If you have a pool in your backyard, you are probably sensitive about its appearance. After all, it was a major investment and takes up a lot of your landscape. This is why seeing that white build up at the water line of your beautiful pool is so annoying. Yes, it is ‘just’ extra calcium hardening on tiles or concrete, but it’s unsightly and it can make the surfaces rough. When you bring it up to your pool owning friends, they may suggest bead blasting as a solution. There is a good reason for this.
Definition
Bead blasting is a type of abrasive blasting, where an abrasive material is forced against a surface to ‘blast’ away anything that shouldn’t be there. It is used to make surfaces rough, smooth surfaces over, and knock away contaminants. Which it does depends on the type of abrasive you use. Knocking limescale off of tiles requires moderately abrasive materials, and most folks use glass beads. They hook a specially designed blaster to an air compressor, and then fill the blaster with beads. The machine then throws the beads at the surface so hard that it knocks away even the most difficult contaminants, such as limescale.
Benefits
Limescale can be eliminated in a number of ways, including dissolving it in acid or scrubbing it off. Careful monitoring of the water’s chemistry can reduce the amount of calcium that builds up in the first place, and that can make scrubbing it off more practical. However, bead blasting doesn’t use acidic chemicals and can work fast. Catch a video of sand or bead blasting sometime and you will be amazed at how quickly and thoroughly the contaminants are made to disappear. This will make the color of your tiles brighter and the surface nice and smooth.
Any type of blasting really should be done by a professional: it requires specialized equipment and training to do it safely and well. But like many things that professionals do, it can be worth it just for the beautiful finish that you will have afterwards.
If you have any questions about bead blasting or other topics regarding in-ground pools, contact us. We’ll be glad to put our many years of experience at your disposal.