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Is It Okay To Drain My Vinyl Liner Swimming Pool?
One of the most important things that any owner of a vinyl liner pool needs to know is that you should NEVER drain your vinyl liner swimming pool. The water in the pool helps hold the liner into place. If you do drain your pool you can cause your vinyl pool liner to shrink ,upon refilling if the liner has lost its elasticity it can cause the liner to rip or tear. The liner can also become hard and brittle. The older the vinyl material is the more likely this is to happen. If you do have to patch a hole or puncture, you will not need to drain your pool as most vinyl repair kits are designed to work under water. Also if you drain too much water out of an above ground pool, it can lead to the pool wall collapsing. You can help protect the life of your liner by not draining your pool.
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185 Responses on Is It Okay To Drain My Vinyl Liner Swimming Pool?
ENSURES LONG LIFE FOR VINYL SWIMMING
POOL LINER WITH PROPER CARE.
Maintaining proper water balance is key to the life of your swimming pool liner: pH between
7.2 to 7.6; total alkalinity between 80 to 100 ppm; and calcium hardness between 200 to 300 ppm.
Free chlorine should be kept within range, the most common active ingredient that sanitizes the pool, between 1.5 to 2.5 ppm. If the level drifts below 1.5 ppm, algae and bacterial will grow more easily and may cause staining of the vinyl pool liner. If the active chlorine level is maintained greater than 2.5 ppm, liner wrinkling may occur. This problem can be further aggravated if pH levels that fall below 7.0
I was out of town over the winter with business,and I left without covering my in-ground pool.I came home, and my pool has evaporated to a water level about 2 feet deep. The liner looks like it has shrunk since it is no longer attached to the pool walls. Does this mean I HAVE to get a new liner? Or can I work around this problem? Thank you
If you have only 2′ of water left in the pool there is probably a leak. If you refill the pool the liner may be fine. It will depend on the liner age. If the liner is old it may pop out of the coping track.
This is my first pool-
I have been vaccuming my pool and getting it ready for this summer and it’s been at a decent level (mid skimmer) pretty much the last couple of months. This morning, I woke up and it was about 3-6 inches lower and my pump was reading about 5 psi’s. Is this normal? It doesn’t seem so.
The 2 may be unrelated. If the water level went down use this link for information on how to find a leak.
http://www.royalswimmingpools.com/blog/how-to-find-leaks-in-vinyl-liner-pools/
If the baskets or filter needs to be cleaned the PSI on the filter gauge will go down.
I opened up my pool this year to cloudy water(above ground).Have tried all sorts of chemicals,no luck.Should I empty some of the water.
how do you drain an abouve ground pool if necessary without causing damage to the liner
You can drain some of the water out of the pool and refill it but if you drain all the water out of the pool it can cause the vinyl liner to shrink. If the liner shrinks it may become tight or may pull out from the top rail.
if above ground pool is drained and shrinkage has occured? what if any steps or methods are needed to take when refilling to help liner avoid damage from tears and wrinkles?
my winter cover came off and now the neightbors tree in in the bottom of my pool, can get it clean to even see the bottom i have got 4 different sweepers but they don’t work any ideas no how i can get all the leaves out of the bottom of my pool, please help
Use a leaf net to get most of the leaves out of the pool. Then vacuum on waste and balance the chemicals untill the pool water clears up.
We have a hole in the bottom of our pool’s vinyl liner. The water ran some of the sand out so there is now a dip. Is there a way to put more sand in the hole to fill the dip? Or do we have to take the whole liner off to fix the dip? Then get a new liner even though we can patch the hole?
A pool co. just installed a new liner in my Ester Williams Lady Ester III (1994)rectangular pool 16×30 52″ wall hgt. 48″ water hgt.
they did not even out the sand and remove thier deep boot prints.
Now with over 13,500 gallons of water in the pool and maint. chemicals they tell me they will come back at the end of the season and pump out all the water and peel back the liner to smooth out and even the bottom.
I guess peel back because they cut the skimmer and retun in .
I was told when the pool was installed that any time you empty the water from the pool you have to replace the liner. (example ,moving the pool etc.)
Is this true because I paid a lot of money for the liner and do not want a flawed liner that will cause problems in the future.
If this is the case I will insist on a new liner
I accidently poked a small half circle shaped cut into the bottom of my above ground pool liner. It has sand underneath like most. What should I do? Can I just leave it?
You should use a vinyl liner repair kit to repair the cut. It will be fine if you follow the vinyl repair kiit instructions.
If it is not left empty for an extended amount of time the liner should be OK
hi i have an inground vinyl liner pool, i found a somewhat pointy rock in the deep end in the corner at the base of the wall about 3 feet from the top can i drain some water out and pull the liner from the rail and reach behind it and fix it? should i leave it? of i do drain some water should i refill it right away?
I have a brand new pool and the sand settled under one corner so it is not level it settled 2 weeks after installed. can I empty the liner and add the sand needed without ruining the liner? I understand it may shrink it how long can the water be out without hurting it? the manual says if shifting occurs drain relevel and refill is this right?
You can drain it to get the rock out but you must refill the pool quickly.
You will probably need to support the pool frame with patio blocks then rebuild your pool cove. The liner should be fine if it is not left empty for a long period of time. New liners do not shrink as fast as an older liner.
So I winterized my above ground pool and then noted the water level had risen. I am assuming that this was because I had a leak in my pool cover. I put a hose in the pool to siphon off the excess water and forgot about it to come back and find the water level in the pool was way too low.
1. Have I destroyed my liner.
2. do i just fill it back up to a appropriate winter level.
