Removing ladder/railing for winter

[Steverino]

Getting ready to close our pool for the year. Over the eight years we've had it, I always have a bit of trouble with getting the ladder & railing free from the cups that are set in the concrete deck. Over the summer they build up white goop (electrolysis?) and that seems to make things tight. It has never taken me more than a few minutes to remove them, though.

This year is the first where I've not been able to get something out at all. Ladder came out after a few judicious kicks to loosen things up. The railing at the steps is proving very stubborn. Wondering if anyone has any ideas about how to get it to release... And yes, I did completely loosen both anchor wedges.

Thanks in advance!

 

[Chemnut]

Get a bucket of water and pour it on the anchors, it will wash away the calcium. Trust em, it's works.

 

[borjis]

I'm curious, why does the ladder of an inground pool need to be removed?

I removed mine just once when the liner was replaced, otherwise I keep it mounted
all year round.

 

[Steverino]

Thanks Chemnut - I'll try that tomorrow, though it has been rainy here so the cups are not bone dry.

borjis - the ladders & railings have to come out in order to install the winter Looploc cover, as it stretches over & past those areas.

 

[PoolguyinCT]

Get a polymer rail it's going to get worse..

 

[Steverino]

Update - tried soaking it overnight with PB Blaster (just a wild idea) but no luck. Poured a bucket of hot water on it this morning but nothing so far.

Is there anything I can carefully inject around the joint to dissolve the stuff? If it is calcification, I assume a mild acid would potentially work, but I know I'd have to be careful of the concrete deck. I don't know what it might do to the stainless and the aluminum(?) cup, though.

 

[Chemnut]

The only thin I've found that works is lots of water, wiggle it and you will see tiny openings, just keep pouring pool water in those. As an FYI, I've found it only happens rarely after this initial lock down.

 

[borjis]

borjis - the ladders & railings have to come out in order to install the winter Looploc cover, as it stretches over & past those areas.

aha, makes sense!

 

[pookiesunshine]

Steverino, oddly, i had a similar problem this year. i had to completely remove wedge bolts and loosen the wedge plates.

 

[Steverino]

Final report: I ended up trying a diluted muriatic acid / water mix. Used a plastic syringe to dribble it directly at the joint between the railing & the deck cup. Tried my best to keep it off of the concrete, and kept sucking out the old mix and injecting new. Also kept trying to wiggle the railing and repeatedly hit it with a rubber mallet. It finally started to twist and came free. I don't know for sure whether the acid helped, but it was certainly bubbling in there.

Once the railings were out, I got serious about making sure the deck cups were draining properly. The pool installer had never drilled out the drain holes in the bottom of each cup. I did so today, using a hammer drill & masonry bit to get all the way through. After that I used a round grinding stone on a drill to clean up each cup, removing as much corrosion as I could. Once they were relatively smooth, I thoroughly rinsed each one with fresh water & a toothbrush so that they were clean. I finished it off with a coating of white grease around the inside of each cup. When I open the pool next spring I will clean and re-coat the grease if necessary as well as put a coating of grease on each railing end before inserting in the deck. Hopefully the functional drain hole plus the grease will keep the corrosion and bonding between cup and railing from being as bad next year...

 

[JamesW]

The problem is the aluminum cups. Aluminum can corrode under the right conditions.

Because the aluminum cups are on the bond wire, they act as sacrificial anodes to other more noble metals on the bond wire. This causes accelerated corrosion of the aluminum.

Acid can work but it causes more damage and it's dangerous unless you're super careful.

In my opinion, aluminum cups should never be installed. Only brass or polymer should be used.

Good job getting the rail out and thanks for the update.

 

[callea]

I had trouble with mine last year. This Fall I tried to remove them - tried everything I could think of and I couldn't get them out. I ended up cutting them so I could get the cover on for the Winter. Now I'm getting ready to cut them out with a core drill and replace them with brass or polymer. Is one any better than the other (brass or polymer)?