Cracked Ocenaside Glass Tile Mosaics - Poor Installation

Sometimes recycled content is not to blame for the cracking of glass tile mosaics.  

Sometimes it is an installation that fails to follow the installation procedures set forth by the manufacturer, TCNA and ANSI.

 (click on the image to enlarge it)

A crack in Oceanside glass tile mosaics due to installation errors.

 

This installation on the exterior of a round spa cracked due to the lack of movement joints (expansion joints).  As the glass tile heats up in the sun, they expand.  The rectangular shape of these tiles will cause them to expand more in the longitudinal direction.  This creates a lot of stress.

Glass does not handle stress well.  It cracks.

Had the installer provided vertical joints at regular intervals, and isolation joints at the top and bottom (where the tile abuts the coping and deck), this installation probably would have had only a few cracks limited to individual tiles.

Paolo Benedetti, SWD 
Aquatic Artist, Watershape Consultant, Expert Witness, International Construction Management Contact the author at: info@aquatictechnology.com or 408-776-8220 "Creating water as art."™ 
Aquatic Technology Pool and Spa© ©www.aquatictechnology.com 
All rights reserved.

Aqua Design International Projects

Aqua designs for international projects require specialized training and knowledge.

International Codes

Many international locations have few, if any, aqua design codes or standards.  So what codes should apply?

In this litigious society we live in, designers should do their best to comply with the most stringent published code.  Most of those codes reside right here in the United States.  The leader for commercial pool standards is the State of California.

Avoiding Litigation

If the designer is based in the United States, a reasonable line of legal questioning in foreign litigation would be:

"Are you trained to design and build projects that are compliant with the more stringent US codes and standards?"
"In the absence of local regulations or building codes, wouldn't it be prudent to design and build to those same margins of safety?"
"So, by not designing to those same US standards, you are saying that a life in this foreign country is worth less than a life in the US?"

Keep in mind that in many foreign countries, errors and omissions are often construed as criminal negligence.  A designer may not just be trying to avoid financial losses, but jail as well.

Bottom Line

When designing foreign projects, it is best to design a project to be in compliance with the most stringent standards or codes that exist, unless they are in direct conflict with a local regulation.

The standards established by the ADA, IBC, NEC, ISPSC, APSP, NSF, ACI, TCNA, ANSI and VGBSA may not be the adopted code in a foreign locale.  However, these standards were established for a reason - life safety and user convenience.  

Don't the people in foreign countries deserve the same levels of protection?


Paolo Benedetti, SWD - Aquatic Artist, Watershape Consultant, Expert Witness, International Aquatic Designer and Builder
Contact the author at: info@aquatictechnology.com or 408-776-8220 
"Creating water as art."™ 
Aquatic Technology Pool and Spa©
©www.aquatictechnology.com All rights reserved.