3. Should I replace the cover or just suck it up beacuse it’s gonna be a mess in there already.
The water on top of the cover will put pressure on the water in the pool and make it appear fuller. When you drain the water off the cover it will sometimes drain water out of the pool too. You should fill the pool back to the proper level and it should be fine.
i just covered the pool 2 months ago and just relized the pool water level went down 1 foot more then i drained it. its half in and half out above ground pool. the pool company wants to drain it and redo a new liner . also the sand washed out because of a under ground stream they wanna do the base with viniculite and portland is this correct?
The water going down could be a leak in the liner or it could be that when you pump water off the cover you are also pumping water out of the pool
i drained my pool to clean it, we hadnt cleaned it in 2 yrs , it is partially in the ground, and the ground was wet and the soil around the pool fell in the wall bulged out a little so we dug the dirt out and relized the wall there came out of the track,can we dig out more and try to put wall back on track or does the whole thing have to come down????
I have a 20×40′ inground pool. I had my back yard flooded (thanks to the developer behind me) This happened twice in one week. The pool is about three years old and has a vinyl liner. If I drain the pool at night and have the water delivered by early morning will I be OK, or is there another alternative? (about 3″silt in the bottom)
My pool is 2 years old with a vinyl liner 16×32. Apparently I have a leak in the main drain line. The water has leaked out at about 2 feet below the skimmer. Is is ok for me to drain the pool and glue a plug to permanently close the main drain?
a load of pollen was in our pool and it was very cloudy, after putting chemicals in we could not clear it, so my husband drained the pool. The liner looks like in one area it has folded over and on one side it looks wrinkled, we put the new liner in last summer.
I can’t get my pool clean and algae balanced. After fighting with chemicals I have decided to drain it. It is 5 years old. The If I have the water low for 1 day will that damage my liner?
WE UNCOVERED OUR POOL FROM THE WINTER AND ALL THE LEAVES FELL IN(OF COURSE). BUT THE LINER HAS ALSO SLID DOWN ON ONE SIDE. WHAT WOULD BE THE BEST WAY TO PULL THE LINER BACK UP ?
If the liner will not reach the liner track use warm water to soften the liner. If it is an overlap liner take the top ledge off and reinstall the liner
It is possible. You should try and refill the pool as soon as it is emptied
It would be best if you put a plug in the main drain without draing the pool.
I WENT ON VACATION FOR 2 WEEKS CAME BACK AND MY POOL IS ALMOST BLACK. SO SHOULD I JUST DRAIN THE WHOLE POOL AND REFILL IT BEFORE THE FALL COMES? I DON’T THINK THEY MAKE ENOUGH CHEMICALS TO TAKE CARE OF THIS. PLEASE LET ME KNOW IF ANYONE HAS ANY IDEAS.
My 15 foot round above ground pools liner seems to have a major leak. I probably should have replaced liner, now after winterizing all the water has drained. Is it ok to release the cover and let it be until spring?
You should keep at least a foot or so deep of water in the pool or you can disassemble the pool and set it back up in the spring.
Tearing down pool to give away. Liner is 7 years old. After draining the water, can I walk on the liner to fold it up?
Thanks
Tony
Yes just be careful
We bought a pool in 2009, and it sat unopened in 2010. We are opening it again this year, and it is very green. Should we drain half of the water and refill it?
My in-laws just purchased a large piece of property with a liner pool. It has fish, frogs and a dead turtle in it. Can it be saved without a new liner? Its a little creepy to think the water can be saved. The pool is fairly new and very large.
You will need to ned out as much of the leaves, frogs, etc with a deep leaf net. Start up the pump. Balance the pH, add algaecide and chlorine until the water begins to clear up. Backwash or clean the filter as needed. Add water clarifier.
We have an inground pool with a liner that is 5 years old. Every winter we close it properly and check the water level several times a month and every year we open it up it has wrinkles. We have the wrinkles repaired professionally which are always in the shallow end. Last year our liner pulled awya from the steps and we had to have a new liner, very expensive and only 5 years old! What is the problem? Is it not enough depth of water in the shallow over the winter, we have to keep it below the skimmer. Could we have a drainage problem around the pool as we have a retaining wall about 4-5 ft from the shallow end of the pool and seems the ground there is usually wet. Should we have a drain tile installed around the edge of the pool? Should our installers have known this was going to be a problem?
Laurie, the installers may not have been able to know about the ground water problem except they should know that there is always a potential for ground water problems. Some builders will put in a means of drainage when building the pool just in case however that may also be figured into the initial cost. You should install drainage around the pool to divert any ground water. You should also look into a skimmer winterizing kit that will allow the pool to stay full of water during the winter. If the pool is full it may not prevent water getting under the liner but it should help minimize it.
I have a very old in-ground pool and I wanted to replace the liner myself. I pumped the pool empty so I could measure it, but missed a few key measurements and now the liner has shrunk so I can’t get an accurate measurement. I was planning on removing the liner and getting the measurements i need, but my wife said she heard that removing the liner would damage the bottom of the pool. Is this true? If so how else can I get the measurements I need?
Thanks Scott for sharing such nice info. Your ideas are very helpful for me to maintain the swimming pools.
Jason, normally we measure with the water in the pool. You can cut a slit in the liner where you need to measure so that most of the pool stays covered.
Hi there!
I have searched like crazy to find an answer to no avail. I have an intex above-ground pool. I have approximately 2 inches of water at the bottom of the pool that I need to get out. Other than a shopvac, which I used last year and was very hard work, what else can I use to drain the water out completely from the pool? Would a pool cover pump work. What do you suggest.
