pea gravel

[Lpangot]

Hi. We had our pool put in four years ago. It was installed in Oct so we didn't swim until the next summer. When we got in I noticed bumps all over. I called the pool company and they came and pulled back the lining and there was pea gravel all over. Long story short-over the last four years they have taken the liner out and cleaned it off several times. Last year they drained the pool and re caulked the seems and put a new liner in bc the first one had holes from all the pea gravel. Then comes this summer and it is back. I already have one hole and another starting to bust through. The pool company came out and said they don't know what is doing it and seems they aren't going to fix it anymore. This has been a problem since our pool was installed. Any help on what could be causing it? I can't replace my liner every year. I will say-since they re sealed the edges it does seem better but isn't completely taking care of the problem.
Thanks
angie

 

[Bama Rambler]

Welcome to TFP.

What type pool is it?
What type floor does the pool have? I suspect poolcrete.
Are the pebbles getting between the liner and the floor?
How much gravel are we talking about? buckets, cups, wheelbarrows?

 

[Lpangot]

The floor is concrete with composite sides. I'd say cup full of pea gravel. It has decreased since they re sealed it but it hasn't disappeared.

 

[Bama Rambler]

Where is the gravel coming from?

 

[Lpangot]

Well I am assuming from the pea gravel they laid around the pool when they built it

 

[Bama Rambler]

That's what I figured but I can't figure how it's getting behind the liner.
Do you have any pictures from the install?

 

[Lpangot]

No I don't. Wish I did. I keep thinking the same thing-have no idea how it is getting behind there either. It will be on the sides, along the bottom-everywhere. We used to have it really bad by the ladder in the deep end and that seems to be better since they re sealed it. But it is still all around the corners and stuff. Our pool company doesn't know what to do so they are just not doing anything. And like I said, I can't replace a liner every year. These tiny little rocks are sharp!

 

[Bama Rambler]

It has to be penetrations through the wall that didn't get sealed when it was installed. I wish I had a fix for you, but without seeing it, it's hard to know what to do. Maybe have someone different look at it next time the liner is out.

My worry is that if the fill is shifting you may have voids under the decking before long.

 

[Lpangot]

Do you think it is something that they did wrong during installation? Aside from the wall not being sealed, can you think of something else that could be wrong with the pool itself? They just re sealed last year and maybe they just didn't do it good, but they are going to say they did. Is there something about the pool installation itself that could cause the walls to move and become unsealed? Like I said this has been a problem from day one using our pool.

 

[Bama Rambler]

It's impossible to say if something is structurally wrong without actually seeing it without the liner removed.
Maybe it just needs more holes sealed.