How do you fix the leak in the vinyl liner of an above ground pool?

Answer 1

Here are more recommendations from other WIKI ers:

• This may not be the answer your looking for, but we used goggles and just went around looking really carefully. It took a while but we did it! There were small air bubbles around the hole - actually we found four holes, but at least we got them!

• We've had our pool for about 12 years (are in the process of possibly replacing it) and have had only one hole in liner in all those years. The way I found it (yes, the water appeared to be draining, first) was that the grass in an area around the pool was much greener than anywhere else. So, diving down around that area I found the slice in the liner, actually fairly quickly, and placed a wet patch on it, which held thereafter.

• First check the perimeter of the pool for soaked areas or look at the sand cove and see if any craters have formed, as the water washes away the sand it will leave a ctater in the floor. For small leaks try this. Turn off your pump so the water is still. I put in a dozen OS so 3" squares of paper towels scattered through out the pool. As the water leaks out it will drag a couple pieces of paper towels to the leak. This method has worked for me in the past for small leaks.

• We were told to use red food coloring. When you drop it in the water, it will be pulled towards the hole. It can take awhile.

• Use a rubber hose to listen for the leak! Fill with water, plug both ends and put one end to your ear, and probe around the liner with the other end. Make sure it's a quiet evening and believe it or not, even a small leak makes a lot of noise. If you have some electronics background, a small microphone encased in epoxy and a good audio amp will make a excellent leak finder.

• You sound like you are sure that you have a leak and the answers above cover that. I just wanted to offer a hint to anyone that isn't sure whether they have a leak or if the water is just evaporating. Fill a bucket full of water - level with the pool - and place it on the step - if it is evaporation - the level should drop about the same.

• The most common way to locate a leak is to swim to the bottom of the pool with a bottle of food color. Squeeze a drop or two by seams or other suspicious locations. The leak will draw the water towards and out of the hole. It is helpful to wear a pair of gogles and to drain the pool leaving about three to four feet of water.

• See the Related Link for "Use this in your pool to fix ANY leak" to the bottom for the answer.

• I used ink (specially made for pools) to find my leak and it worked, after looking for days and even over looked the spot where the leak was found. It was until I read this how to and specifically the one about the creaters that are formed on the floor of the pool; that is exactly where the leak was. Also the water outside the pool was in line with the crater.
• I used Automotive Goop to make repairs in the vinyl liner from the outside. If the hole is small you can wipe away the running water, clean the surface with paint thinner, and apply the Goop to the hole. The water may leak through at first, but apply pressure and smear it into the hole and the leak will hopefully stop. (I lick my finger to prevent the goop from sticking to my skin so I can work it) It worked for me on numerous holes (my crazy dog goes ballistic over water and won't stop jumping at the walls:)and it is a cheap fix. After the first application is dry, add more layers.

Answer 2

well 1st..are you sure it's the liner?...if you are ..then here's one way...1st close the skimmer valves so the pump runs off the bottom drain only..and then just let the pool run..don't fill it and watch to see if and where the water stops going down....you can let the pool go down as far as about a foot in the swallow end...if it stops going down...then just start looking all round the pool at about a inch or two above and below the water level...or with the pool, full they sell if you don't want to get into the pool, a neat little kit that fits on the end of your pole...you put a bottle of dye in it and pull a string and it shoots little bits of red dye ..you'd shoot the dye by where you think you see a rip or tear...you must shut off your pump for a few hours to settle down the water first...good luck

Answer 3

There are really only two options here, and only one of them is a good option. The first option, which is the least effective, is to swim around the pool underwater and visually look for leaks. Don't assume that the first hole you find is the only one. More often than not, whatever caused the first hole you found has caused additional holes. The second option is to have the pool scanned for leaks electronically. If you go to Leaktools.com you can enter your area code and find a listing of professionals who perform electronic liner leak detection. I am a swimming pool leak detective and I have been using the electronic scanner since it was first developed. It is precise, effective and complete.

Answer 4

You can dive with Scuba gear and inspect every inch of the liner, or get a company in like ours who have equipment to find liner leaks by putting a charge in the pool and an earth probe at the pool side. Then with a speacil probe on a vac pole the pool is scanned and when the probe finds the tear it sceeches through headphones.

Blank off all returns, main drains and skimmers to see if pipe work is leaking 1st as it may not be your liner?

