.

Before finishing begins, check the condition of the shell and render and agree the preparation and bonding requirements. Weak or detached render must be addressed before it is covered. Investigate cracks to establish their cause and whether they are moving; the repair or joint detail must respond to that finding.

The project specification should identify how the pool will be made watertight and confirm compatibility with the finish system. A decorative coating must not be treated as a remedy for an unexplained leak. Complete the specified waterproofing and water testing at the agreed stage, and record acceptance before the relevant work is covered.

Coordinate fittings, lights, drains and overflow edges before the finishing visit. Complete nearby dusty or heavy work and clean the pool and associated tanks. Confirm that circulation equipment works and that suitable filling water is available. Measure clearances with the intended finish thickness allowed for, so covers and fittings will still fit. Mixing, exposure and startup must follow the current approved method.

Where the finish sits in the pool system

The visible surface is one part of a coordinated build-up. Reading it as four layers makes the responsibilities clear.

Layer	What it does
Pool water	The finish is always viewed through it. Depth, light and water chemistry all act on what you see.
Exposed aggregate finish	Visible particles held in a cement matrix. Nominal applied thickness 10 mm.
Bond coat	Connects the finish to its prepared base. On a renovation this layer is not optional.
Prepared watertight base	The structural shell and the specified preparation, levelling and waterproofing.

The finishing layer gives the pool its colour and texture, but its geometry follows the prepared base. Wall alignment, falls, step shapes and any major level correction belong to preparation, not to finishing. A finish applied over weak render, contamination or an incompatible layer can fail even where the aggregate itself is sound.

Before the application visit

Check	Project-team action
Sound substrate	Investigate moving cracks and weak or hollow render; agree repairs and acceptance before covering them.
Waterproofing and water testing	Confirm the specified system, compatibility and responsible party; record completion and acceptance.
Fittings and levels	Check lights, drains, covers, fittings, steps and overflow levels before the finish changes clearances.
Other construction	Finish nearby dusty or heavy work; prevent later debris, impact and chemical contamination.
Pool and tanks	Remove construction debris and clean associated tanks and circulation areas.
Filling and operation	Arrange suitable water, working circulation equipment and the agreed startup handover.

New pools and renovations

The existing structure and the condition of the receiving surface determine the preparation scope.

A new concrete pool

Coordinate the shell, penetrations, waterproofing, levelling, tile interfaces and finish build-up before the final surfaces are formed. Water testing and acceptance of the prepared base should be complete at the stage the pool designer defines. Finishing should not be used to conceal unresolved construction defects.

An existing tiled or plastered pool

A renovation starts with an inspection. Hollow, loose or deteriorated layers need assessment and removal — tap the old surface and listen for hollow spots. Even if the old finish remains attached in places, it is not necessarily a sound base throughout. A bond coat is required. The contractor should define what is to be removed, repaired, retained and tested before a finishing price is treated as a complete renovation price.

Renovation is also the moment to review leaks, fittings, lighting, step geometry, coping, drainage and equipment. Resolve water loss by diagnosing the structure, pipework, joints and penetrations. A generic instruction to coat or fill every junction is not a substitute for finding the cause.

Three matters to settle before finishing

Condition. Agree the accepted substrate, any repair work and the required water test. Photograph the prepared pool and record the inspection.
Dimensions. Allow for the build-up around drains, lights, inlets, step markers, coping and waterline materials. Agree the completed levels, not only the unfinished shell dimensions.
Readiness. Complete overhead work and anything else that could contaminate or damage the surface. Have the fill-water supply and operating equipment ready.

A finish quotation and a renovation quotation cover different work. Ask for the preparation scope in writing: demolition, structural repairs, waterproofing, rendering, equipment changes and the decorative finish should each have a named responsibility.

What happens on site

The sequence below is an overview. The applicator works to the current instructions issued for the selected product and project.

Confirm the prepared base. The team checks the agreed substrate, levels, transitions and readiness. The bonding arrangement must suit both the prepared surface and the finish.
Measure and mix. The supplied material, white Portland cement and clean water are measured to the current instructions. Mix full batches only, with exactly the same quantity of cement and water each time, and make sure no water is lost during mixing. Repeatable batches matter: an unplanned change to water or ingredients changes both handling and appearance.
Place, compact and trowel. The material is worked into a continuous layer. Compaction and careful trowelling consolidate the mix, shape the surface and keep the aggregate properly embedded. Always keep a wet edge. Detailed areas need deliberate workmanship.
Expose the aggregate. Controlled brushing and washing reveal the particles while retaining the cement matrix that binds them. Timing and degree of exposure affect both appearance and feel. This is a specialist stage, not ordinary cleaning.
Complete the prescribed finishing treatment. The applicator completes the specified final wash and checks. Any acid treatment belongs to the controlled installation method, with the correct precautions and protection of adjacent materials — it is not an owner maintenance shortcut.
Fill and begin the agreed start-up. Once the installer releases the pool, filling begins promptly and continues without interruption. The finish cures under water. The start-up programme then governs circulation, brushing, testing and chemical adjustment.

