Cutting in a new liner, but I think I'm screwed

[josheinstein]

Sorry for the long post. You can skip the next few paragraphs of background as to how I got in this mess.

I had a contractor do the liner replacement because I figured I would screw it up. Unfortunately, since I am on well water, I also had to have water hauled in but that couldn't be done for a few days after the liner replacement.

So fast forward to today. The liner is installed and the pool is filled to just below the skimmer line. The contractor comes back to cut in the liner only to find that the standard wide mouth skimmer I got to replace the old cracked one won't work. My pool is a Litehouse pool which uses some proprietary (and wider) skimmer called a RapidFlow.

I drive all over Ohio that day trying to find one, and I finally got it. But now I'm not sure when the contractor can come back. Meanwhile the fresh 16,000 gallons of water I ordered is gathering all kinds of debris.

Now here's the problem. This RapidFlow has TWO sets of screw holes. One set that goes through the liner and gaskets to attach the face place, and another set that mount the skimmer to the pool wall and go under the liner -- as in the liner that's already installed and full of water!

Am I screwed? The liner has not been cut yet, but is it possible to detach the top (it's an overlap with coping strips holding it) and get behind it without draining more water? Or should I put the mounting screws through the liner and then just patch over them?

This explains the design of the skimmer: Uh oh

 

[C3Cl3N3O3]

How far does the level have to be lowered to gain full access to the area? Sounds like it is close already.

 

[josheinstein]

How far does the level have to be lowered to gain full access to the area? Sounds like it is close already.

I guess if I used a small screwdriver, maybe another foot? I guess the bigger question I have is whether detaching the liner in one section after installation is likely to ruin it/stretch it in such a way that it won't go back on correctly.

 

[C3Cl3N3O3]

The amount of downward pressure on that liner track is high when the pool is filled. Small liner track pops are difficult enough to fix, let alone large ones. So yes, I'd be very concerned about that.

Why was the pool filled before the liner installation was complete?

 

[josheinstein]

Why was the pool filled before the liner installation was complete?

The liner installation was completed, but it wasn't until he went to cut in the liner (after filling) that he realized the replacement skimmer I bought was the wrong type. If it was a normal skimmer it would be no problem because the screws that go through the face plate and gaskets are the same that mount it to the wall. For this particular type of skimmer, it's two separate sets of screws and the outer ones are not meant to go through the liner. It's my bad really.

 

[C3Cl3N3O3]

Right, of course. I'm having a hard time visualizing what the second set of screws does or understanding why those were removed during the liner install. I don't have any answers here unfortunately but am just curious.

 

[josheinstein]

Well the old skimmer was badly cracked, so I removed it prior to the liner replacement. That's where I screwed up because by the time the contractor got to it, it was already off so he would have noticed the weird configuration of this skimmer, but to me (being clueless about pools) I didn't think anything of it. It wasn't til he went to install the new one that he realized it was a non-standard fitting.

 

[Mdragger88]

Drain just below the skimmer, remove the top rail(s) so u can move the liner & have room to install the skimmer how it is designed. Then reinstall the liner & put the face plate etc. before cutting the liner. Just like u would with any other skimmer at that point.
To install any skimmer you would have to drain that far anyway. This is just a slight extra step - do your best to put the liner back just how it was. Is this an overlap liner?

 

[josheinstein]

Yes sir it's an overlap. I'll give it a shot. A little worried I won't be able to get the liner back in place though. Always an adventure!

 

[Mdragger88]

It should be fine so long as u don’t cut any holes until it’s back in place. Are the returns already cut?

 

[kimkats]

@Mdragger88 is on the right track with her ideas.

The weight/pressure of the water will hold the liner in place while you do what you need to do to get the skimmer in. You can and should use some kind of clamps on either side of where you want to drop the liner to keep it in place. You should NOT drop the whole liner. Just enough to give you access to the skimmer hole.

 

[josheinstein]

It should be fine so long as u don’t cut any holes until it’s back in place. Are the returns already cut?

There are no cuts in the liner at this time fortunately. I have explained the situation to the contractor and I think I'm gonna wait for him to come back instead of trying to DIY it at this point. Thanks again for the help.

 

[josheinstein]

Just for some context, this is the skimmer I'm referring to. Those outer holes on the exterior part are meant to be screwed into the pool wall behind the liner. The ones on the face plate go into a set of inner holes. I see what they were trying to solve with this design but a butterfly gasket seems so much simpler.

 

[kimkats]

Okay so you have a plan. Now lets make sure that water does not go yuck on you!!!

I am guessing you have not put anything in the water as of yet. You need to add in enough CYA to the it to 30 ppm. Use this:
PoolMath to know how much to get. Do NOT put it in until we tell you how since you do not have the equipment running yet.

You also need to get some liquid chlorine to put in the pool each day. You can mix it in by pouring it in after you have walked around your pool a few times to get it moving good. Then pour it in slowly as continue to walk the pool a couple more times to make sure it mixes up good.

Do you have a good test kit yet?

 

[josheinstein]

That's my second concern, yeah. When I opened the pool last year the water was BLACK (previous owners left it closed for years) and it took me months to get it blue again.

Right now I've just got some chlorine pucks floating around in there and it's been staying pretty clear. Water guy said that there was some chlorine already in the new water, but yeah it definitely needs stabilizer and more. There's a pool store right across the street from me that I take it to for testing. I was holding off on dumping chemicals into it until I knew if I was gonna have to end up dumping it.

 

[kimkats]

Have you watched them test your water? What system do they use?

 

[Mdragger88]

You definitely need your own reliable test kit -
The k2006c or TF 100(best value) are what’s needed to properly maintain your water.

 

[josheinstein]

Thank you all for the advice. I lowered the water a bit more below the skimmer line so the contractor could get behind the liner and install the skimmer.

Unfortunately when I shut off the sump pump, I forgot that gravity would keep siphoning and lost literally half of the water I just had trucked in. So now I'm slowly filling it with my well and I've already canceled one date because I can't shower.

So far water has stayed very clear, but I'm eager to get this filter going to get all the tree droppings out of it.

Thanks again and hopefully I'll be able to contribute back to the community once I'm not as much of a bozo with this stuff. In the meantime I'll become a sponsor.

 

[kimkats]

gravity would keep siphoning and lost literally half of the water

OH NO!! I did the same thing one time. I was using a hose to get the water lower and thought I had emptied the hoes BUT did a dumb bunny move and pout the hose back in the pool Of course it somehow got going again.......................sigh...............

canceled one date because I can't shower.

I am sure they were thankful when you told them why..............wait did you tell them??? LOL

THANKS for the support! We get to feed the sever again!!! OH YEAH!