MN Frost heave

continuing post with more pictures
spring 2019 - it's bad!!! image 13 is same section as image 12 in above post, image 14 is same section as image 10 in above post, I can slip my hand under the post. image 15 & 16 show the west wall is starting to lift. image 17 is the east wall looking south.

At this point we're ready to rip it down. The installer's suggestions have been:

replace the complete wall ($2,000 plus labor) and save the liner
find a salvaged used wall (it'll be hard because it's a 52" wall) and replace the east side of the wall and save the liner (plus labor)
start all over ($4,000 plus labor)
We also have to replace the pump because it's froze. I don't know how it made it through last year but it finished strong with lots of squealing and whining. ($200+)
AND I closed the pool wrong last year and the heater didn't drain correctly ($2,000)

All of which is to say - we don't want to spend this much money, but I really love having our pool to relax in on a hot day especially now that we have a heater. But there's no way we're spending this much money without figuring out why it keeps doing this. Any ideas?

The installer's reply in 2018 was the only reason why the pool didn't collapse in the spring was because the deck was holding it up (the deck surround all but the north curve of the pool).

CJadamec said:

So its a little unclear from the pictures but it looks like the deck surrounding the pool is actually touching the pool. In the very last picture it actually looks like the deck board is notched into the upright for the pool.

There is no way to stop the pool from moving due to frost heave, in your neck of the woods the an above ground pool is going to need so room to move about as the seasons change. Well, short of burying the pool (backfilling against the wall) there is no way to stop it from heaving.

Your deck however is clearly on frost free footings. If the pool is touching the deck and doesn't have the room it needs to move around that is likely where your problem lies. In the battle of the pool being moved by frost VS the deck, the pool is always going to lose.

If I had to guess as to why you are having the same area of the pool fail its because of interference with the deck. Check that first and if you do choose to repair / replace the pool make sure that the deck and pool aren't touching.

Click to expand...

Thanks for your reply. The deck shouldn't be touching the pool sides, it wasn't when my husband originally constructed the deck. I will have to do a little bit of investigating and see if things have shifted since construction. The pool installer didn't think the deck was the problem.

By frost free footings, do you mean the footing doesn't go down past the frost line? MN rules state the concrete must go down 42 inches and bell out and I dug the holes 48 inches for the concrete to attach the wood 4x4 to.