Replacement Above-Ground Shopping

[Wntrequinx]

So last year we discovered the above ground pool that came with the house we bought had serious rust issues and several leaks. We had to stop using it in July and drained it in the fall since we weren't closing it (it's still standing, but we only left it up to protect the landscaping and grading around/under the pool until it was replaced.

My plan is to get a replacement and put it up ourselves (my husband and I are handy, but have never done anything like it). I'm looking for advice in pool selection and construction. The size of the new pool will be the same as the current (24' round) and we'll need to fix a couple of issues with the grading under it. The pool has no deck or any structure around it, just stone landscaping.

The center of the pool is a foot deeper and there is a spot where the prior owners had a leak and its now a football-sized hole that's 6+ inches deep. I attached a picture of it drained to the bottom at the edges, so you can see the depression in the center and the area around it.

A couple questions I've got so far:

1) Is there anything I should look out for in the process of selecting the new pool? Are there brands I should avoid? I'm going to go for a "permanent" one if I can get a quality one, but if not, I'd rather get a intex-type now and then get a better one in 3 years.

2) I'm also seeing at least one website mentioning a 74" deep pool liner, we like the deep in the center but I think the problems we have with the current pool are mostly from them putting in a 54" liner when the walls are only 52" (and it seems like they attached the liner to walls while filling it and that made little holes in the liner over time that caused the rust issues we has)
Has anyone done a "deep end" in a round abp? What do you think of it? Did you do it yourself?

3) Lastly, should we consider putting it partially in ground? We (now) really want an in-ground pool, but don't think we'll ever be able to bring ourselves to spend that much $$ on a pool in the northeast (we're in CT north of Hartford). Would that make it easier to add decking around the pool? Does it have heat retention advantages?

 

[Mdragger88]

Doughboy makes a special “expandable” liner to do as you are suggesting (dishing out the middle).
Not sure if there are other brands that have this. *edit* the pool factory also has these.
Most regular overlap liners will stretch & can handle 6” or less of a dish out. So long as they are installed on a hot sunny day.
If u don’t want to go that route ( & want it back flat) you would need to fill & tamp that area extremely well.
Many here have had good experiences with ordering from the pool factory for their diy above ground permanent pools. They even have completely resin options with a lifetime warranty.
There are lots of videos on how to install yourself. Watch a bunch of them so u are ready when setup day comes.
Since most of the ground work is already done you should have an easier time. The hardest part (other than insuring everything is level) is often getting the liner in, situated & wrinkle free while the sun shines. Start very early with assembling the walls so you have plenty of your hot/warm sunny day to set the liner & start filling the pool. You want to install on a calm non windy day & recruit some friends. When the sun goes off the pool - stop filling & resume the next day when the sun comes back out. Warm liners stretch - cold liners do not.
The biggest difference in diy & the pros is that the pros have the experience & manpower that allows them to move quickly & efficiently so the walls & liner are all done in the same day. If the walls need to be left up without the liner in place & somewhat filled for some reason they will need to be braced in some way to prevent wind from creasing them.
Feel free to ask any questions u may come up with along the way. Also do a search here for diy above ground pool builds - there are quite a few with great pics.