Thank you for answering - and for your honesty! One thing I want to clarify is that the pool was never painted blue. It was a white plaster that was then painted with a medium gray in a "marbleized" effect to make the reflection of the sky appear a darker blue. What puzzles me is that the acid washing seemed to alter the gray color, giving it a yellow green effect which is changing the water color (at least we think that's what happened. No one has drained the pool again). I do believe the pool guy last year either did an acid start up or a later acid bath.
The product I saw online is a poly covering, no primers, claims to be used in water parks etc. I actually talked to the guy on the phone, older gentleman (maybe at least my age!) and he seemed pretty genuine. As you may see, I'm on a mission!
I understand now and I've seen those kinds of finishes. They're very attractive. I looked at the link and it's an epoxy paint which is one of the more difficult paints to work with for the reasons already stated. I've used it a few times and can't say I like to deal with it. At the Y I used rubber based paint which worked well for high traffic areas.
The link also says "High Performance Hybrid-Epoxy Coating". Hybrid seems to be the catch phrase now. I tried to get the MSDS online but can't find anything. The product might be from Rust-Oleum which is a good brand of paint. It did give a few bullet points of:
Covers in one coat!!!
• Easier Surface Preparation and Application.
• Requires no primers, top coats or sealers.
• Acid washing is not suggested or recommended.
• 15 year factory warranty.
• Use on concrete, gunite, aggregate or fiberglass.
If the chemicals are right what you're probably seeing is an optical illusion with the water. The water will take on the color of the finish due to the refraction and reflection of the light in the water, similar to when you put a stick in the water, it seems to bend. I had a pebble tec pool on my route that was almost black which caused the water to appear black, even at 1pm. It was difficult to tell whether the pool was dirty or not because the surface and water were so dark.
At any rate, hope this helps out and perhaps points you in the right direction. Good luck with your mission.
