Concrete swimming pools built during the COVID-era construction boom are failing at alarming rates, with repair bills that can climb into the hundreds of thousands of dollars, according to a recent episode of The Building Texas Show. Recorded live at the San Antonio Home and Garden Show and released on September 14, 2026, the episode features Jeff and Kelley Turner, owners of Staycation Fiberglass Pools, who explain why homeowners across Texas are increasingly choosing fiberglass over concrete.

Speaking in the second installment of the show's San Antonio Home and Garden Series, the Turners describe the rise of alkali-silica reaction (ASR), commonly known as "concrete cancer," in pools built during and after the pandemic. ASR is a recognized durability problem in concrete, in which alkalis in cement react with silica in certain aggregates, producing expansion and cracking that worsen over time. Many of these pools are disintegrating, they say, forcing complete tear-outs that cost between $200,000 and $400,000 — and because most builders carry no insurance to cover such repairs, those costs can fall directly on homeowners.

A central issue highlighted in the episode is that Texas requires no certification to build a pool. Jeff Turner pointed to the disparity: "In Texas, you need more certifications to do hair than you do to build a pool. It's wild. And you need to be a chemist to be a hairdresser, and you don't need to be a chemist to build a pool." Although PHTA (Pool and Hot Tub Association) certification exists, it is voluntary, leaving homeowners responsible for verifying a builder's qualifications on their own — a task that carries more weight when a defective build can mean a six-figure tear-out.

The episode also examines what separates a genuine turnkey fiberglass quote from a low bid. According to the Turners, engineering plans, proper bonding, correctly sized pump equipment, and full deck scope are critical components that cut-rate contracts omit. They further stress the importance of manufacturer warranties, pointing to San Juan, with more than 70 years in business, and Australia-based Aqua Technics as benchmarks for warranty coverage.

Kelley Turner offered a memorable analogy for the builder-manufacturer relationship: "You're dating us as a builder…" She explained that a warranty's value depends on the manufacturer's stability and the builder's adherence to proper installation practices.

The Turners also recounted a recent hybrid negative-edge rebuild in Dripping Springs, where they rescued a one-year-old pool that looked thirty years old after the original fiberglass installer left it in poor condition. The full build sequence, including a 30-foot infinity edge overlooking the Hill Country, is available in the episode's video.

The couple credit training from Jason Hughes and River Pools, based in Virginia and Illinois, with shaping their approach to client education. Homeowners can view completed projects at staycationfiberglasspools.com.

For homeowners weighing their next steps, the episode frames the practical checkpoints clearly: confirm a builder's credentials, insist on engineering plans and proper bonding in any quote, and weigh warranty terms against the track record of the manufacturer behind them. The episode is part of an ongoing series profiling the builders and entrepreneurs shaping the Texas economy, with new episodes posted two to three times a week.