Ray Greene, a Toledo Ohio resident, built the first fibreglass/polyester-resin boat in 1942. The boat was constructed using Owens Corning fiberglass fabric and American Cyanamid. In 1932, the first glass fibres and polyester resin were made. The early polyester resin and glass fibres formed the foundation of the composites industry.
The composites industry today is extremely complex. It has many unique fabrication methods, resin systems, and reinforcements. Up until that point, the most common building materials were steel, concrete, and wood. In the 1950s as fibreglass boats became more popular, it was thought to be possible to make a fibreglass swimming pool. The fibreglass pool industry was thus born. Fibreglass is strong, lightweight, and requires little maintenance.
The same basic materials were used to construct boats. At first, fibreglass was viewed with skepticism, as concrete dominated the pool construction at that time. Similarly, boats were reluctant to make the switch from wood to fiberglass. The pool installation methods were also not perfected, causing problems.
The cobalt problem
There was a slowdown in fibreglass pool installation until the 1980s due to perception and lack of marketing. In this time, cobalt spots (black spots) on the surface were a problem. This was caused by blistering. Also, pools that weren’t set up correctly created problems and some of them bowed.
By the end of 1990, installation techniques and fabrication methods had improved significantly. Fabricators searched for ways to eliminate blistering (cobalt).
The first Pool & Spa Marketing article that appeared was Repairing and refinishing fibreglass pools.
