Stains the chemical bucket never reaches
Plaster is porous. Season after season in the Arizona sun, minerals, leaf tannins and algae settle into the surface and leave the shell mottled, grey or dark in patches. Brushing and shock treatments work on what sits on top of the plaster. They do not reach what has soaked in, which is why a pool can test perfectly and still look tired.
Acid wash is on our list for exactly that moment: plaster that has stained beyond what chemicals reach. Homeowners in Buckeye and across the West Valley often call after a summer of adding more chemicals and getting nowhere. Text a photo of the pool to (623) 695-9199 and we'll tell you what we see before anyone talks about draining.
Drain, wash, rinse, neutralise, refill
An acid wash starts with an empty pool. The water is pumped out, the shell is wetted, and a diluted acid solution is worked across the plaster in sections. It lifts a thin skin of stained material along with the discolouration, which is why the finish comes back even and pale instead of blotchy.
The order matters more than the acid. Rinse well, neutralise what is left, flush the debris out, then refill. Skipping the neutralising step is how a pool ends up with rough, etched plaster and water that will not hold its balance. The steps, the edges and the area around fittings are where careful hands show.
An empty pool also lets you see the whole shell for once: hairline cracks, hollow spots, worn steps, tired edges around the fittings. Most owners never get that look at their own pool, so we point out what we see as we go. We tell you what we find, in plain words, before any further work is quoted.
Acid wash, drain and fill, or coating: which one the pool needs
These three jobs get confused because they all involve an empty or dry pool. Acid wash is for stained plaster. A drain and fill is for water that has gone stale with dissolved solids, even when the plaster looks fine. A coating is for plaster that is rough or worn, not just stained. Some pools need more than one.
There is no published price list for restoration, because the number depends on the pool in front of us. We look first, then give you one flat quote. The $1 first month is for new weekly-service customers only, so acid washes, like green cleanups, are quoted separately. Call or text (623) 695-9199 and we'll sort out which job fits.
