Will an Intex XTR fit in our existing hole?

[Julia Peculia]

Hey, y'all! Happy to find you. When we bought this house, it came with a steel sided 18' x 52" pool. We didn't know it, but the sides were almost totally rusted. We discovered it when we went to replace the leaking liner. We just ordered and received the Intex Ultra XTR. I'm watching some videos and see that the legs are outside the pool, being this is a soft-side pool (not sure I'm using the right term).

The pool that was here was dug into a hole in the yard that's about 6 inches deep. Will this Intex work with our existing spot?

 

[CT-Steven]

As long as the ground is not pressed up against the pool or the legs themselves you should be fine. As with any pool you just need to make sure the ground is level and prepped properly. There have been numerous threads with installs being below grade or a deck completely surrounding the pool. I would put up some sort of retaining wall/boarder to hold the ground back as I did this for mine. What is wrong with my install and that will be corrected is the boarder is up against the pool legs. This places the pool legs on the outer parts of the pavers putting unneeded pressure on them and eventually sinking the one side the legs are on. The correct way is to get the legs on center of the pavers/base so the pressure is evenly distributed.

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• CT-Steven
• Jul 1, 2022

 

[Julia Peculia]

As long as the ground is not pressed up against the pool or the legs themselves you should be fine. As with any pool you just need to make sure the ground is level and prepped properly. There have been numerous threads with installs being below grade or a deck completely surrounding the pool. I would put up some sort of retaining wall/boarder to hold the ground back as I did this for mine. What is wrong with my install and that will be corrected is the boarder is up against the pool legs. This places the pool legs on the outer parts of the pavers putting unneeded pressure on them and eventually sinking the one side the legs are on. The correct way is to get the legs on center of the pavers/base so the pressure is evenly distributed.

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• CT-Steven
• Jul 1, 2022

Thanks for replying! This makes sense. I've only had the steel-sided pool, so I'm not used to this what I call a soft side. Now that you mention it, the dirt will move and press on the bottom. Another problem! I'm so frustrated.

And about pavers, the installation directions don't show using them, but I see here on this site and other places that people use them. Are they really necessary? And won't the make the legs too high seeing as how they're not adjustable?

 

[CT-Steven]

Something needs to be placed under the legs as they cannot sit on the dirt. Pavers are just an option as you can also use pressure treated wood. But like the base of the pool, preparation is important. Whatever you decide to use under the legs make sure that the legs are centered on the pad. You want to try and displace the pressure across the entire pad. If you look at mine, I failed and had the weight of the pool at the edges and after time they sunk making the pool uneven. If you do use pavers, I recommend 16x16x4 The thickness is important to handle the weight. If you cannot find them, you can try putting down 6" of pea gravel and use (2) 16x16x1.x stacked as I have used this in the past and it has not cracked the pavers.

For around the pool and to hold items back from sliding under due to the concave design, HomeDepot sells a sort of foam triangle gutter inserts which we laid on the ground around the pool. This has held back the rubber mulch we used to surround the pool and hide the pink insulation base.