Crack in steps causing water to leak a lot

[Smashed Ixnay]

I have a crack in the steps that is about 4-5" wide. I ordered some florescent dye to try to find where it was leaking and that's the only area I can find. As soon as I put it near that crack it gets sucked in right away. The pool is vinyl, but the steps are fiberglass (I'm assuming).

From what I've read and watched I need to drain the water out below the step that is leaking and then repair it. Basically I'll need a fiberglass repair kit to do the repair. I think I read something about drilling a hole and filling it in with dirt first, to add support (pool is from 1987 I believe). I found a site called poolstepspecialist that sells stuff to repair the whole steps. I'm not sure if I want to do that, or if I should just buy a fiberglass repair kit.


Another question is, do they not sell something you can install in the water to patch it up? Even if it's temporaily, just to buy me time for when I actually do have time to do it? I'm having to add about 6" of water every 2 or 3 days at this rate. After reading up about this type of leak I'm wondering if I should just let it drain by itself over a couple of days, or would that be a big no no because of the vinyl? I never done this kind of work and kinda dumb when it comes to the pool. I'm not even sure how to drain the pool, unless I hook up a hose to the pool filter and let it drain out to the road like that.


Doing it myself would be the cheapest route, but I'm going to call around just to find out how much it'd cost to get it fixed by a 'pro.' I would prefer to do it myself, so any help would be appreciated!


Info about pool:

16x32
vinyl with fiberglass steps?
crack 4-5" wide at bottom step

 

[kimkats]

Amazon.com: Marine Tex Mighty Repair Kit (White/White, 14-Ounce): Sports Outdoors

My husband said use this. Very easy to work with. He used it on his jet ski!

Kim

 

[gwegan]

Smashed:

Do a search on here re fiberglass or plastic steps repair. There are some fantastic threads that give you step by step instructions. If you can't find the PM me and I will find them.

If you want to have a "professional" do it I would look under boat repair. That is where the experts are. There may be some pool guys in FL but your best bet for experienced folks in that niche is usually boat repair.

If it has been leaking for a while there may be a void -- if so you want to fill it. I doubt dirt will work. I would use grout. That is simple for the experienced person with the equipment but not so easy for the do yourselfer without experience. You may end up with a giant concrete plug under your steps. If there are other ways to access the area without jacking up a lot of concrete and excavating and that allow you to compact the dirt then that may be preferable. But fixing the crack without providing support is just an invitation for the crack to come back.

Before draining your pool you need to know where the water table is. If the water table is too high the water in the soil will fill in behind your liner. Again you can search on here for pool draining. But -- if you are not handy I would not do this -- without knowing exactly there the water table is.

 

[Calebh2002]

I had the same issue with a crack in my steps. I tried several products that were supposed to fix it under the water, but they didnt work. I finally had to drain water below the crack and use fiberglass cloth and resien to repair it. I was nervous about drilling thr hole and filling with sand, but it went smoothy and the patch has held for a few weeks now.


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[Calebh2002]

Also I did not drain my pool completely, just enough for the crack to be dry. It took me an entire saturday.

Make your resien in small batches as it sets up quickly.

I used 4 layers of fiberglass matting, and the patch on the steps feels stronger than the other areas of the stairs


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