Thank you in advance
A cover pump or sump pump should work fine. We offer a few diffent models use this link http://www.royalswimmingpools.com/Winter-pool-cover-products-AG.htm
Hello, when opening our pool this season we discovered that the cover developed a hole which allowed leaves, etc. into the pool. It has never been so dirty and we didn’t believe that any chemical could help that water. We drained the pool and cleaned the liner with a brush to remove all of the green algae, etc. The liner has not come loose or come out of the coping but there are wrinkles in some places. The liner is 5 years old. We are in the process of re-filling the pool in the hopes that the wrinkles will even out when the pool is filled with water. Do you think that’s a possibility or will we need a new liner? Thanks for your input.
Hello Cindy, since you already drained the pool I would recommend hooking a shop vac up and put behind the liner to get all the air from behind the liner and suck the liner down. If you have steps the liner is screwed into I would recommend put sandbags on the liner next to the step so the liner doesn’t pull away from the wall there when filling the pool with water. Hopefully this will work for you if you have any questions please let us know.
I did not cover my pool over the winter it is really black is there a product to clean it its bad or do i have to drain it
Hello, I’m resurfacing my pool steps. I had to drain the pool just in the low end. The liner is 3 years old but is pulling away from the steps. I called the company that installed the liner, they said it should strecth back. I will be finished with the steps this weekend and will start filling it by Tuesday. Do you think I’m going to have a problem with the liner going back into place?
We found a cat in our pool when we took off the cover. It had been there for a while. It was not as easy as scooping it out. We drained the pool and cleaned it, the next day we started filling it up and noticed we have quite a few deep wrinkles. We tried the plunger and it help a bit but not much. If the wrinkles remain, will it cause problems and ruin the pool? This is the pools third season. Thank you
One more thing. It is a 15×30 above ground. Thank you
just had a new liner put in, feel a pretty sharp rock about 6 inches from the edge
can i drain, get the rock and refill?
what would happen if i dug under from the side of the pool? is that possible? it seems that the sand/water would pocket and dip but i would rather have that than the sharp rock
thanks
We had an above ground pool installed last summer, and we had an abnormal amount of rain (downpours), and about a 3 feet section of the sand has washed in towards the middle of the pool and you can feel lots of gravel under the liner…how to we fix this
Hello… I have an in-ground liner pool(true-L, 16×41 with an 8×16 base of the “L”). I admit that I made a big mistake putting blue pond dye in a chlorine-maintained pool. It was a beautiful blue color for the first 90 minutes and then turned GREEN. We had a LOT of rain last summer but I was never able to get the pool cleared up well into fall (including visible algae growth on the side-walls. In 10 years of having this pool I never had trouble keeping the water crystal clear. I plan to change the sand in the filter this spring but should I risk purging the pool of ALL water and refilling, is there a chemical combatant to this dye (AFTER I put it in the pool I read DO NOT USE IN POOLS WITH CHLORINE CHEMICALS), does anyone think this dye was the source of my problems or was it more because of the relentless rain we had here in WI last summer? Help!
Hi,
Im emptying my 24′ above gr pool to repair some bb size holes in the wall due to a leak and water pooling between the liner and wall. Im leaving about 18″ or so of water so I can sand, prime, paint and cover the holes with sheet metal. Do you think Ill have a problem with liner shrinkage if I leave only 18″ of water for 2-3 days while I do the repair? Thanks
We drained our pool and when we attempted to refill 2 days later it appears as though the liner has shrunk - all pulled away from the walls especially the bottom where the wall meets the ground. Can this be fixed or do I need a new liner
Chris, you should be ok since you didn’t completely drian the pool. Make sure when you fill the pool it’s very warm with good sunlight will help.
Angie, wrinkle in most cases will not cause any problems. It may make it a little harder to clean in that area but the pool should be fine.
Cheryl, you may be able to save the liner. Connect a shop vac in the skimmer behind the liner and try suck out all the air behind the liner and this should help and if you have a good hot day with lots of sunlight you may get this work.
Anthony, you may be fine if you have good hot sunny days. When you go to fill it back up make sure to use a shop vac to get the air out between the liner and wall. There are always risk when draining a vinyl pool.
Thanks Johnny
How much shock should one use to get my pool water from black dirty water to clear……thank you
My Husband drained my above ground pool leaving just two feet of dirty black water with the bugs, leaves, and anything else with legs. It was a very cold day in May and the liner did not tear. (keeping finger cross) Filled it with water, added a lots of shock, one bottle of algae chemical, and the water became crystal clear…Use your pool chemical stick to decided when to add PH UP or PH Down to your pool…
We replaced a J hook style vinyl liner on our 30 ft round above ground pool. We started to fill it with water and everything was fine. We had about 8 to 10 inches in pool and turned off the water for the night. We awoke to the entire liner having come off and most of our water gone. The liner itself seemed to fit well with no initial problems. Any thoughts?
is it ok to drain a green pool with in ground liner and refill liner is 2 years old
William, I don’t recommend it unless you have no other option. Most pools will come clean even if totally green in about a week.
Cheryl, if the air temp was really low over night the liner could have shrunk. I recommend to reattach the liner, suck the liner down with a shop vac, and direct sunlight will help a lot.
Fatpudding, it will take a lot of shock, the amount will depend on many different factors like what your chlorine level is now, pool size, and make sure to adjust PH to 7.6.
