HELP please. Despite leveling ground, pavers have cracked.

[Dirk]

PS. Miss Dragger, you're my pal, too!

 

[Mdragger88]

PS. Miss Dragger, you're my pal, too!

 

[lastevns]

The issue with the legs being higher instead of on the same level as the pool bottom is that they & the top rails are now supporting more weight than they are designed to instead of equally sharing the load with the liner bottom.
This could lead to wonky/bent rails & it also puts stress on all the seams of the liner.
I would make a plan to correct it sooner than later if u wish for the pool to have the longest life possible being as it is a temporary style pool. Some people have used pressure treated boards instead of pavers as they are less likely to crack.

A full drain may not be necessary but the pressure has to be off of the supports enough to be able to manipulate them so u have room to do your work.
*Edited to add * I don’t think it will collapse or anything in the next week or so as the pool is quite level- these pools are quite robust for being large bags of water. I can imagine that the other pavers will likely start cracking as well. All That water is heavy.
Since the ground below the pavers is the correct height this only becomes a problem if the legs begin to sink below that level (like if the ground gets really saturated) & the pool would then become unlevel .

Okay. So, because I work every day this week, I will have to wait to Sunday to even think of draining. I believe you're saying I should look for legs sinking below the leveled ground as a sign I need to look for collapse. Is that right?

 

[Mdragger88]

Okay. So, because I work every day this week, I will have to wait to Sunday to even think of draining. I believe you're saying I should look for legs sinking below the leveled ground as a sign I need to look for collapse. Is that right?

Yes ma’am.
Otherwise, as it sits it’s probably quite stable but still putting undue stress on the rails/liner.
You aren’t the first to make this mistake - don’t worry it’s totally fixable!

 

[lastevns]

Okay. So, because I work every day this week, I will have to wait to Sunday to even think of draining. I believe you're saying I should look for legs sinking below the leveled ground as a sign I need to look for collapse. Is that right?

Okay. Thank you for being so kind as to help. Bad news. But, I knew it when I heard the first paver crack (I was babysitting it while it filled). The weird thing is, I've checked the level of the frame, the level of the water, and it all still appears level. But, clearly, the stress on the frame is scary.

 

[CeltiaK]

You're definitely not the first! We had 18 pavers like yours... and 7 cracked in our first year that pool was up. We hedged our bets and measured the sinking parts, and found they didn't shift any further (over 3 years). Our pavers were "well wedged" between the heavy foam pool foundation and solid earth, so once they cracked, they just stayed put. Once the pool rusted, we did it right with the 4" concrete hefty ones, and those things seem indestructable! But we also did not have any sand anywhere - we were on leveled earth all around the pool.

With your sand base, I would definitely make the effort to redo - it is a pain, but you will be so much happier with the result if you just do it now. You have years of pool enjoyment ahead of you - you don't want to be worried about collapse or strain all that time!

 

[Newdude]

The weird thing is, I've checked the level of the frame, the level of the water, and it all still appears level. But, clearly, the stress on the frame is scary.

As much as I love these pools, they are a bag full of water. Imagine how much it would be moving around with a couple of kids splashing around ?

OK to sit for now and ok for full usage are 2 totally different things.

 

[ajw22]

OK to sit for now and ok for full usage are 2 totally different things.

I was catching up and about to post this.

Lots of sloshing around of water can cause a sudden failure. Especially with 2 pavers already cracked.

You have around 40,000 pounds of water in the pool.

 

[lastevns]

You're definitely not the first! We had 18 pavers like yours... and 7 cracked in our first year that pool was up. We hedged our bets and measured the sinking parts, and found they didn't shift any further (over 3 years). Our pavers were "well wedged" between the heavy foam pool foundation and solid earth, so once they cracked, they just stayed put. Once the pool rusted, we did it right with the 4" concrete hefty ones, and those things seem indestructable! But we also did not have any sand anywhere - we were on leveled earth all around the pool.

With your sand base, I would definitely make the effort to redo - it is a pain, but you will be so much happier with the result if you just do it now. You have years of pool enjoyment ahead of you - you don't want to be worried about collapse or strain all that time!

Hi,

This is really valuable information. Seven cracked and your pool stayed up? That's kind of amazing. And over three years. Wow.

Actually, I have hard-packed earth that was leveled by professionals (I couldn't manage it myself and I'm glad I didn't try). They showed me the earth, itself, was level before the sand was put down. But, they put a thin layer of sand over that (their suggestion) for the feel of the bottom of the pool. Frankly, I didn't think we put down enough sand because the bottom of the pool still feels pretty hard on my feet (and I spent HOURS trying to move wrinkles out so I spent a lot of time feeling the bottom of the pool). I don't know if that counts as having a sand base since, closely under the small amount of sand is hard packed (very hard) earth. If you're in So Cal, you know how hard. It kind feels like cement sometimes. So, maybe this is helping? I don't know.

