Is my pool liner done for?

[michael_adkins]

Here is a shot of the tear in my pool liner. Notice the general state of decay as well. The area near the bead is discolored. This is the north east corner which gets the most sun. The rest of the liner is somewhat faded and some minor staining at the water line. Anyone want to hazard a guess as to the age of the liner? When we bought the house 4 years ago, the owner said the liner was not very old. I would guess he fudged that a bit.

I put a patch on it, but the top edge at thee discolored area did not adhere well. Fortunately, we only have a couple of good weeks left this year.

Here is a far shot of the same corner. Notice that there used to be an automatic pool cover and it was very badly filled in with concrete. If I replace the liner, I'll take the time to jack hammer that out and replace it with proper coping brick.

Thanks...

 

[X-PertPool]

Yes, it is done for. This is probably the most common area to see "dry rot" from UV damage.

Now, this crack will probably split more and become larger. Patching the area is difficult and the liner should really be changed, BUT it is above the water line so technically you can use tarp tape or something similar to stop splash out and rain from getting behind the liner and doing damage. I would change the liner but if you can deal with having tape on your liner you can probably get a few more years out of it.

 

[michael_adkins]

No problems. I do have a half-arse patch on it now, mostly to keep the split from spreading. I only have a few weeks left in the season and I'll be in Australia for half that time.

Now that we have established that I need a new liner, shall I do in now, in the fall, or wait for spring. I prefer to wait for spring. Since I have some concrete work to do, I don't want a new liner to get damaged. I would leave the existing liner filled as much as possible. No worries about freezing here.

The concrete work is going to be a bear. Wet saws, jack hammers, mortar work. Good thing I like to keep occupied.

I figure a new liner to be $1500 or so. Maybe some extras too. I believe there is a light niche that was covered up when this liner was installed so I might try to resurect that. I'll have to read up on how those are installed. Might not be worth the effort.