I have bought a 27 foot above ground pool that has been taken very well taken care of but having a problem with anyone moving it to my home.. I call the pool places and they keep saying that I have to buy another liner for it and that the people I call are afraid that the posts are rusted and wont work because they are set bout 6″ in the sand ..I was wondering if I do get the pool can I sit it down further in the ground they also just put a new liner in it 2 years ago and also put the 4×8 sheets of foam down since the pool has sat on the sand for bout 10 or years.. so what is the best way to put the pool in
I have a 1 yrs old above ground round pool that i had put up,well when the put the pool up they never tamped the ground then they put the sand on unlevel gound when i 1st started filling it i noticed that the water was filling unevenly so they came back to leavel it out by pushing more sand under the uneven sides(i shored it up later with field stone)now im seeing pits in the floor of the pool and 1 section of the pool liner has fallen slightly from the beading.do I have to worry about the deep pits in the floor of the pool?can i pull the section of rail and beading off of wjere the liner came loose without dumping the water? and how do i do that.
I have a 24 ft. above ground pool, 6 years old. I usually leave it running during the winter, but the pump died, so I waited until 2 weeks ago to replace. BIG MISTAKE! It was very dark green with a huge amount of leaves in it. I used my leaf catcher (water hose attached) at least 3 or 4 times to clean out leaves. I have shocked with 2 bags of granular shock many times. My ph is only 6.8, low alkalinity and the chlorine level keeps dropping to low or no chlorine. I can’t see the bottom and it is still green, but not as dark. I have brushed it at least 3 times in the past 5 days, added 2 lbs alkalinity increaser and shocked it with two 1 lb bags of shock. I haven’t vacummed to waste b/c I can’t see the bottom. I am totally frustrated b/c this process has been going on for at least 2 to 3 weeks. I took a sample in for testing in the beginning and was told I had to get all of the leaves out first before anything would work. (Oh, and I backwash a couple of times a day) Any ideas before I give up?
Paula, you will need to use a lot more than 2lbs of shock. I would buy a big bag of baking soda it works well to raise PH. Run pump 24hrs a day till the pool clears up and you may need to backwash and vacuum daily.
I just took My 16×42 intex pool down to start over cuz I dint level it very good will i hurt the liner by doing this?
Plan on filling back up asap
Richard, I don’t know a whole lot about Intex pools but I think they are designed to be taken down every year so it maybe ok.
We just purchased an above ground pool.We filled it with water a couple days ago, and after leaving for awhile we came back to our pool and the water was brown. It was almost full so we turned off the water. We called the water company they said this happens every year around this time, its just rust, but theres nothing they can do. We finished filling up our pool.
As of today the water coming out of our water hose is clear-no longer brown/rust tinged.
Our pool water is yucky looking, it looks like lake water..
Can we syphon most of the water out (except the last foot or so) and refill with clear water? or what else can we do?
I have a vinyl pool with 3 cement steps. A crack has developed on one side of the steps. It runs from the top of the steps vertically in line with the middle step to the lower corner below the lowest step. It is leaking mainley in the corner area. I will have to lower the water level below the steps to repair this. This will leave approx 4″ of water in the low end of the pool. Does that leave enough water to prevent the liner from shrinking? The liner is approx 8 years old and is 30 ml thick. The repair will take one day.
we just bought a house with a above ground pool.
the water is black! and there are tadpoles and bullfrogs in it. what is the best and cheapest thing to do?
Dawn, it would depend if the liner is in good shape or not. If not i would order a new liner, drain and replace.
John, you should be ok. However with the liner that old it’s hard to tell.
I have an inground-liner pool that is completely dark. Pool guys that have come over to give me a quote have said that I have to drain it. The liner is a year old and my question is: will it tear or have something bad happen to it if it’s not covered by water for a period of two days?
Thanks for your help.
i have a couple of rocks the size of fists coming up threw pool liner and the pool is leaking still after two pathes and now i have a sink hole because of leak that im still yet to find should i replace the liner or try to fix the leak
It will be hard to fix with out replacing the liner.
Jaime, drain and clean can be done on newer liners however it’s alway a risk.
We have a brand new resin pool that was very expensive with a top of the line liner. It’s barely a year old. There is a ’sink hole’ near the filter that has appeared because we were fools and didn’t listen to what we were “suppose” to do and fill around the entire pool with sand.
We had no idea! Now what happened is the filter dripped water for two months in the spring and made a sink hole and the wall has lifted about a half an inch from the frame and has created a sink hole.
Can I drain my pool fill the sink hole and fix my pool myself??? Then obviously this time I will be filling all around my pool! Will I ruin my liner????
Johnny,
what did you mean about “cut a slit in the liner to leave most of the pool covered” in order to measure when one can’t see the bottom of the pool? (your reply to Jason) i need to replace my vinyl liner and can’t see the bottom of the pool to get accurate hopper measurements in the deep end. i wanted to drain the pool, measure and order a liner but hear this is dangerous. please help.
Diane, normally you can get an accurate measurement without doing that. Even with water in the pool. If the pool was already drained the liner will srink and will not be touching the bottoms and walls which makes it really hard to get accurate measurements. I dont recommend draining the pool just to measure it.
I have an in-ground vinyl liner–sport bottom pool. My pool “guy” told us to drain our pool completely so he could come a measure. However he has decided not to return for a week and then it will be another week before a new liner is installed. Do you think this is going to damage our pool walls. It is hot and some rain in the forecast.
Lee, more than likely it will be fine.
I am a first time above ground pool owner. I purchased an intex 16′X 42″. Do I have to drain the pool for storage over the winter, or can I leave it filled,treat it with the proper chemicals,and the use the pool cover until the summer. I live in California so the weather is somewhat mild. Also do I need to run the pump 24/7 (or how often) if I am not using the pool?
