How do i remove my old liner?

[notsure]

I just wanted to ask what is the best and easiest way to remove an old liner. Surprised that i cannot find but one suggestion on the internet on how to do this.

It says to cut liner in a triangle at lowest spot, then dig a hole underneath outside of pool in. Then cut liner on opposite side of pool half way around, dragging liner toward center will cause all left over water and waste to drain out and underneath the hole. That just might be the best way, but hate to dig a hole and ground is hard. But cannot come up with another idea as I assume liner will be really heavy even with a little water still in it and i don't think i would want to dump all of that inside my pool.

Any good suggestions?

 

[danpik]

Don't understand the need to dig a hole. When I change them, I pump as much out as possible, cut it into 4 pieces, fold them up and drop them out of the pool.

 

[Teald024]

DO NOT DIG A HOLE IN THE GROUND FROM OUTSIDE TO INSIDE!! you would just be adding a lot of extra work to the process. It would disturb already compacted soil and make a muddy mess, which is not a good idea in an AGP.

When they replaced mine, they put a submersible pump near the wall on one end (I have an oval). They pumped the water out until they got it down about as far as the pump could before loosing suction. While that was going on, they started pulled the top rail off, but left the bead clamp that holds the liner onto the pool wall. Just as the pump couldn't get any more water, they started pulling the bead clamp off from the opposite end and, from both sides, worked their way pulling the liner toward the submersible pump end. There were 2 guys, one on each side of the pool. They pulled the liner toward the pump forcing the water down to the one end. They were able to get almost all of the water out this way. You can work the liner a bit to get most of the water to the pump. It did get a bit cumbersome the further they went because the liner does get a bit heavy. At the very end, they just cut the last bit free and lifted the liner, pump & last bit of water out. It definitely helps having a couple of guys.

I would recommend putting the submersible pump at the area where the top rail height is lowest compared to the ground level. This would give you less of a height to reach over. Or if you know you have a deep spot in the sand, then move the pump closer to the wall for the remainder. Also be prepared to get wet when you finally pull it out. Even if there is only a couple of gallons left, it can spill out on you.

You can also use a ladder to climb down into the pool area and help lift out the liner. You are likely going to re-grade the sand anyway, so a couple extra foot prints wouldn't hurt too much.

Good luck on the liner replacement.