For planning: one 25 kg bag covers approximately 1.8 m² at 10 mm. Weather, access, pool geometry and the accepted substrate all affect the programme, so a single generic installation duration or coverage rate cannot replace a measured project plan. Where colour consistency across a large pool matters, discuss batch planning before the visit.

Steps, waterline and coping

Small details decide whether a pool reads clearly. Agree them before installation, not during it.

Contrasting step markers

The continuous finish can follow steps and curved surfaces. Contrasting markers make individual treads easier to identify against the pool background. Agree the marker layout with the complete step design — tread depth, riser height, edge shape and the expected water level. Set markers securely and finish their interfaces carefully; avoid projecting corners or sharp changes at the contact surface. Where PVC spacers are used, choose a spacer colour that blends with the finish rather than creating a visible dividing line.

A tiled waterline under coping

The waterline is exposed to changing water levels and to the deposits that gather at the air-water interface. A band of pool-suitable tile creates a distinct, maintainable zone above the exposed aggregate interior. Select tile, grout, adhesive and joints as a coordinated immersed-pool detail, and set the band against the actual operating water level and coping position.

Polished waterline bands

A smooth aggregate band is another way to define the waterline. In these details the word terrazzo describes an aggregate surface ground or polished to a smoother face — it describes the treatment, not a different product. A band can use a complementary colour or a deliberate contrast to the main interior.

Agree its height, finished thickness, edge shape, junctions and intended cleaning method, and keep the operating water level inside the area designed to be cleaned. Review a finished sample: a polished aggregate surface can look quite different from the exposed version of the same blend.

A visually flush edge does not mean the layers can be merged without considering movement and water management. Coping, deck and shell may have different construction requirements, and the designer resolves those connections before the finish is applied.

Practical lessons from pool projects

The photographs below are details from pool projects, cropped to show what went wrong rather than where. The first shows a PebbleCrete floor in sound condition for comparison; each of the others sits with its lesson. Select a photograph to view it in full.

The explanations below are current guidance. Use current project documentation for application and startup; historical captions and demonstrations may describe earlier practices.

A finish in sound condition

A pool floor in white exposed aggregate, seen from above through clear water, with pale stone plus amber, rust, blue and turquoise glass crystals standing proud of a white matrix and ripple light crossing the surface.

A PebbleCrete floor in sound condition under clear water: stone and glass crystals standing evenly proud of the matrix, edges crisp, nothing dulling or clouding the surface. Compare the defect photographs below against this benchmark.

Unfinished work around the pool

A flat, dusty grey surface scattered with bent steel offcuts, loose steel rods, a claw hammer, a broom lying on a loose timber board and a sheet of cardboard, beside a long curved channel holding steel reinforcing bars and an upright timber board propped with short timber struts. — Steel offcuts, tools and timber left on a finished surface during other works.

Curved steps lead down into an empty pool. Timber props stand on the higher ground behind them, in front of a white wall. — Curved steps with temporary props still in place.

Complete nearby dusty and heavy work before the finish is applied. Plan protection against later debris, impact and chemical contamination.

Exposed steel and cracks

A hand reaches down and points at a small brown spot on a pale, lightly speckled surface. A shadow falls across the lower half of the frame. — A small rust spot on the surface.

Investigate exposed reinforcement and cracks before covering them. The repair detail must address the cause, movement and project specification; one repair material is not a universal answer.

A dirty working area

A smooth pale grey pool floor. Along its back edge are a blue tarp, a line of rubble, a stepladder, red hoses, a bucket and a yellow paint tin, and a worker's legs and boots stand on the floor. — Other trades working on and beside a newly finished floor.

Close view of the face of a pool wall meeting the pale floor beside it. The wall runs off the top of the frame and is streaked the whole way down with dried grey runs and a few small rust-brown blotches, the streaking deepening almost to black towards the right-hand end. A dark shadow line marks where the wall meets the floor, with a narrow lit edge above it along the right-hand half. Below, the pale, chalky floor slab is smudged grey-brown along the base of the wall and scattered with small dark flecks further out. — Cement slurry run-off dried on a finished wall and floor because it was not washed off while wet.