Thanks in Advance
If I put shock in my pool alot of shock and run it all day and night then cover it for two weeks with no circulation will the water turn green?
I have an inground pool that is 15 years old and it is ready to have some work done to it and replace the liner as well. The mantiance men told me to unplug and drain through the drain, but I do not know where the plug is or how to drain the water. They are coming in the morning and I do not have a pump, so what do I do?
Drained my above ground pool almost a week ago and the contractor hasn’t shown up yet to replace liner. Is there any danger in walls collapsing??
Eric, the risk of the pool collapsing is definately plausible. If a good storm were to come in it could very well knock the walls down. My advice would be to fill the pool back up untill they show up, or find another company that can get out asap to do the work.
I have a 20000 gal vinyl liner pool and my calcium hardness is over 2000ppm. I learning that you should not drain the pool because it could collapse. what should I do?
We bought our first house recently and it has a 21 foot round above ground pool on a scary slope facing the house. We have never had a pool, and I don’t know what to do. I am worried about wall failure and our house being damaged. We want to fix up the house and sell it in a couple years and are wondering if it would be better to keep it or not. I was thinking we could just drain it until we figure it out, and at least that way there would be no damage of wall failure etc, but it sounds like you can not let the liner get dry. What should we do???
I would reccomend you have a pool & spa professional come look and advise you on what to do. However people build above ground pools on slopes allthe time. If the pool is level there shouldnt be any issue.
Lamont, You can partially drain the pool and add enough fresh water to adjust the hardness to an appropriate amount.
Hi, I’ve had an above ground pool for about three months now. My neighbors have a tree that hangs over my yard and drops leaves like crazy onto the cover. Long story short, we went in the pool at night and put the cover on backwards without realizing it. So the next day we drained the pool bc it was disgusting and would have taken hours to get it back to as clear as we had it. I go to work and come home and the top has blown off and more leaves have fallen inside. There’s about 2 inches of water with things swimming around in it. It even kinda smells. What would be the best way to clear the bottom of this above ground pool?? Helllpppp!!
My in ground vinyl liner pool was completely underwater during flooding from Hurricane Irene. The water is brown from the dirt. I drained the pool about 1/4 of the way and am now filling it back up. I plan on doing this under it gets pretty clear, then I will run my vacuum. Is this th correct way? It there a more efficient method? I am worried that there will be too much silt on the bottom for my vacuum. Thank you for your help.
I have two questions: #1. Which patch kit do you recommend to fix a small hole in the bottom of an above ground pool that is currently full of water. (Don’t want to have to drain). and question #2. Do I need to drain some water out to prepare for winter or is just treating and covering good enough. Thank you
First of all you need to get water back into your pool ASAP!!! You are risking your pool caving in, and the devastation to your liner drying out is unrepairable. You need to (a) fill the pool to operating level (b) vacuum out the debris (c) shock the pool heavily w/ granular chlorine or a non chlor oxidizer this will kill any algae or other bacteria and organisms. If you have any further questions please dont hesitate to contact us.
The best thing you can do is vacuum to waste VERY slowly. It may take more than one time.
We have an above ground pool that is entirely underground on concrete. The liner has a large foot long tear in the bottom edge, which allowed the pool to drain comletely. We don’t plan on replacing the liner until spring. Is there anything we can do to prevent the pool from collapsing or the bottom from freezing during the winter? We left the solar cover on the bottom of the pool to try to keep some heat on the bottom(it has to be replaced next year anyway)
I advise you to replace the liner IMMEDIATELY. I also advise you to put in a gorilla pad under the liner to protect it from the concrete. You are taking a BIG risk by waiting to replace the liner. There isnt anything you can do to save it from collapsing except adding water.
Any of the repair kits will work. The glue will work under water. If you dont want to get in just take your brush on your pole, put glue on your patch, stick the patch glue side up into the bristles and manuever it onto the tear. You can then smooth it out with the brush also.
I have always drained my AG pool a few inches below return line for the winter. The last few years I’ve noticed many wrinkles on the wall.I have no leaks. I just bought a skimmer winterizing plate and thinking of not draining any water this year.I live in Masschusetts and usually have lots of ice snow and water weighing down the cover pushing water line up and always thought draining down was a good idea. ????????????
I just winterized my pool and discovered that I must have a tear in my liner. Is it ok to leave the tear and the pool empty until spring. I will replace the liner in the Spring anyway.
hello this is my first year with an above ground pool of this size. My pool is green from all the rain i want to drain my pool an put it up an start over next summer will taking my pool down damage it in anyway
I would recommend clearing the water with granular chlorine and vacuuming it. Leaving it empty you run the risk of it collapsing.
I advise you to replace the liner ASAP. I also advise you to put in a gorilla pad under the liner to protect it . You are taking a BIG risk by waiting to replace the liner. There isnt anything you can do to save it from collapsing except adding water.
Its a matter of personal choice. However the more liner under water the better. Thw winterizing plates will do just fine. As for the water on top of the cover, that needs to be pumped off regularly.
We live in Wisconsin in a beautiful home subject to extremely high winds and of course very cold winters. This is my third year and fourth winter cover that I have invested in due to high winds. Today, I lost another one, Armorcoat 20 year rippstopper. Can I go without a cover in the winter? If not, do you know of a company that makes a hard top winter cover or where I can get the best one warranted for winds?
