Holes Under Pool Liner

by Joe
(PA)

I purchased a 27 foot round above ground pool one year ago. I am now noticing that there are holes under the liner where the sand bed was put down. The liner is not leaking but I can notice a definite depression in the floor liner. These depressions are approx. 2"x2"x 1" deep under the liner.

Is this just the pool settling? Is this from animals or washout?? Should I be concerned?? What can I do to stop or prevent this.

Hi Joe.

Most of the time these types of depressions are from the soil under the sand settling. In that case there is very little you can do about them. They should not cause you any harm and can easily be taken care of the first time you change a liner. That's the great thing about second liners, the soil and sand are well packed. When the sand is smoothed over again, and the new liner installed it really stays looking nice.

Pockets in the liner floor could also be caused by holes in the liner. If that is the case they are easy to detect and easy to fix. You would just need to go under water with goggles on and examine the liner in these areas. Rubbing your hand over the liner should cause any dirt to move, spots that do not move are usually holes. Patches can be applied under water, without having to drain the pool.

These types of holes have also been caused by insects, ants and beetles usually. Green Day makes an ant killer that comes in a granule form. This can be liberally applied around the pool if you think this might be the problem. Unless they are really bad pockets you will probably not want to drain the pool and fix them. If you did drain the pool, and pulled the liner back to peek underneath it, you would probably know for sure what is going on.

If you decide to drain and fix the liner work fast and don't let the liner sit empty in the sun. I would drain the pool down to where there was just enough water in the bottom to hold it in place, to keep it from shifting and getting off center. Leave the skimmer hooked up also, they are hard to realign. With one person holding the liner back, another person can get behind it and make repairs to the sand.

Hole In Bottom Of Pool Liner

by Laura S
(Huber heights, ohio )

I just noticed a squishy part of the bottom of my pool. Upon further checking it out I found a small hole in the bottom of the pool. I have already filled the pool to the top as it's been up for three weeks. What should I do?

Hi Laura.

Holes in above ground pools are easy to fix. You need to find a Boxer vinyl patch kit and follow the instructions.

You cut a circle patch and apply glue to the back of it. You then take it underwater and put it over the hole. As you come up for air you place your big toe over the patch. Just hold that patch in place for a minute are two and you are all set.

To make a patch job look good it's nice to have some of the same vinyl as your liner is made of. Every time I installed a pool I would cut out the skimmer opening and give the vinyl to my customer. I would explain that I hoped they would not have to use it, but if they ever had a hole, this was the best patch material to use.

Many pool stores sell one foot squares of actual pool liner for the purpose of making patches. It you can find some, it would be fine to add a second patch over the first and really make it look nice. Actually, it would look so nice you would never know the liner had been patched.

Replace Lost Sand

by DonnieB
(Springfield, IL)

I had a 1/4" hole in my liner that I have patched and that seems to be holding quite well. My question is how do I replace the sand that was pushed out when the pool was leaking?

I have couple of holes in the sand that are about baseball size. The spot right under the hole is hollow and there is no sand behind/under that section of the liner that is about 3 inches across. Is there anyway to fix this without tearing up the whole pool and liner?

Thank you

Hi Donnie

There is no way to fix it with a pool full of water, sorry to say. The pool would need to be drained down to a couple of inches and the liner pulled back in that area.