frequently asked questions

Concrete shells are formed on site and finished with plaster, so the shape is unlimited and the surface gets resurfaced roughly every decade. Vinyl pools use a wall system with a replaceable liner, which costs less upfront and swaps out faster.

Plan on roughly 10 years, though water chemistry and how hard the pool gets used can shorten or stretch that. Rough texture underfoot, spreading stains, chalky residue on your hands and hollow sounding patches all say the finish is failing.

Most inground liners last 8 to 12 years, and the printed warranty usually outlives the real service life by a wide margin. Sun exposure, water chemistry and how carefully the pool is closed each winter make the biggest difference.

Losing more than a quarter-inch a day, soggy ground beside the deck, air bubbles at the returns or a pump that keeps losing prime all point to a leak. A simple bucket test separates evaporation from genuine water loss.

Usually, yes. If the shell is structurally sound, new interior finish, waterline tile, coping, decking and equipment can modernize a pool completely. Dockery's Pools and Patios only recommends full replacement in Gastonia, NC when the structure itself has genuinely failed.

Waterline tile typically holds up 5 to 10 years before scale, freeze damage or bond failure starts loosening pieces. Tile set on a properly prepared bond beam and kept clear of heavy calcium buildup will often last considerably longer.

Loose tile almost always means moisture or movement behind it rather than defective tile. Shell settlement, a failed bond coat, calcium scale forcing its way through grout lines and repeated freeze cycles all push pieces off the wall.

Surface work such as new plaster or a liner usually runs 1 to 3 weeks. Larger renovations that add tile, coping, decking or new plumbing typically take 4 to 8 weeks depending on weather and material lead times.

Hairline and surface cracking resurfaces well once the underlying cause is corrected. Deep structural cracks, sections that have settled and crumbling edges mean the slab has lost its support, and an overlay laid over that will fail again.

4 inches over a properly compacted base handles patios and walkways comfortably. Driveways, equipment pads and anything carrying vehicle weight step up to 5 or 6 inches, with reinforcement and control joints placed to manage where cracking happens.

Light foot traffic is generally fine after about 24 to 48 hours. Furniture and heavier loads should wait about a week, and the slab keeps gaining strength for roughly 28 days before it reaches its full design cure.

Yes, and missing drainage is the single most common reason walls fail. Water trapped behind a wall multiplies the pressure pushing on it, so gravel backfill, filter fabric and a drain line belong behind every structural wall we build.

Walls under about 4 feet are usually built without engineered drawings. Above that height, or on slopes and beside driveways where extra load sits behind the wall, permits and stamped engineered plans are typically part of the process.

Partial removal punches the shell, collapses the walls inward and backfills the void, which costs less but restricts what you can build on that spot later on. Full removal takes out the entire structure and restores genuinely buildable ground.

We break up the shell, haul out all the debris, then backfill in compacted layers instead of dumping soil in all at once. That compaction is what prevents the settling and low spots that otherwise appear years afterward.