Leveled ground but pool is sinking and leaking

[sbuell1966]

Here's my problem. I have an Intex 14 x 48 Ultra Frame. My yard slopes slightly so I had the ground professionally leveled and tamped down firm. We did not raise the area to level it but instead dug about 1.5" to create the level space. We then laid sand and laid Tyvek siding insulation (foam) down and trimmed to fit to give the pool a nice, firm base, which it does and is an amazing tip from a friend. We additionally inserted paver stones (leveled with the Tyvek base) for the legs to stand on. Everything was great. The pool felt wonderful underfoot (with the firm, foam base), and the legs resting very solidly on the paver stone supports. It has been up a month no worries.

I noticed over the weekend that the pool has a slight tilt to it, which was not there when we installed because we checked the level of the pool railings after setting up and filling. Everything was good. Upon inspection I see that the pool is slowly "sinking" to the one side. The real problem is that the square paver stone bases are NOT sinking with the pool (see where this is going?) and they are now pressing into the bottom liner and causing small tears. Now the pool has many slow leaks, which will only get worse as this continues to sink. I've tried wet patching from the inside but it's just too difficult to get a firm seal on the points of the paver stone base edges that are digging into the liner.

I live in south NJ. Our ground is clay-based and (I assume) "soft". At this point I'm fine with draining the pool and purchasing a new liner (since the frame is perfectly fine). My concern is that this will continue to happen and I'll be back in this position.

Suggestions are welcome!

 

[Bama Rambler]

Is it the ground that's sinking or the foam that's compressing?
If the ground was compacted it's unlikely that it's settling unless there was a void underground that's sinking.

 

[sbuell1966]

Is it the ground that's sinking or the foam that's compressing?
If the ground was compacted it's unlikely that it's settling unless there was a void underground that's sinking.

Thank you for the reply. I don't believe the foam is compressing given:

1. The "level" side is still flush with the paver supports
2. The foam is sturdy and only about 1/2" think, whereas at least 1" of paver supports on the "sinking" side are now above the foam base.

It could be a void, which I hadn't thought of.

 

[Bama Rambler]

The only problem with the void theory, is that if that was the case the pavers would be sinking too.

 

[sbuell1966]

I'm stumped. At this point I'm going to drain it, move it, let it dry out down there and have a closer look. There's a reason it's doing this...just not sure what that is

 

[1380ken]

You could jack up each leg one at a time and either remover the paver and replace it some wood with beveled edges or just move the paver back so that it wont touch the pool liner. A small 4" square piece on 1/4 wood will keep the leg from sinking. I use 4" squares of 1/4 wood and have the leg on the edge of the wood so that the wood doesn't touch the pool. I have had Intex pools set up with nothing under the legs and they didn't sink very much.

 

[sbuell1966]

You could jack up each leg one at a time and either remover the paver and replace it some wood with beveled edges or just move the paver back so that it wont touch the pool liner. A small 4" square piece on 1/4 wood will keep the leg from sinking. I use 4" squares of 1/4 wood and have the leg on the edge of the wood so that the wood doesn't touch the pool. I have had Intex pools set up with nothing under the legs and they didn't sink very much.

Thanks for the suggestions. Will most likely take the route of replacing with wood and moving away from the liner. However, I probably won't need to jack the legs up because there are so many small tears around the bottom of the liner it probably makes sense to just replace with a new one and start clean. So...the whole thing comes down. Wish there were a way to replace the liner without having to break down the frame though. That would be nice.