I highly suggest that you invest in a safety cover. A safety cover is held down by permanent anchors in your deck. I DO NOT suggest not covering your pool. Here is a link to the safety covers…
http://www.royalswimmingpools.com/safety_covers.htm
First time pool owner here. Intex Ulta-Frame 16-ft x 48″ Deep. I read on some websites to drain water down below Inlet / outlet parts for winter closing of pool.
I live in central VA and temps get below freezing but rarely below the teens.
I have air pillow in the pool with a cover on top.
I am confused on the water level though as I see some folks saying a vinyl line will stretch and rip without water at full level. While others will say Ice on top can damage liner. Some say they leave them up all winter with no problems.
Your opinions are welcome as I am at a loss now.
We have a 15′ round above ground pool, vinyl liner, 4 years old. We use baquacil, and actually like it. This year we had problems with calcium hardness, being low so we kept adding calcium (pool water test center kept telling us to.) Now pool is cloudy, and we have horrible grit on all surfaces. I am guessing this is scale. How do we get rid of it? My husband want to drain pool down low and scrub it, but I don’t know if this is a good idea. We have tried a super clarifier but it has had no effect. Please help!
Calcium build-up is one of the toughest things to fight on the surface of a pool. Being on a vinyl liner makes it even harder to deal with. If you have a salt system you need to make sure that it is grounded. To get the scale off the surface, I would get a scale remover and try just brushing it off. You will have to drain the water and refill in order to get the calcium out of the water.
We just bought a house and after winterizing notice there is a leak. The water level is less than half of the pool. We are refilling the pool to keep level normal )and because the water on the cover is pulling it down). We plan on having a pool company check it out in the spring. The pool is slightly unlevel on one side too. Is it ok to wait until spring and just refill the pool as needed until then?
Yeah its fine but you need to keep a constant eye on it to refill it as needed. As far as your cover goes, you need to get a cover pump to remove the water from the cover as it accumulates.
i drained all the water out of my pool about 1 week ago i did not know it would shrink i am going to fill it back up do u think it will be ok ? it is 5 years old but in excellent shape and has been well taken care of.
Without seeing it I cant give you a honest assumption. I do suggest however to refill it asap and winterize it the proper way. If the liner isnt out of track, or any other visual damage it may be ok as of now.
We have an above ground pool that we have only used 4 times in 4 yrs
We are living in utah most of the year but have the pool in our home in Texas
We spend so much money on cleaning and chemicals plus we buy new
Pool covers twice a year because of wind damage
Can we just put about 2ft of water in when we are not in tx
Or will that shrink the liner
Put a 16×32 in ground pool in our backyard this summer in northern Virginia. We had it professionally closed about three weeks ago. Noticed this weekend that the cover had slightly blown off on one corner….while putting it back into place and adjusting the water log, I noticed the liner in the deep end corner was “billowing” like curtains…..checked other deep end corner…same thing…water level is where it was when closed……is this caused by the lowering of the water level when it was closed (just below the skimmer mount) or the high water table here in VA from the torrential downpours through the summer/fall? Thought perhaps liner was just loose/slack from lowered water level. Should we be concerned…..anything special to do in the spring when we open/fill it up?
The liner will be damaged. I would buy a really good cover and leave it covered all the time.
If youll notice I wrote a blog about getting wrinkles out of your liner. In that blog I explained exactly what your talking about. All you can do at this point is wait for the ground water to be absorbed. Your liner may or may not settle without wrinkles. You will just have to wait and see.
Is there a way for me to keep my liner plyable while it’s out of the structure. It’s above ground and I need to level it.
Thank you
Anytime you remove your liner you are at risk for damage. There isnt any sure way to protect it. However if you do remove it, I would wait until you have a very warm day to re-install the liner.
I closed my pool down at the end of Sept. I noticed about a week ago my pool is a little less then half empty i have a 24 round above ground pool that is 10years old. Should i just keep adding water all winter. I guess i have a leak and didn’t no about it. Any help will be appreciated.
I would continue to fill it to normal operating capacity until you are ready to deal with the leak.
Mitzie, If you have a cover on the pool with a cover pump it is possible that you could be pumping water out of the pool at the same time you are pumping water off the cover.
I have a in ground 18 X 36 oval pool with a liner. I continue to have problems with water leaking up into the cover. Is this normal…and should I just try a different type of cover?
Depending on what type of cover you have, it may be time for a replacement. If you have a poly cover that is held down with water bags, it probably has a hole in it somewhere. I recommend purchasing a solid safety cover w/ an auto pump. This would solve your issues, and ensure a much safer enviorment around your pool.
Features Thanks rather than the help person.
We put up our pool for the first time last summer. Instead of “winterizing” it my husband decided to drain it. We have no clue on pool stuff. We left all the hoses hooked to everything but did drain out all the water from the pump, filter etc. There is now about a foot and a half of water that is obviously completely taken over by algea and debris in the bottom of the pool. I also feel i should add it is a 30ft round above ground pool. So here are my questions:
1. Is it too late to do anything about that? Should I fill it up and winterize it now or just leave it be until this spring?
2. My husband and father-in-law insisted on putting it up. Needless to say there are feet prints in the sand on the bottom. I’m fine with that however we can’t find a broom/vaccume or anything that will remove debris from certain spots in the pool. Do you have any recommendations for that?
3. We have a step on the inside/ladder on the outside entry system. How in the world do you get the steps to stay down? Ours keep floating. I put polished rocks in a pillow case last year to sit on top of them–I. Couldn’t think of anything else to do!
4. Will the liner be okay? Needless to say its only about a year old but the water has frozen and I’m sure it will again before it’s all said and done.
Thank you so very much for all the help!! Any and everything is appreciated!
