Help! Is My Vinyl Liner Doomed?

Jump to latest Follow Reply
M

mek

0
Aug 6, 2011
5
Barrington, NH
Hello!

I'm new here and I have a problem (or do I?). Probably the way most people join a forum like this... :)

OK, here's the story. I have an agp, oval, it is 14.5 by 23 (yes, it is a custom size, but heck it was free), and right now all my numbers are good thanks to the advice I've read here at tfp. I love The Pool Calculator. :goodjob:

When I first had the pool set up (I had it done professionally) and when this incident occurred I was using a floating chlorine dispenser - the source of my problem. I have since installed an inline chlorinator (Hayward model cl200), so far so good.

This was a few weeks ago, we were away for week, on vacation down to Cape Cod and some friends came over to use our pool. I had asked them to come by everyday and check the filter/skimmer. Told them to go ahead and use the pool if they wanted...

On Tuesday, they used the pool and apparently when they removed the solar cover, they flipped over the floaty-thing chlorinator and the cover came off and as you can guess, the tablet fell out and then sat on the pool floor...for five days :grrrr: They didn't realize it was a problem - they aren't pool savvy.

I pulled the puck out of the pool - or what was left of it - as soon as I saw it. There is now a 2 or 3 foot wide by 6 or 8 foot long bleached out section of my liner. There is in the middle of this stain(?) a 18 in or so wide by 4 or 5 foot long area that is dimpled or crinkled. I do not see any holes or tears. My water level seems to be holding, accounting for evaperation.

Questions for you all:

Should I patch this crinkled area? It is right in front my ladder, so it is in area that gets a bit more "foot traffic" than the rest of the pool. I have found large patching material on the net. Like these: http://www.websweeper.com/php/pool_liners/ig-055.php or what about "pool decals" that just sit on the pool floor to cover/protect the affected area?

If I patch it or not, what about using an automatic pool vac? I had gotten a good deal on a Barracuda Ranger. Am I now unable to use this vac? Can you vac, manually or automatically over a patch or a decal?

Do I need to replace my liner in the spring? I hope not! Its brand new and the custom size made it expense, over $500! :grrrr:

In addition to all this, when I was inspecting this damage, I noticed what looks like a 3 or 4 inch diameter divot under the liner a few feet away. There is small bump around one side of the divot where it seems the material underneath has bunched up. My pool installer used clay under the liner. Can I work the clay around the divot back into it and smooth it out? Or, I'm thinking, in the fall empty the pool and fix the divot and the crinkled part?

Thanks in advance for all your helpfull suggestions :)
Mike
 
I'm not sure if a patch would do the job for you or not. The liner sounds as though it is burned and if the difference extends outwards in feet and not inches, then that is a lot of liner that is affected. I think that you are really going to have to replace that liner eventually. Maybe you can get through the rest of the season and do it after the season is over or close to being over. You will get your best deals at that time anyway. As for the ladder being close to the spot in question, are you able to move the ladder to an area more distant from that particular spot?
 
That's a depressing answer. I guess I knew that I woould have to replace the liner sooner than later. I was hoping for some easy fix from the collective. Boy, we sure have gotten off to a rough start with this pool. You know the old joke about the big hole in the backyard that you poor your money into...

I really cannot move the ladder - it's installed to the deck. At this point there's only a month or so in the season, so I guess we'll just have to make due with what we got and replace it in the spring. Unless some one else a suggestion?

Thanks for the straight answer.
 
Unfortunately, I am in complete agreement with 257. However, sounds like you have a pool that for now, is holding water and, cosmetically, the damage is not so bad. In that case, I would simply leave it alone and enjoy the pool this season and reevaluate in the Spring. You may well get several more years out of it if you are lucky.

Also with 257, I really question the effectiveness of a patch as large as the one you may need, but if you can do a nice job with it, that would probably cure the issue.
 
You must log in or register to reply here.
Thread Status
Hello , This thread has been inactive for over 60 days. New postings here are unlikely to be seen or responded to by other members. For better visibility, consider Starting A New Thread.
Top Bottom
Back
Jump to latest Follow Reply