Pool repair for hail damage starts with one question: is your pool marbelite or fibreglass? The two finishes break in different ways. Marbelite chips and pits where stones land. Fibreglass spider-cracks, and sometimes the damage runs through to the laminate underneath.
The right repair depends on what the stones did, and that is not always visible the morning after. Below you will find what to look for, what to do in the first two days, and how to choose between a patch and a full refinish.
How hail damages marbelite and fibreglass differently
Hail does not load a pool surface the way water or a swimmer does. A stone delivers a sharp shock to one small point. Whether the finish absorbs it, chips or cracks depends on what it is made of and how old it is. That is why hail damage pool repair looks so different from one pool to the next.
Marbelite: chips and rough patches
Marbelite is a cement-and-marble-aggregate plaster, and it is hard and rigid. A direct hit tends to chip it rather than crack the whole surface. You see pale, rough spots where the finish has broken away. A localised chip can often be patched with a fresh skim coat.
The weakness is what happens next. Rough patches tend to hold algae and stains more readily than the smooth finish around them. A chip that looks minor in October can be a dark, stubborn mark by February.
Fibreglass: cracks in the gelcoat and hidden delamination
The gelcoat on a fibreglass pool is a thin resin skin over a structural laminate. Smaller hail dulls and pits it. Bigger stones leave star-shaped cracks radiating from the impact point. Some of those cracks stay in the gelcoat. Others run into the laminate, and you cannot tell which from a glance.
A gentle tap test around the crack tells you more than your eyes do. Listen for a hollow sound and feel for give. The trickiest damage is delamination, where a hard hit loosens the bond between gelcoat and laminate without cracking the surface. Water can work into the gap over the following weeks. A soft, slightly raised patch then appears well after the storm.
Pool surface repair after hail therefore starts with finding out how deep each mark goes. Covering it comes later, if at all. A pool that looks fine the day after can still need attention a month on.
What age does to the odds
Older finishes take the worst of it on either material. Gelcoat that is already chalky and UV-worn is more brittle, so it cracks at a lower impact than fresh gelcoat. Worn, rough marbelite chips more easily and shows the damage sooner. The oldest pools on a Kempton Park street are the ones most likely to show hail damage first.
| Finish | What hail typically leaves | Usual repair route |
|---|---|---|
| Marbelite | Chips and rough, pitted spots at impact points | Patch with a fresh skim coat; remarbelite if damage is widespread |
| Fibreglass, light damage | Dull, gritty patches with no visible crack | Buff back and recoat |
| Fibreglass, star cracks | Fine white spidering around an impact point | Grind back, resin and matting where needed, fresh gelcoat |
| Fibreglass, delamination | Soft, slightly raised patch weeks after the storm | Cut out, rebuild the laminate, new gelcoat |
| Either finish, through-shell crack | Water level dropping faster than evaporation explains | Full crack repair, then a leak test |
The first 48 hours after a hailstorm
The instinct is to grab a tub of pool filler and close up the obvious marks. Resist it. Quick fixes are where repairing a pool after hail tends to go wrong. Filling a crack that runs into the laminate traps moisture behind a surface that looks sound, and the repair fails again within a season. A short, calm sequence works better:
- Photograph every mark in daylight, close up and from a distance, and note the date.
- Clear broken debris and leaves from the pool and skimmer basket.
- Mark the water level and run a bucket test over 24 hours to rule out a crack that goes through the shell.
- Check the surface by hand for rough patches, lifting edges and soft spots.
- Book an inspection before you patch anything yourself.
The order matters. Photographs come first because the pool changes once you start cleaning and testing, and you want a record of its original state. The bucket test comes before any patching because it tells you whether you face a surface problem or a leak. A leak changes the whole job, and storm damage pool repair then becomes crack repair first and cosmetics second.
Do the bucket test properly. Float a bucket of pool water on a step so the water inside and outside sits at the same level, and mark both. After 24 hours, compare them. If the pool has dropped more than the bucket, the difference is water going somewhere other than the sky.
Trademen Pools normally responds the same day or the following day, depending on pressure. A hailstorm hits a whole suburb, so calls bunch up. Photos taken in advance speed up the inspection.
Pool repair for hail damage: patch it or refinish the whole pool?
A few isolated impacts on a sound finish suit a spot repair. Widespread pitting, many cracks or a finish that was already tired suit a full refinish. The honest answer depends on three things: how many impacts, how deep they go, and how old the finish was before the storm.
Trademen Pools quotes spot repairs after a site inspection, because nobody can price a crack they have not looked at. A full refinish carries one overall price. For a 6×4 pool, remarbelite costs about R18,000 and fibreglass refinishing (refibreglass) about R25,000. Either takes three to five days. Small extras such as a light change or a sand change fold into that single price instead of appearing as separate line items.
Refinishing makes sense when you would otherwise patch a pool that was heading for a refinish anyway. You spend once rather than twice. Marbelite goes on and cures overnight. On fibreglass, the pool is plastered and left to dry completely before resin and gelcoat go on and cure. You can read more about both on our pool resurfacing page.
Both finishes have their place. Marbelite gives a classic matte plaster look and patches readily. Fibreglass gives a smoother surface with a slight sheen. If you are weighing a switch while the pool is empty, independent supplier Pool Guru sets out the differences between marbelite and fibreglass pools. Northern Pool Services offers a second view in its marbelite and fibreglass comparison.
One thing to check before you call anyone
If the pool was refinished recently, check your guarantee terms. Trademen Pools guarantees run for 5 years on remarbelite, 5 years on refibreglass, 10 years on the concrete shell and 1 year on piping. They cover normal failures. They do not cover damage from natural causes such as weather, so a hail-damaged pool falls outside them. Knowing that up front saves a frustrating conversation later.
Protecting the pool before the next storm
You cannot stop hail, but you can change what reaches the surface. Many pools sit fully exposed, with no trees, overhangs or permanent cover to break the impact. Anything between the sky and the finish absorbs energy that would otherwise hit it.
The other protection is condition. A sound finish takes a hit better than a chalky, UV-worn one, so the best pool repair for hail damage is a finish that was in good shape before the storm. Refinishing an ageing pool before storm season does that job as well as the cosmetic one. A maintenance contract keeps small defects from growing into bigger ones. Trademen Pools handles all work in-house, so the team that inspects the pool is the team that repairs it.
Frequently asked questions
Is it safe to swim after hail?
Only if the damage is dull patches with no cracks and no water loss. Cracked, soft or leaking areas need inspection first.
Can I fix hail damage on a pool myself?
Surface pitting is a cosmetic fix, but cracks are not. A patch over a crack that reaches the laminate or shell hides the problem and lets moisture build up behind it. Have the pool assessed first.
How do I know if my pool has a leak after hail?
Do the bucket test described above. If the pool drops more than the bucket over 24 hours, a crack may run through the shell. You then need a crack repair and a leak test.
Will hail damage show up straight away?
Not always. Delamination in fibreglass can appear weeks after the storm as a soft, raised patch. Check the surface again a month later.
For pool repair for hail damage in Kempton Park, send your photos and the date of the storm as soon as the pool is safe to inspect. Trademen Pools visits the same or the following day, tells you whether the pool needs a patch or a refinish, and puts the quote in writing after the site visit.
Not sure how deep the hail damage goes?
A chip in marbelite can stain, and water can work in behind fibreglass gelcoat, so the sooner someone checks, the more likely a patch is enough. Request a quote for your Kempton Park pool, or email us for a non-binding quotation.