A heap of loose reddish earth and broken stone banked up against the pale surround of an empty pool, with soil and dust lying on the surround, a granular exposed-aggregate edge band below it, and a single row of dark teal waterline tiles below that, dry with no water against them. — Soil and dust from landscaping work settling on the finished edge band and waterline tiles.

Keep access and the application area clear and clean. Remove construction materials and contamination before the finishing team starts.

Covers and fittings that no longer fit

Steel bar-grating panels laid over a rectangular opening in a pale floor. The right-hand panel stops short of the rim on that side, leaving part of the opening uncovered, and a tapered slot runs between the two panels, so the dark void below shows through both gaps. Brown staining runs down the grating beside the uncovered section, and the floor and the rim around the opening carry dark smears, brown discolouration and loose dirt. — A drain grating that no longer fits its recess, with dirt left around it.

Check grilles, screens, drains and other fittings with the intended finish thickness allowed for. Resolve clearances before application.

Debris in sumps, tanks and drains

A linear metal grating of closely spaced pale bars, several of them carrying ochre-brown deposits in specks and short streaks, with a plain pale deck below it marked by brown blotching, overlapping circular ring marks and dried drip trails. — Construction deposits dried on a grating and the deck beside it.

Clean the pool and associated water-storage and circulation areas after construction. Debris left outside the visible pool can return when filling or circulation begins.

Dirty filling water

A curved pool channel stands part-full of opaque orange-brown water, with smooth pale walls, a dark tile band below the coping, and bare loose earth and scattered rubble running up to both edges. — Muddy site water left standing in a channel beside open earthworks.

A floor covered in brown silt and sand, marked with drag streaks and dried tide lines, with shallow dirty water lying in the low points. — Silt and dirty water left on a finished floor.

Do not fill a newly finished pool with dirty or contaminated water. Check the water source, storage tanks and delivery hoses before the finishing date. Clear-looking water still needs appropriate testing; retain the results to help assess staining risks.

Using a finished pool for storage

Concrete planks with ribbed undersides and small wire loops on top sit stacked on a smooth pale grey floor beside a tall wall, with thin boards under only part of the load, the nearest planks resting directly on the floor, and dark scraps and a red loop lying loose beside them. — Heavy materials stored directly on a finished floor.

A black drum with a white label stands on a wet floor stained green and yellow, beside a grey wall. Sunlight falls across the lower left of the floor. — A drum left standing on a finished floor.

Keep tools, building materials and debris out of the completed pool. Coordinate filling and handover with the approved startup programme.

Damage across different pool surfaces

A round wall fitting set into an empty pool wall, with a cable threaded out through its opening, rust staining down the inside of the ring and brown staining on the wall around it, the surrounding surface layer flaked and lifted away to the bare gritty layer beneath, stained horizontal cracks running across the wall above, and broken render and tile fragments banked against the base. — A corroded wall fitting with rust staining and damaged surface around it.

A rust-coloured streak runs from a small round light fitting set in a pale pool wall down to the junction with the floor, where a broad tan stain has dried in a fan across the dry pale surface. — Rust staining from a light fitting, left to dry while the pool stood empty.

Marks, damaged grout or deteriorating surfaces need investigation of the water history, construction and affected layers. A finish should not be assumed immune to aggressive chemistry.

Aggressive acid cleaning

Concentrated acid left on a cementitious finish can damage its surface. Agree a cleaning or repair procedure for the actual condition; do not experiment with stronger acid or prolonged contact.

Project videos

Original footage from the earlier technical library: a filling example and brush exposure. These short archive clips show parts of past projects; they are not the complete current application or startup procedure.

Filling a new PebbleCrete Glass pool

An earlier filling example. Confirm the water source, cleanliness and approved startup arrangements before the finish is applied.

Watch on YouTube

Brush exposure on site

An earlier on-site demonstration. Confirm the exposure method for the exact material with the current approved application documentation.

Watch on YouTube

Open the original technical page and video archive

Technical documentation for the project

Public planning guidance and the detailed application method serve different purposes. Before installation, obtain the current instructions for the exact material and agreed system, and confirm the applicator understands the requirements.

Document or information	What to confirm
Product information and safety data	The exact product or component, revision and supplied package.
Approved application method	Preparation, materials, mixing, exposure and startup for the agreed system.
Project responsibilities	Who supplies cement and other components; who accepts the substrate and waterproofing; who carries out application and startup.
Test evidence, where required	The method, tested surface or assembly and the limits of the reported result.
Site records and handover	Approved sample, material and batch details, observations and startup/care records.

Request project technical information

Detailed mixing ratios, exposure procedures and day-by-day startup instructions are supplied through the approved project documentation. Confirm the current revision with your project team before work begins.

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