If water holds with every thing blanked then remove one blank at a time until pool starts to loose water and that's your leak, this process will take you about a week to do.

Good luck Barry highfibregrp.

Answer 5

Vinyl Liner Repair

Liner bead coming out of the track?

Liners are meant to fit tightly into the shape of the pool. If the liner was installed slightly off center, or if the liner is too large or too small for the pool's shape, you might experience the bead popping out of the track.

With the use of a heat gun or blow dryer and a lot of elbow grease (eat your wheaties), the liner can be stretched and locked back into the track. I was also informed by a pool tech recently that boiling hot water works well when you need to stretch a liner. If this is a continuing problem, the use of liner lock can help in keeping the bead in the track. It is best to consult a professional for this problem, to avoid over stretching or melting the liner. I also caution about the use of electrical equipment (heat gun) around water (pool).

It's usually a lot of pulling and pushing to get a liner back into the track. In some cases you'll need to lower the water level a foot or more if it is out very far. Better to put back in small areas than to wait until you have to lower the water. Use of a small hair dryer (blow dryer) can heat up the liner, making it more stretchable, and easier to get back into the track. Be careful, keep the dryer moving and not too close to the vinyl! I once heated a hole right through a brand new liner using this trick! Also, if you drop the dryer into the water, don't reach in to grab it, you could become electrocuted. When the liner is put back into the track (it can be exhausting work, I'm telling you) consider using liner lock, pennies or popsicle sticks to help hold it in the track.

Liner losing its color?

The original color of your liner will fade with the use of sanitizing chemicals and the effects of ol' Mr. Sun. Harsh chemicals and high concentrations of such are to be avoided. This will remove the plasticizers which give liners their resiliency, leading to brittle vinyl, which leads to new liners. The chemical makeup of modern vinyl allows manufacturers to create liners that are now much more durable and resistant to chemical, solar and algae problems.

Vinyl liner leaking?

Not an uncommon problem. Liners are typically manufactured in 20 mil thickness (28-30 mil option). Although resistant to punctures...it can happen, and will happen. Especially as the liner ages, losing its resiliency. If you are fortunate enough to see a small hole in the liner, simply patch it with a vinyl liner patch kit. If underwater, buy a "wet" patch kit. If the source of the leak isn't readily apparent, go to our section on Leak Detection.

If you are adding more than one inch of water to your pool per week, discounting splashed-out and backwash waste water, you probably have a leak. Do not allow leaks to go unchecked. Leaks can washout supporting back fill behind the walls, corrode the walls, and may wash away sand on the floor, creating large sinkholes.

It is not advised to drain your vinyl liner pool, or allow it to leak out below the level of the walls. The water in the pool holds the liner tightly against the walls and floor. If the water is removed, the liner must be reset with a vacuum to suck the liner into place while filling. Otherwise, large wrinkles may appear when filling a loose fitting liner. In addition, an empty liner pool may allow rain water to seep in under the walls, washing away and destroying the specifically contoured shape of the floor. There also exists the risk of a wall collapsing or caving in. Consult a professional for assistance in these areas.

Never add undiluted granular chemicals, specifically pH de-creaser and Calcium Hypochlorite (shock) directly to the pool. These particles will settle to the bottom, "bleach" the vinyl, and compromise it's strength and resiliency.

Resetting your vinyl liner: If the liner has been drained, or leaked out on it's own, it will need to be "sucked back" into place with a vacuum device to remove the air between the liner and the pool shell (walls/floor).

The vacuum will be in place until the water level is at a predetermined point on the wall. The vacuum is then removed, and the pool continues to fill. This is necessary to ensure proper fit, and reduce or eliminate wrinkles in the vinyl. Prices will vary on labor and trip costs involved, but expect a few hundred dollars when it's all said and done.

Vinyl liners are not limited in colors and patterns as they used to be. Changing this will dramatically improve the visual effect of your pool. The cost of the liner will depend on it's shape, size, thickness, and pattern choice. As an example, a 17' x 35' oval, with a Rockcliffe print, 28 mil thickness, will cost in the neighborhood of $1200.00.

Answer 6

look for the wet spots. where the grass is greener is usaully a clue. fittings that night be leaking or hole in liner.

Answer 7

Put a small amount of food coloring in the area of the pool you think is leaking and watch the food coloring disappear in the hole