Interested in more information on causes and frequency of leaks in Intex Prism AGP

[rachler]

Hi all,

TLDR: How common are leaks in AGP and isn't fixing them a PITA?

I have an Intex 26719EH 14ft x 42in Prism Frame Above Ground Swimming Pool. It's leaking somewhere, so I've been researching the forum and have gotten a lot of good information about how to find and fix the leaks.

I've had the pool up for about 2 months on a cement pad with some plastic chair pads under a lot of it, and a ground cloth over the chair pads and under the entire pool. I was careful to avoid pinch points. I have an upside down plastic tote in the pool which is filled with water and some rocks, which my dogs use to sit on when they're not swimming. They are medium sized labs and go in and out on the ladder. They can climb (thrashing all four legs as I drag them in) into a tube with me and they don't puncture that, so I was assuming they wouldn't be puncturing the pool.

The plastic of the liner is thick and I'd have a hard time cutting it if I were trying. I surely could not cut it with a dog nail or by rubbing the lid of a tote on it, or even the ladder feet.

It sounds like the pool is vulnerable to very small holes at stress points, that may or may not become larger over time. But some people have these pools for years without any leaks. Do they just ease carefully into the pool and float around holding their breath? I kind of doubt it.

I've noticed the walls of the pool are moving a lot when the dogs are swimming. But I think that would happen with kids playing in it as well.

Is my use case one that's just asking for leaks? If it is, then these pools seem more delicate than I would expect.

Is fixing leaks an expected part of pool ownership? I didn't think the liner would last forever, but I thought it would be a few years, especially if I left it up over winter.

Finding and fixing the leaks sounds like more work than I'm interested in. Is it just a given with AGP?

Thanks for your thoughts.

 

[ajw22]

Intex is not known for their quality.

Dogs in a liner pool are always a risk of causing leaks.

Leaks come with the territory of that type of AGP.

I think a solid wall AGP with a liner is less prone to leaks. But they cost more.

 

[ioinva]

I'm one of the Intex owner without many complains. But I've had two leaks and have an opinion :
1) Stored the pool over the 1st winter in an attic and a critter nibbled a hole on the bottom. We saw it when we set up the pool and it was a quick fix with the included pool cement and patch.
2) In our 4th year of operation, and we left the pool standing overwinter for the last two years. This year, the pool had rubbed against one of the bricks we embedded in the sand to support the legs and developed a crease. Still, an easy fix.

Both leaks were user /storage / installation errors. Which brings me to the opinion:

Your cement bottom seems like a nice, stable surface for your pool, but it's not. The cushioning you put in is probably crushed under the immense weight of the pool and does not contribute much protection. In our experience, concrete in direct contact with the pool wall is spelling trouble. Intex recommend a base of dirt or a uniform layer of sand on top of compacted dirt.

On top of the concrete flooring under the pool, you have that ball of rocks inside the pool -- again, problematic, unless they are rounded river rocks inside a rip proof bag. If you have a proper way for the dogs to get in / come out, the dog should be fine inside. Yes, the walls are designed to move -- they certainly do when my teens cannonball into ours, so that part is fine. But we opted out of installing a wide ladder when we realized it required "balast", i.e. oursing sand and rocks to stabilize it.

If I were you, and I really wanted that pool, I would take it apart, create a "sandbox" on its footprint, with ample room around the pool, and reset it on the sand (about 3" deep). It's a pain, but will last forever. Just not on concrete. You can make an exit ramp for the dogs with pvc and canvas. Or buy one on etsy. They are fixed to the side of the pool but float at the other end, making it easy for the dog to climb out of the pool without clawing at the liner.

Finally -- to find the leak, just walk around the pool on a dry day and see what is wet. If it's all dry, put on some swim goggles and go for a swim. It's fairly easy to visually find a weaker spot. You can usually see the frayed surface, even if you can't see the needle-sized hole. So you simply reinforce the general area and the hole gets covered. You can do this underwater -- read the leak fix kit instructions.