Move Above Ground Pool

by D B
(cherry hill nj)

Is it possible to move an above ground pool from one home to another and if so how difficult will it be?

Hi

My wife and I have moved hundreds of pools from one home to another. It is pretty easily a two person job.

It is best to start with a completely empty pool. We remove all of the top rails, top caps, uprights, stabilizer rods and coping. We will also completely unhook the filter equipment and remove the skimmer and return. We are usually packing all of this into a pickup as we are taking it apart.

With everything gone except the wall we unbolt the seam and carefully roll it up. The important part is to unbolt the seam. If it is a Doughboy pool and has a bar instead of nuts and bolts, the bar should come off.

All that is left is to dig up all of the bottom rails and footplates. Make sure you have them all and be gentle with them if they are rusty.

Assembly of a used pool is identical to that of a new one. We have taken the old pool completely apart. That includes every single screw, nut and bolt. It may seem like extra work but it will go back together so much easier if you are doing it as if it came out of a box new.

The biggest mistake people make when moving a pool is trying to reuse the old liner. That is far more aggravation than it is worth. Do yourself a big favor and install the pool with a new liner.

Pages related to moving an above ground pool

Above Ground Pool Installation

Above Ground Pool Installation Tips

Moving a Doughboy Pool

by Don
(Auburn kentucky)

My parents have a 3 or so year old 16x32 doughboy oval pool. My mom tore the liner and they are getting older and are tired of it. I can take it and the deck around it down and have it if I want. It has a saltwater system.

Is this hard to do? Does my lot have to be perfectly level? Where I would have to put it has a slight slope of less than 8 inches.

Does the sod have to be removed?

I appreciate any help!

Hi Don

Doughboy oval pools are some of the best made pools on the market, they can also be some of the most difficult to install. Be sure to follow the instructions closely.

You do need to remove the sod and you do need to make the ground perfectly level. There is no way around either of these. Take all the time needed to make sure the pool is being set up on firm level ground.

I have written a lot about taking pools down and installing pools. Below are some of the pages that should be a big help to you.

Move An Above Ground Pool

Above Ground Pool Installation Mistakes

Above Ground Oval Installation

Above Ground Swimming Pool Installation

Expandable Liner Installation

Moving an OutBack 24' Pool

by Gheun
(Athol, MA)

We bought our Outback pool about 5 years ago in southwestern PA. We have moved to MA. and the instructions got "misplaced". The people where we bought it are no help. I was hoping someone might be able to help us out. It was a lot easier to take apart than it looks like spread out now!

Hi Gheun

This page has links to a few different sites with installation instructions.

Above Ground Pool Directions

You will probably also find it helpful to review my installation photos and advice.

Above Ground Swimming Pool Installation

Above Ground Pool Liner Installation

Above Ground Pool Installation Mistakes

Hopefully you will find enough information on these pages to make re-installing your above ground pool easy.

Above Ground Pool Uprights

by Michele
(Sharon, SC)

I recently emailed you asking how to take the pool wall out of the track and you told me to detach the uprights first. I am assuming that you mean the outer metal sleeve like piece that looks like a post from the outside. How is that attached to the metal post bracket that the rails are connected to?

Also, there is a lot of large landscaping gravel on the outside of the pool, is there a safe way to remove it without damaging the pool wall and/or track?

Thanks for your previous answer, as it helped me alot!

Sincerely, Michele / Sharon, SC

Hi Michele

The uprights are connected to the footplates with screws. Usually there will be three screws holding it in place. There are a few pools out there where the uprights just snap into the footplates but these are very rare. You will probably find screws that need to be pulled out.

It is possible for these screws to be rusted and not want to come out. A small set of vise grips clamped on to the screw head will get them out if the screw driver does not work.

Large landscaping rock next to the pool will probably need to be pulled back by hand. A shovel can move a lot of it but the rocks right next to the pool should be moved by hand.

On the Asahi Above Ground Pools page there is a link to a parts store. You can find all the parts pictured there to give you a little better understanding of how an above ground pool goes together. The Above Ground Pool Parts page might be helpful also.

Esther Williams Pool

by Marsha

We own a 24' round Esther Williams pool at our old house and have now decided that we might like to move it to our new house. Is that possible?

The pool walls, etc, are in good shape, we will need a new liner. We had just replaced the pump motor a couple of years ago, none of which really matters. I basically want to know if it is possible to take down and move this pool and if so, what would the process be. When (if) we move it, I would like to deck it so that it appears to be dropped inside the deck.

We travel extensively and I have seen small fiberglass pools that are done like that and I really believe this one would look great. Do you have any ideas on that? OK, one more thing, the liner was a beaded one, do we have to put a beaded one back in it or would it be easier to put a regular liner in it...I was even thinking of making it deeper in the center.

I will shut up...too much!! I really appreciate your site and any info you could give me to start this process.

Thank You, Marsha

Hi Marsha

It is certainly possible to move an above ground pool. I have clients that have moved several times and always have me move the pool for them, never a problem. If the Ester Williams pool has a continuous sidewall, as opposed to small, interlocking sections, the move should be fairly easy. The interlocking panels tend to be a little more of a pain.

If the pool has a normal sidewall, converting to an overlap liner should be easy. In most cases you just need to purchase coping strips with the liner and use your existing bead receivers as retaining rods, over the coping.

Stretching an overlap liner into a deep area is far better than trying to get a beaded liner to fit correctly. The only problem I would see down the road is the deck. To change an overlap liner the pool top rails need to be removed. Depending on the deck you have in mind you may be better off leaving the pool with a beaded liner. Liners could then be changed without any deck removal.