Hello all, I have a new (35 days) pool and concrete. I had it stamped and my wife and I acid stained it this weekend. We had never done that before, and I wouldnt recommend 1700 sq ft around a pool being someones first job, wow. Anyway, I washed it good and sealed it with SpecChem Surface Shine sealer. Its a solvent based acrylic sealer. There are several things that went wrong. 1) I washed the concrete the afternoon before, and sealed that morning. Less than 12 hours. I know (now) that was not a good idea. 2) I had never sealed before, and used a 1/2" nap roller. I agressively worked it in the grooves to ensure everything was sealed, so I think I overdid it, alot. 3) It rained an hour later. Less than an hour for some of the project, more than an hour later for some of it. So, basically I have a bunch of it that has "blisters" or rain spots, not sure what they are really. It hasnt really dried out enough for it turn white yet, figure they may. Also have plenty of roller marks to address. I used (1) 5 gallon pail for the job, so I dont think I have WAY to much applied, and the manufacturer said that it was not overdone using that amount on 1600-1700 ft of textured surface. Last night I poured a cap full of xylene in one of the bad "water spot" looking areas and smeared it around with a towel. After it dried it appears to have cleared up that test spot and it looks normal now. I just dont know if I should use my sprayer (when it comes in) to spray xylene all over the deck, or do something different. I was told by the sealer company to roll/spray on xylene and let it re-emulsify and dry, then spray a new thin coat over it once it has correct appearance. I just ordered a chapin 19049 sprayer (which was also recommended by sealer company) and it has the extreme viton seals to withstand solvents. I plan to spray another THIN coat on once I get the problems addressed. To add to the difficulty, I want to add some shark grip to it as well. I have read (and was told by chapin and by H&C) that if proper amounts are mixed, and mixed well, it will spray fine. Here are a couple of pics, please help me out and let me know if I am on the right track. Thanks! BEFORE Sealer [IMG]http://i120.photobucket.com/albums/o198/ctfortner/Pool%20Build/IMG03852-20110916-1804.jpg[/IMG] AFTER Sealer and Rain [IMG]http://i120.photobucket.com/albums/o198/ctfortner/Pool%20Build/IMG03866-20110919-1752.jpg[/IMG] [IMG]http://i120.photobucket.com/albums/o198/ctfortner/Pool%20Build/IMG03863-20110918-1257.jpg[/IMG] [IMG]http://i120.photobucket.com/albums/o198/ctfortner/Pool%20Build/IMG03862-20110918-1257.jpg[/IMG] [IMG]http://i120.photobucket.com/albums/o198/ctfortner/Pool%20Build/IMG03867-20110919-1752.jpg[/IMG]

A previous owner built a small cinder block retaining wall, perhaps 50 years ago, between my property and the driveway next door. About 32' feet long, it is now two different heights and is cracked and leaning. I got estimates to tear it down and rebuild a new cinder block wall. It appears that it can be built to be only 3' tall, plus a 12" footing, which is the limit before having to get a permit from the city of Los Angeles. Two contractors ended up bidding against each other, going lower and lower. One is not the person on the license, but I called the license owner and he OKed it. The license owner told me things to look out for in building the wall. For instance, all holes must be filled with cement from top to bottom. He said some contractors make it appear that they've done this when they haven't and the wall is not strong. In the last round of bidding, I asked if all the holes would be filled top to bottom with concrete. The man associated with that contractor said at the current low price he could not afford to do that and neither could the other contractor. He then said that would be as expensive as building a concrete wall, which is a better wall. He gave me a price on a concrete wall--raising the price after I asked how he's going to deal with water runoff so it won't upset the neighbor. I think both men were going to space the cinder blocks at the bottom so the water would weep out, but for the concrete wall he was going to run a pipe to the front of my property and the water would empty onto the sidewalk. He also said that he uses materials superior to those used by most contractors, including 2500 psi concrete, while most use 2000 psi, and US rebar as opposed to Chinese. I would like to know what is really important for building a good wall of this size. Is the difference between cinder block and concrete significant? Are the differences between the concrete and rebar types he mentioned significant? Should 100% of the holes in the cinder block be filled top to bottom, or is there a minimum that is sufficient? What about placement of rebar vertically and horizontally? Should there be sand, gravel or a waterproof material below the dirt next to the wall? If the wall ends up over 3' in any spot, can the city make me tear it down or do anything else? What else do I need to know, and how can I tell if the contractor is doing what he says he's doing, other than paying more for an inspector to watch the process? I would like to go to the store with the person I hire and pay for the materials directly.