The first thing you need to do is net out as much debris as possible. Next, start filling it back up. You should NEVER drain an above ground pool, unless you are moving the pool to another location. Unless you are going to run your pump year round you must ALWAYS winterize your system. Once you get the pool refilled, ensure that the lines are not frozen. If they aren’t, turn on your pump and start to look for damaged lines & equipment & make repairs as necessary. If you determine that no damages did occur or you have made repairs, you need to decide if you want to leave it running or winterize it from this point. Here is a link to a blog on winterizing your pool….http://www.royalswimmingpools.com/blog/winterizing-your-pool/
Can a pool be left unopened for the season? Our pool was winterized last year. For the coming summer, we are thinking of not opening it as we will not be using it this year.
Can this be done? Do we need to do any maintenance for it to be ok? Its a vinyl pool.
It is possible to not fully open the pool, but it will still require maintenance as not to do damage. You will need to shock the pool at least twice a month if not 3-4 times. You will want to maintain your ph also. If you dont the water will become very acidic and damage your liner. If you want to ensure that the pool will be in good condition for use later on, I would put the pump on a timer and run it at least an hour a day. Make sure the chemicals stay adjusted properly & leave the cover pulled back for at least a day after shocking do the fumes dont damage the cover.
My pool was not covered for the winter. There is apparently a leak and only 2-3 feet of water remains. How do I find the leak and what steps do I take to repair?
Got new liner. Had a wrinkle. Drained halfway down, smoothed out wrinkles. Put in shop vac and started refilling. Now have water & Portland cement in shop vac. No visible rips or holes in liner. What do I do? Is that normal? Do I need to get water out from under liner?
yes you need to try to get the water out if it is floating. If you have a ground water issue you may have to put in some crushed stone or some other technique for draining ground water.
Here is a link to a blog on the subject of finding leaks…http://www.royalswimmingpools.com/blog/how-to-find-leaks-in-vinyl-liner-pools/
My above ground pool has leaves and debris on the bottom. How do i start cleaning it and what steps and order should i follow when im ready to begin?
You will need to buy a vacuum hose, vacuum, net, and pole. Net the top of the water, and if you have a net that can also scrap the bottom, tr4y getting the big debris with the net. Next you will sink your hose, and vacuum thru your skimmer.
The best way to do it is to use a sump pump. Probably what you use when the basement floods. If you can direct the water down your cleanout/ sewer line that would be best.
I drained my 16-32 in ground pool t measure and order a liner. It takes 2 weeks for the liner to come in. The pool liners was cut to get accurate measurements. Should I cover with a tarp or is it OK to leave it exposed.The walls are metal and the bottom is a concrete substance( maybe gunite not sure).
You did not have to drain it in order to measure. All quote/measurement forms show how to measure it with water in it. At this point I would cover the pool with your cover, but that isnt going to protect it from structural damage but I this point thats all you can do. The bottom is vermiculite & portland cement.
I have an above groun pool about 2 years old and it has not been well maintained. I divorced last year and my ex had been doing it. Last summer, I did not do anything to it. Now it is full and completely opaque and green. I think the pump and all of the hoses need to be replaced and I do not thin simple vacuuming would do the trick. I do not feel comfortable trying to do too much on my own, since I have no clue what I am doing. Are there any services that provide assistance with above ground pools? Any suggestions welcome.
My inground pool was filled with sludge during Hurricane Irene. We drained it in October and refilled it so we could put the liner back in the sides. However, there are still brown stains on the liner around every corner and spots in the shallow end. Is there a way to clean these? We put a lot of shock/chlorine in it for the winter but it didn’t lighten much? Would soft scrub on a push mop work or is there something I can purchase?
Wish I had read this before. I drained my above ground pool completely to look for a leak. After spending hours on hands and knees, did not find anything. Left pool drained for a week. Now there are several wrinkles. I was going to have another go at finding the leak…then came across your site. Advice? Should I fill back up? Attempt to get wrinkles out, then fill up? How to get wrinkles out? There is nowhere to access the back of the liner with a shop vac. Thank you.
You should check your local yellow pages for pool service companies that service above ground pools.
There are different products that you can purchase to remove stains. If it is all organic staining, you should be able to remove it.
You need to fill the pool back up as not to possibly have structural damage. There are several ways of locating a leak, but you should start with the dye test. Swim around in the pool and squirt a small amt of dye around the area you think it could be. If the dye sucks into the hole, you have located your leak. If you remove the liner, you can get underneath it and you will see sunlight peering thru the hole. You may have to call a local service company that has the equipment to do electronic leak location.
My inground pool with a vinyl liner and it has pull away from the bottom drain how can I fix it
I have a 16×32 above-ground Kayak pool that I think is about 10 years old (I’ve been here 5 years). One corner settled and is almost one inch lower that the rest. How can I fix that? I accidentally drained the pool, so it only has a few inches of water in it. Thanks.
You will have to install a new main drain gasket & faceplate. The pool will have to be empty, so its best to do this when changing the liner as well.
we have an 12X18 above ground Esther Williams pool. the liner had a hole it so we drained it and removed the liner. Can we leave the pool all winter without a liner or cover and just put in the liner next year when we open up the pool? We live in New York where we get a snow during the winter.
thank you.
And, if i leave it up, what winterizing do you suggest? I’ve always been told to drain it halfway, and put a large innertube in the water, ( to fluctuate the freezing water), then cover. Any help is appreciated!!!!
