Opening pool - add water first?

[tlevy]

I have a few questions related to our pool opening, but one thing that I find out there is some folks suggest adding water first to correct level, and other sources suggest cleaning, connecting plumbing, etc. first, then add pool water...

I will post later about my floating liner!!


Sent from my iPhone using Tapatalk

 

[tlevy]

Hi all

As the title says...liner is floating throughout pool. Shallow end, down the sides, and possibly the bottom of the deep end, but I have not yet peeled the winter tarp completely off yet.

We have had a whack of precip this winter and spring, and I have pumped off the tarp water into a not so ideal spot.

PB says it is ground water pushing the liner out. I am presently slowly filling the pool, hoping this will help push the tarp back into place.

There is a flex tube installed under the pool which I could use to pump groundwater with, but I feel that waiting for the spring melt to finish would make sense. It is quite early for opening - i am in Ottawa, Canada.

Thoughts? Should I be worried or patient?


Sent from my iPhone using Tapatalk

 

[Patrick_B]

Please do tell us more. Is this an in ground vinyl pool I guess? Was it winterized with Antifreeze, all equipment drained etc? What happened with the liner getting floated, and where are you with this as a whole? I don't want to presume too much, so please let us know in order for us to help.

 

[tlevy]

Sorry - added signature now. I posted separately about liner - it is likely due to high water table, according to PB.

Pool is 18K gallon IG vinyl, that was winterized (glycol, drained, etc).

Cheers
Tom


18000 IG, SWG, 1/2 HP Tri Star + Solar PV direct DC Lorentz pump, Sand filtrt

 

[Patrick_B]

No problem at all, and thank you for adding that info. I went ahead and moved the other post here so we can keep it all together on the same subject.

High water tables are common in certain regions, so your PB should know your area. Have pthey made any suggestions for dealing with the water removal from around/under the pool? It sounds like you have some options with the hose, and if you can pump the water away from the pool while it's filling it would be a good plan I think.

 

[tlevy]

Thanks Patrick.

The only suggestion was to wait, which I am tempted to do, while also filling pool to just below skimmer. I assume I should not get plumbing going until the liner is back to normal as well, primarily because I can't clean pool properly with liner floating!




18000 IG, SWG, 1/2 HP Tri Star + Solar PV direct DC Lorentz pump, Sand filtrt

 

[tlevy]

To be clear, flex tube is under deep end of pool, and between gravel and concrete/parging


18000 IG, SWG, 1/2 HP Tri Star + Solar PV direct DC Lorentz pump, Sand filtrt

 

[SCon36]

Was your pool pumped down or empty over the winter?

 

[Patrick_B]

Wait for what? The water to recede? Maybe the deep end hose will help and gravity too perhaps. Perhaps I am missing something, but it seems sooner the better for getting the water out from under there, and start with the filling.

 

[ntobik]

Did the liner settle back? We had ours float bad in a terrible storm. We received about 5" of rain in two hours. I got my pump out and pumped as much from the sides as I could. The rest was pushed back out with the weight of the water.

All that said I've realized this will be an ongoing battle. I'm installing some surface drains to take care of surface water, and have started to investigate how to build a sump.

In theory you need to dig below your deep end to prevent issues, but it's really hard to dig that deep in an established area. I've explored drilling and found a place I can rent an augur that will get me 6ft deep. With a foot or two of shovel excavation it gets me close to my pool depth (8.5ft). You drill/dig a hold, then stick corrugated pipe in it to line the sides. From there pour some gravel down for the bottom and place a sump pump with a float switch in the bottom. You'll need to pipe the water up and out.

What the sump will do is catch ground water. Water wants to go where there is the least resistance, and if there's a giant hole there's zero resistance there. The pump should be able to keep up and keep the water out from the pool. Remember, you're trying to lesson the hydrostatic pressure, not pump all the water out from underground. If you relieve the pressure there won't be any water pushing into your pool.

 

[tlevy]

Was your pool pumped down or empty over the winter?

Pool was pumped down, but not emptied. PB suggests filling pool to as high as possible. He suggested that if we pump groundwater from sides too fast, it could cause more wrinkles vs letting it naturally settle back down as groundwater runs off. His suggestion was fill the pool as high as possible, then wait. If liner doesn't settle as groundwater dissipates (e.g., into May time frame), then we should pump...


18000 IG, SWG, 1/2 HP Tri Star + Solar PV direct DC Lorentz pump, Sand filtrt