Everyday Weather versus Freezing Ice Storms

The state of Texas suffered severe ice, wind, and snowstorms that was astronomical and lasted just over a week. It was something that Texas had not experienced before. Texas has had snow before but nothing like this winter storm.

This storm caused many homes to be without power, water, and gas. There were many homes that suffered damages due to extensive freezing that was created by the winter storm. This included waterlines, water heaters, electrical outages, electrical panels, structural damages, and swimming pools.

Swimming Pool Inspection Services spoke with Stephen Frederick, the homeowner. Mr. Frederick said that he has an in-ground pool with an attached spa that usually runs all year. When the weather gets cold, the antifreeze safety system on the pool equipment turns on to avoid freezing. Mr. Frederick explained that he lost power for quite a while during the storms, preventing the safety equipment to turn on to prevent the pool from freezing. The pool pump is no longer in working order. The insured can visibly see leaking within the equipment. The heater manifold and PVC at the heater are all broken with visible damage. The pool interior is white plaster, which was re-plastered about 8 years ago, along with a complete pool renovation including new equipment, new plaster, new tile, and coping. The decking was not renovated and is still in good working condition. The pool only loses water when the equipment is on due to the leaks which are visible. When the equipment is shut-off, the pool is no longer losing water. The insured mentioned that the plaster looks like it is in good shape.

Our inspector visited the above property. The water level in the pool and spa were at their recommended level, with the water clear. There was visible dirt and leaf debris in the water in both pool and spa, due to the water unable to be filtered. The pool and spa had no signs of damage to the structure and were intact. Interior plaster, coping, and decking were in okay condition. The mastic was new in age but showed freezer damage with visible cracking. The main VS pump, booster pump, and filter cartridge were damaged and leaking. The heater had broken piping in the unit and was damaged. The PVC piping, chlorinator and two housing skimmers were damaged and cracked. All filtering systems were not able to be fully assessed, due to the equipment not being able to be turned on to run the pump. Additional damages may be discovered once the equipment is replaced, and the filtering system is in proper working order.

Once the equipment is replaced, the entire system should be fully assessed to check for any additional damages. The equipment will need to be fully replaced along with the mastic. The two skimmer housings that were cracked from freeze damage can be repaired by re-bonding them.

It was the opinion of our inspector that current condition of the 2 skimmer housings, mastic, VS pump, booster pump, filter cartridge, heater, chlorinator, and some cracked PVC piping were the result of the freezing weather storms.