Pool liner coming up at the steps

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M

maxz

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May 14, 2013
15
First post and i'd like to say that pool school and the forum has helped me so much with my first pool! I just bought a new home with a pool, which due to Hurricane Sandy, has been exposed for about 7 months. I spent the last week shocking and cleaning the debris. I noticed that the first step into the pool seems to have a lifted lining. I did some research and found how to fix it when the vinyl comes apart from the coping, but I can't find any information about my issue. With my hand I can easily press down into this diagonal section of the liner. I don't think it's supposed to be this way. In fact, it seems like it would be difficult to get in and out of the pool without this first step. I'm also afraid of any damage that can be caused if someone steps on this part of the lining.

The image below is my illustration of what's going on. I'll take a photo tonight.
Is there any way to fix this? Thanks!
l53nm86.png
 
maxz said:
harleysilo said:
How far up the skimmer does the water level go?
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It was halfway up the skimmer when I got the house. I've been backwashing a lot and any time i need to add water, i bring it back up to halfway.
Click to expand...

I have liner over steps like you. My liner stays put. For whatever reason (possibly miss measurement of skimmer height relative to top step height) I was told to keep my water on the high side, which for me leave ~1" of space between top of skimmer opening and water level.

How deep is the water on that top step?
 
maxz said:
The deepest part of the first step is probably only an 1.5" under water.
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I would have to guess that is your problem, i have ~4" of water over my first step. I can measure tonight to confirm. I would fill up your pool to within 1" of top of skimmer opening and see if you can get it to stay put.

You might have to put something to weigh it down next to pool wall on top step until it gets used to it's new (proper) location.

Maybe someone else will chime in, is it possible it has been like this for awhile after Sandy? I wondering if being out of the water and possibly subject to sun caused any issues that would prevent it from settling back into its spot.

I have read where people poor really hot water on liners to soften them to stretch them back into tracks etc. I'm only mentioning that in the event that a higher water level doesn't magically solve the problem, if it doesn't we can start getting creative.

Do you have a border on your liner? If so how far up the border does the water go?
 
harleysilo said:
maxz said:
Do you have a border on your liner? If so how far up the border does the water go?
Click to expand...
Click to expand...

The part that detached from the wall, and is now on a diagonal down to the step is the border. The harder vinyl begins in the middle of that first step. Just about where the water meets the first step is where the border begins. Kind of hard to explain I guess. I'll post a photo later.
 
Hmmmm what do you mean by harder vinyl? My steps are covered with the Tread-Tex non slip version of my liner. The rest of the pool is normal vinyl liner. There is no difference in the thickness nor feel of my border vs. sides of pool vs. pool bottom.

Do your steps have a very very very slight texture to them compared to border or other areas of the pool?
 
No, they don't have any texture. By harder vinyl I meant the border is soft, where the rest of the vinyl is a bit harder. However, this soft border is what makes up most of the first step, for some reason. Now since the border came off of the wall, it is now stretched diagonally across the first step.
 
Here is an image of what's going on. I can press down on the border very easily. At the bottom of the border right before the rest of the vinyl, there is a crease, which I suspect is from when it was in the corner of the stair. Now the border seems to have come up off the back, and is now on a diagonal to the stair. It also must have shrunk, since there isnt much "give" to the border when i try to press it back in place. My concern is that the border will tear as soon as someone steps on it.

That first step that you see only has about 3" of flat surface
w4ts2d0.jpg
 

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The crease likely is a seem. My liner, and probably yours, is really a bunch of various sized pieces that are it to fit all of the planes in the pool, then the are "welded" together to make the one piece liner. So there is no bunched up material at the end of the first step or below that, no wrinkles on the steps wher the extra liner may have shifted to? Do you think the pool sat empty, or really low on water for a prolonged period of time?

I don't really know anything about adjusting an liner after its installed. Do you know the age of the liner?
 
There are no wrinkles anywhere. I don't know much about the pool or the liner. The previous owners could have had the water low at some point in the past, but I have no way of knowing. I'm just not sure if there is a way to at least protect the border and this first step from tearing.
 
I share your concern, hopefully someone who knows how to reseat liners, and stretch them will come along and tell what could be done, if anything. I don't think my suggestion of just raising water level to hold down liner will work, as ther is no slack anywear likely due to shrinkage from sun exposure during low water conditions.
 
Two possibilities come to mind. The liner might simply have been too small all along. Or it might have shifted at some point, leaving too little slack by the steps to go into place easily. Regardless I can't think of any easy way to fix it.
 
Take this from somebody who has no experience with that type liner over steps...When the pool was refilled, did you use a vacuum to hold the liner to the pool walls? If you did, did that part of the liner lay flat against the step while filling?

If you just filled without the vacuum, it seems like maybe the liner would have stretched there rather than stretching the lower part where it should have.
 
Would love to know if this problem was ever resolved as I have the exact same problem. The only thing I can think of is to drain the pool down to the first step and try to stretch the liner just enough to get it to lay flat against the pool wall.
 
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