HELP!!!!! Is this safe to back fill????

[hairgurl37]

Hey hey,

Single mother and brand new above ground pool owner... Install completed yesterday however there were some issues when digging. First of all I had a 4-ft fall that needed addressed. Then while digging they hit an enormous boulder. So they decided to move their original area back a couple of feet. So now I am left with this huge gap and hole between the side walls and the ground. Need some major advice. Can I back fill this enormous area? And if so do I need to do a retaining wall inside as well? My original plan was to do a step down addition to my current deck. However I don't want to just leave this hole open even if its underneath a deck. We get a lot of rain and I would hate for it to accumulate water. Pictures attached... All advice welcome... Thank You!!!

 

[Texas Splash]

Hello and welcome to TFP! I'm sure you'll receive several replies, but I'll toss an idea or two out there for you. If it were me, I would probably backfill with dirt to support the wall of the pool and conceal that void. I might also leave a small landscaping design around the top-edge of the pool. Since the pool is now set further away from the original patio/decking, I might take a portion of that deck rail down and make a type of decking runway to the pool. That could make things interesting if you have kids who are ready to run & jump, so have the cameras ready. If you didn't want to extend the deck, a simple path from around the side of the deck to the pool would suffice as well. That's my idea. Who's next?

Nice to have you with us.

 

[hairgurl37]

Thank you so much! Sounds easy enough.. Just wanted to make sure I wouldn't collapse pool walls with back-filling material... And yes the deck addition (step down from current deck) to wrap maybe 1/2 way around pool is what my initial thoughts were...

 

[zea3]

When the pool is full you can backfill that area. I would put 6-12" of gravel at the bottom so it will drain well and then backfill the rest with dirt. Don't pack the dirt in, let is settle on its own over time. Of course if you are going to extend the deck up to the pool put your footers in before backfilling.

 

[gwegan]

I 'd lay down a french drain, backfill with at least 6 inches of loose gravel and then taper the slope down. I like decks so I would put your deck over it.

 

[hairgurl37]

Thank you everyone! I am no longer discouraged and can now see the light at the end of the tunnel. I will let you know how it turns out....