My 15′ above ground pool had a leak and all the water drained out of it. I am not sure where the leak is and do not want to put a new liner in and refill the pool before winter. I will put a new liner on in the spring so shrinking is not a concern. Is it okay to leave the empty pool up throughout the winter. Is there any other way to help support it other than having water in it so it does not fall apart? If I take the pool completely down, I probably will not put it back up in the spring…
I am thinking of putting cinder blocks stacked 3 high, on end, every 6ft or so,around the inside perimeter of the pool. I do not care about the liner, as it will be replaced next year. I believe this should prevent the poo from collapsing until the spring. I would not put a cover on it, as it would create extra pressure on the frame from the snowfall. Are there any other options that have been proven to work?
I have a in-ground pool and am closing it for the first time by myself. Can I drain it just past the jets without hurting the liner? Want to make sure the lines do not freeze.
Our pool cover was ripping so we went out to try to fix it and discovered that somehow all of the water in our pool is gone. We drained it just below the lines for winter and now it’s completely empty. Will it hold up until spring time or will it ruin due to it being empty? What should we do?
My in ground pool has a big rip at the top but I can’t afford a new liner for a couple of months what should I do? The water level is about 2 1/2 feet low
A vinyl repair kit may fix it temporarily
I have an above-ground pool which definitely needs a new liner. I plan to have this done profesionally. My concerns: 1) Does temperature change affect liner replacement? Can I have it done now in January or in May when we will begin using it? I hate to put in new liner and let it set there for four months without use…and also using up warranty. Once weather warms will that affect new liner?; 2) Liner is definitely leaking. Should I keep filling and winterize until May? Or should I just let it go down? It’s at about two feet. I didn’t think above-ground pools were under as much danger as in-ground to collapse without water. Need advice on this and anything else you can inform me about situation. Thanks very much for your expert advice in these matters.
Quick question. Is this site still active? Noticed last response was November 20, 2012. Need to get some info pretty soon. Thanks.
Yes, the sight is still active. Please let us know if we can answer any questions for you.
Ray,
Temperature can definitely affect the liner installation. I would recommend doing it in May if the weather is cold in your area in January. I would not let the water drain down in the pool, a pool wall can collapse if there isnt water in the pool if any bad weather or heavy winds come through. Please let us know if you have any other questions.
Very helpful. Thanks Debbie! ray
We bought a house with an above ground pool. The previous owner claimed that the liner was replaced 3 years ago but haven’t opened the pool or treated it properly in 2 years. It is absolutley horrible with a thick sludge at the bottom. We moved here late fall so can’t do much til spring. We plan to try to clean it with chemicals and vaccuming. However if all else fails and we have to drain is their a ideal weather to do it in (ex: hot/humid or cool/dry) to minimize the risk of shrinkage and damage? It is a very large pool and will take time to drain and refill…..
Bethany,
Draining the liner voids a manufacturer’s warranty in most cases. However, if you do need to drain the liner, it would be best to do it in hot weather. Please let me know if you have any other questions or concerns.
I noticed that our winter cover was down about a foot this morning, and discovered a good water leak in the wall of our pool. It looks like the wall rusted out in a spot and the liner sprung a leak. HOW do we patch the hole on the outside of the liner? The water wants to push the patch off. So far we had to cut the hole in the wall bigger so we can work on the hole, but will a patch hold on the outside? Of course the hole is near the bottom of the wall and we will lose almost all of our water if we can’t fix the hole. It’s snowing too! grrr
Our pool was closed at the end of Sept. We left most o the water in. We removed the pump and let the water go right below that level. We just discovered this morning that all the water drained completely form the pool. It appears as if the liner is still ok, but it is about 6-7 years old. What should we do. We till have a few colder months ahead. At least until April or May.
Thanks!
Our vinyl lined pool has a gash that is allowing water behind the liner. We are not in a position financially to get the liner replaced right now. Should I leave water in the pool even though it will get behind the liner, or empty the pool? Neither sounds like a good option….
Additional info - our pool is a metal shell lined with vinyl.
hi i put a winter cover on my 24 foot round above ground pool. This year we had a lot of snow and ice had built up on my cover, pushing to water out of the pool. i look at it and realized that there is not much water left in my pool. will this affect my liner? what should i do?
Lori, A patch will work on the back side of a liner as well. Simply apply the glue/cement then apply the patch over the top. I would recommend draining the pool until the wall is repaired to minimize the chance your pool could collapse.
Trish, your liner should be just fine. Check the liner and make sure it is not cracking or deteriorating. If it is fine, try to get the pool filled back up to prevent the liner from drying or becoming damaged. Hope this helps.
Mark, it would be a good idea to drain the pool completely and remove the liner. This will prevent damage to the pool frame from anything unexpected with the liner while you wait to purchase a new one. Please let us know if we can assist you in ordering a liner for your pool.
Holly, If the liner is left drained for an extended period of time, it could become brittle and break when you attempt to refill to pool. My advice would be to find out why all the water leaked out of the pool first. If all the water drained out, it had to be a leak at the bottom of the pool. Usually that kind of leak would mean it is the liner leaking. Hope this helps.
My in-laws pasted away and their home is over 200 miles away. The pool is a soft-liner. I can’t afford to pay pool service until the house sells. Who knows how long that will be. What are my options? Are there any long term chemicals that can be added to the pool to keep it from turning green?
Thanks for your help.
Sawyer,
Unfortunately there are really no long term chemicals that will keep the water from turning green. If your budget is low, I would recommend shocking the pool with a chlorine shock and making sure that if there is a chlorinator on the pool that it has chlorine tablets. Keeping the chlorine level up is probably the best defense against green water.
I had to drain my pool because of lots of broken glass. Now it’s drained lots of wrinkles are in the liner how can I fix this…
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