Services
Gunite & Shotcrete Construction
Gunite is concrete sprayed through a hose under pressure onto a cage of steel reinforcement. It is what a permanent pool is actually made of.
The difference people ask about first: gunite is a dry mix, carried through the hose dry and hydrated at the nozzle by the operator. Shotcrete is a wet mix, batched before it is pumped. Both are pneumatically applied concrete and both build a monolithic shell. The dry mix gives the nozzleman more control over water content on site, which is why it stays common on pools with complex shapes.
Before any concrete moves, the excavation is shaped and the rebar cage is tied to the design, with the plumbing set and pressure tested. The shell inherits everything about that cage. Bar spacing, lap length and steel placement are decided here and cannot be corrected afterwards.
After application the shell is cured. The American Concrete Institute guidance for shotcrete, ACI 506, treats curing as part of the work rather than a waiting period, and concrete is generally specified to reach its design strength at twenty eight days. Keeping the surface wet through that window is the cheapest thing anybody does on a pool build and the most expensive thing to skip.
How it goes
- 01
Layout and excavation
The shape is staked to the plan and dug to grade, accounting for soil and access.
- 02
Steel and plumbing
The rebar cage is tied and the circulation lines are set, then pressure tested before they are buried.
- 03
Application
Concrete is applied pneumatically, carved to the profile, and cut to the finished line.
- 04
Cure
The shell is kept wet through the cure window before tile, coping and interior finish begin.
Questions we get asked
Gunite is a dry concrete mix hydrated at the nozzle by the operator. Shotcrete is a wet mix batched before pumping. Both are pneumatically applied and both produce a monolithic pool shell. The dry mix gives more on site control of water content.
Concrete is generally specified to reach design strength at twenty eight days. The shell is kept wet through that window. Tile and interior finish work usually begins before full cure, but the structural clock still runs to twenty eight days.
Often yes. Slope changes the engineering rather than ruling the pool out, and usually means a taller bond beam or a retaining structure on the downhill side. It is decided at the site visit, because access for the equipment matters as much as the grade.