A growing number of San Antonio homeowners are abandoning concrete pools in favor of fiberglass, driven by a wave of failures in pools built during the COVID-19 construction boom. The latest episode of The Building Texas Show, recorded live at the San Antonio Home and Garden Show and released September 14, 2026, features Jeff and Kelley Turner, owners of Staycation Fiberglass Pools, explaining why concrete pools are failing and what homeowners should know before signing a contract.
At the heart of the problem is alkali-silica reaction (ASR), often called “concrete cancer,” which is appearing in many pools built during the pandemic-era rush. According to Jeff Turner, repairs for these failing shells can run between $200,000 and $400,000, and most builders carry no insurance to cover such tear-outs. “In Texas, you need more certifications to do hair than you do to build a pool,” Turner says. “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.” Texas has no state certification requirement for pool builders, and voluntary PHTA certification is often overlooked by homeowners.
The Turners argue that fiberglass pools, when properly installed, offer a more durable and predictable alternative. They point to manufacturer warranties from companies like San Juan, with over 70 years in business, and Australia-based Aqua Technics as benchmarks. However, they caution that not all fiberglass installers are equal. A low bid often omits critical elements such as engineering plans, proper bonding, correctly sized pump equipment, and full deck scope—corners that can lead to costly failures later.
Kelley Turner uses a simple analogy to explain the builder-manufacturer relationship: “You're dating us as a builder...” she begins, finishing the thought in the episode to illustrate what a warranty is actually worth. The Turners also share a recent hybrid negative-edge rebuild in Dripping Springs, where they rescued a one-year-old fiberglass pool that looked thirty years old. The full build sequence, from shell to a 30-foot infinity edge over the Hill Country, is available in the video.
The episode is part of the show’s San Antonio Home and Garden Series, which profiles builders, tradespeople, and entrepreneurs shaping the Texas economy. New episodes post two to three times a week. Homeowners can see the Turners’ completed projects at staycationfiberglasspools.com.