I have to decide whether to keep adding chemicals to the pool since it won't be able to come down until at least Sunday. If I drain this thing, I have to find a way to drain it to the street or I will lose all my leveling work and that cost me a lot. I don't see any way to hook up a hose to this drain. So, that's frustrating. But I am going to call Intex and see what they say. Anyway, in the meantime, I think I'm going to continue to add chemicals cause it just shot up about 20 degrees today (92) and we have extreme UV.

I really appreciate your advice. Thank you so much!

 

[lastevns]

I was catching up and about to post this.

Lots of sloshing around of water can cause a sudden failure. Especially with 2 pavers already cracked.

You have around 40,000 pounds of water in the pool.

Yeah, we went in it last night just to see if we heard anything more crack or felt uncomfortable with some movement (just two adults will use it). We considered that we probably shouldn't slosh around too much. The thought of it collapsing is frightening. It says the pool holds Water Capacity: 4,545 gallon (90%). And we filled it. So, yeah, close to 40K. Yikes. now I'm even more worried.

 

[Newdude]

I always roll with my glass half full and you had a setback to start the season. You're still going to get the season in. If you fumbled with 2-3 weeks left, then yeah, its over. But not today. Not at all.

 

[lastevns]

As much as I love these pools, they are a bag full of water. Imagine how much it would be moving around with a couple of kids splashing around ?

OK to sit for now and ok for full usage are 2 totally different things.

Have to admit, I don't love these pools. But, I've always wanted a pool and for my yard (which is partially taken up by a hill of 45 degrees and has two cement patios (right side yard and back yard before hill starts), only the other side yard was left and it wasn't eligible for even an in-ground dipping pool unless I wanted to tear down four trees. I couldn't do that (I love trees) so I opted for this. It is ugly and looks like a big bathtub. But, I wanted a pool, so this was it. Wish I didn't have this paver issue because then I could move on to landscaping and trying to make it look better. Any ideas on how to drain it without losing my level space?

 

[lastevns]

I always roll with my glass half full and you had a setback to start the season. You're still going to get the season in. If you fumbled with 2-3 weeks left, then yeah, its over. But not today. Not at all.

And we're in So Cal. Sadly, it doesn't truly get cold here (my family is from northern Sweden). We could easily swim 10 months out of the year - maybe more. For someone who LOVES to snow ski, that's kind of bad news. But, trying to turn it into a blessing with the pool. Thanks for the encouragement!

 

[lastevns]

You're definitely not the first! We had 18 pavers like yours... and 7 cracked in our first year that pool was up. We hedged our bets and measured the sinking parts, and found they didn't shift any further (over 3 years). Our pavers were "well wedged" between the heavy foam pool foundation and solid earth, so once they cracked, they just stayed put. Once the pool rusted, we did it right with the 4" concrete hefty ones, and those things seem indestructable! But we also did not have any sand anywhere - we were on leveled earth all around the pool.

With your sand base, I would definitely make the effort to redo - it is a pain, but you will be so much happier with the result if you just do it now. You have years of pool enjoyment ahead of you - you don't want to be worried about collapse or strain all that time!

Quick question: how did you measure the amount of shift over those years?

 

[lastevns]

I always roll with my glass half full and you had a setback to start the season. You're still going to get the season in. If you fumbled with 2-3 weeks left, then yeah, its over. But not today. Not at all.

Great attitude. I'll have to use it as a mantra for awhile

 

[Newdude]

Any ideas on how to drain it without losing my level space?

Submersible pump or siphoning to a low spot in the yard, away from the pool.

 

[lastevns]

Submersible pump or siphoning to a low spot in the yard, away from the pool.

We tried, last night, to see if a hose would connect to the drain hole. It didn't seem like it would. I don't know what a submersible pump is. And I haven't figured out how to siphon to another area. That is why I plan to call Intex tomorrow. Maybe there is way to hook up a garden or pool hose but I haven't figured it out yet. I will look up submersible pumps but I still need to direct the water away from my leveled area.

 

[ajw22]

I don't know what a submersible pump is.

Submersible Pumps - Further Reading

www.troublefreepool.com

 

[lastevns]

Submersible Pumps - Further Reading

www.troublefreepool.com

Thank you, very helpful.

 

[Dirk]

You don't need to mess with the drain, if you don't want to, if the street is lower than the pool, even if only a little. Place one end of a hose in the pool and connect the other to a hose bib (outdoor spigot). Turn on the water and fill the hose until no more bubbles are seen from the end in the pool. Bend the hose near the spigot into a kink and hold that with one hand while you undo the hose from the spigot with the other, then haul that end to the street. Let go of the kink and you'll be siphoning. Lower the end in the pool to the bottom, maybe weight it down in place with a paver or two, and then go have a nap!

If the street is not lower than the bottom of the pool, and there is no alternate low spot available, then you'll need a small pump. You can buy one on Amazon for about 50 bucks, or you can rent one at Home Depot for about the same amount.