Swansea pool tiling, from the city to the Gower coast.

The kinds of pools we see in and around Swansea

As a university city with a long seafront, Swansea has a mix of public leisure pools, school and university pools, hotel and spa pools, and health clubs. Out towards Mumbles and along the Gower there are private pools in homes and holiday lets.

A pool in a holiday let is often busiest in the summer and barely used in winter. That pattern matters, because the quiet months are the natural time to drain it down and put the tiles right before bookings pick up again.

Why most repairs need the water out

People often ask whether a few loose tiles can be fixed without emptying the pool. In most cases they cannot. Adhesive and grout need a dry, clean surface to bond to, and they need their full cure time before the pool is filled again.

Draining also lets us see the whole tank. A loose tile on a step can be the visible end of a wider patch of failed bond, and that only shows up once we can tap across the surface. Tapping tells us where to look harder, and we will say plainly where a tile may need lifting to see what is behind it.

Things worth telling us at the start

The more we know before setting off, the better the first visit goes. Photos never replace an inspection, and we do not quote from them, but they let Dan and Jay judge the likely scale of the job and bring the right tools and materials. A short list of background details helps too:

• Roughly when the pool was built and last retiled
• Where the problems are, with photos and something for scale
• Whether you have any spare original tiles
• When the pool could realistically close
• Who looks after the plant room and the refill