Bottom Rail Separating From Wall

by Stacy
(St Peter, MN)

We had a 30' by 15' oval pool professionally installed in 2007. It is an Outback Empire I believe.

This past summer we noticed quite a bit of wrinkles in the bottom pool liner. I frequently do a walk about around the pool to check for damage as well as remove any wet mud or debris from the pool wall (to prevent rust) so at that time did a walk about. This is when I noticed the bottom of the pool wall seemed to be separating from the track in one section. The outside pool support beam also seemed to be separating from the wall.

We contacted the installer who came out and told us to watch it. He felt we could get through the rest of the summer and could repair it during winterization. However he also said if we noticed the cove (I think that's what the white foam like material is called) pushing out between the separation of the pool wall and track we would need to fix it sooner not later.

We thought we did see the cove so contacted the installer. However, even though we called and stopped by his office numerous times we were unable to make contact with him.

I tried calling other pool installers however unable to find anyone to come out to look at the pool. There really is only one pool business in our area. I googled the problem but had difficulty finding information on what we needed to do. I finally did speak to the installer although we had already started getting the pool ready for winter. Basically he told us to lower the water level more than we normally do and he would put us on his schedule for repair in the spring. I got the impression he wasn't quite sure what to do. He did say something about completely emptying the pool and digging beneath that section of the pool to reset the bottom rail into the track.

Incidentally, the water on that end of the pool seemed to be several inches higher. I've included some pictures that I took last winter.

Hi Stacy

What you are seeing is the pool foam cove and it is a very dangerous situation that needs to be taken care of.

The pool does need to be emptied to fix this problem. It is in need of leveling to properly put the wall back into the bottom track.

Judging by the age of your pool the liner will probably not tolerate being drained. It will shrink and not stretch back out. I would plan on a new liner so that the proper repairs can be made without the old vinyl being a concern or getting in the way. Just do it right and be good for many more years.