how to find a leak in an intex pool
Wintertime has been tough lately for pools. Record cold temperatures and snow. And a record number of frantic calls for assist made past distressed pool owners, and lots of blog comments on this post.
Yet during most winters, aboveground pools tin be hit difficult. The pressure of several anxiety of snow on pinnacle of a 10,000 lb floating iceberg tin can rip vinyl liners or crumple steel walls.
Today, we'll await at the worst wintertime worries for aboveground pools – Water ice and Snow, with new photos and methods to correct ice damage to aboveground pools.
Iceberg in your Pool
Aboveground pool walls are cold, like an ice cube tray, and the ice canvas grows very fast and thick. Inground pools have soil surrounding the walls, which gives both support and temperature regulation.
As water turns to water ice, it expands nine%, putting pressure on the pool walls equally it expands outward. Using an Air Pillow under a tight puddle embrace is very important, to prevent a solid ice sheet from forming beyond the pool, which puts force per unit area on the walls and uprights.
In addition, the h2o level in your pool supports the floating sheet of ice, equally it presses up against your puddle walls and liner. If the puddle develops a leak, or if the h2o level is accidentally lowered – the heavy ice sheet can scrape downwardly the sides of the pool wall as it falls, shredding a puddle liner.
Skimmer Wall Buckled: Or, if the ice sheet has frozen solid into the skimmer opening, a puddle leak can crusade the water ice sheet to produce very tell-tale skimmer wall damage, as shown below.
When the water level in the puddle drops fifty-fifty an inch, the water ice sheet will as well drib, and if frozen into the within of the skimmer, this tin exist the unfortunate consequence.
Using our skimmer comprehend, the Skimmer Plug for aboveground pools (shown here) will keep a thick ice sheet from freezing into the inside of the skimmer, which can crumple the wall below the skimmer, if the water ice sheet shifts or if the pool loses even a small amount of h2o supporting the ice sheet.
Alternative to the Aquador type skimmer closure, y'all can use a Gizzmo type Skimmer Guard. A skimmer guard works much like an air pillow since its principal purpose is to absorb any ice expansion, simply instead of protecting the pool walls it protects your skimmer walls from the outward expansion of water ice. Without a skimmer guard in place, a plugged skimmer can easily crevice from freeze damage, requiring replacement.
Aboveground Wall Collapse: If a pool begins to leak water, while the wintertime pool cover is frozen solid into the ice canvas – either the encompass will rip, or the pool walls will collapse inwards.
This is why Air Pillows are so of import for aboveground pools. When used properly, will prevent a behemothic ice sheet from forming completely solid across the pool – under the cover. Water expands about 9% when it freezes, so utilise enough Air Pillows to comprehend about 10% of the pool surface area.
Air Pillows, aka Water ice Equalizers or ice compensators, are your best defense against ice damage. The presence of an Air Pillow prevents water ice from freezing nether the air pillow, which stops solid ice sheets across the summit of the aboveground pool. The unfrozen area nether the Air Pillows allows room for ice to expand into, instead of expanding in an outward direction against the walls.
But what near a behemothic water ice sheet on top of the puddle encompass?
Usually the puddle comprehend will fail get-go, except when old pool walls are rusted from skimmer and return leaks, as shown here.
This pool lost most of the water due to unattended leaking during winter months. Equally the water level sank, the pool encompass was so total of h2o and ice, the weight pulled the walls inwards.
Pool Embrace Ice Damage: A heavy ice canvass on the comprehend tin as well develop sharp edges equally it thaws, which tin can abrade and cutting the pool cover equally it begins to float on a layer of water ice melt, and bumps into the comprehend and liner.
This is why your pool embrace pump is so important for aboveground pools, to keep frozen rain and snowfall melt from edifice up, which can harm the cover and pool. 1 or 2 inches of water is not going to be a problem, but if let it build up more than than that, sudden freezing weather can course a huge block of water ice on your pool cover!
Pelting and evidence building upwardly on peak of the pool cover puts a lot of stress on a wintertime pool cover, and when a sail of water ice on top of the puddle cover begins to thaw, it develops precipitous edges which can poke holes around the edges of a pool cover, in some cases. Yet, a small amount of water on acme of a solid puddle cover is helpful to secure the cover firmly. Use a small submersible pool comprehend pump to regularly and fifty-fifty automatically remove the rain h2o and snow melt from your puddle cover.
Utilise your cover pump regularly to keep the pool cover drained, or fifty-fifty ameliorate an automated pool cover pump, and then you don't have to think virtually it during winter. We have several automatic cover pumps, the 350 GPH Body of water Blue, the 1200 GPH Water Sorcerer, and the 1800 GPH AquaPro cover pump (shown) all feature automatic shut-off when the comprehend pumping is complete.
Snowfall Damage to Aboveground Pools
A foot of snow on top of a 24′ round pool weighs over 9000 pounds. Triple that to iii feet of snowfall, and weaker pool walls but can't stand the force per unit area. Walls may curve or bow at the weakest bespeak, or uprights tin can buckle. Only the biggest worry may non be not wall issues, but pool liner ice damage.
The weight of snow and water ice on peak of the remaining h2o in the puddle increases the pressure, and can cause tiny weepers in a pool liner to open into full-on leakers!
Now we accept real problems, because when the water leaks out, it no longer supports the ice sheet above information technology. When the ice sheet falls all of a sudden, it tin can rip the liner or damage the pool wall.
Pool Ice Sail Slip and Falls: Even when the h2o runs out beneath the block of water ice, a puddle ice sheet can exist stuck hard to the edges around the pool, and become suspended to a higher place the h2o, wall to wall, with open up space betwixt the ice and the pool water. So the ice begins to cook. Shrinking around the edges first, the ice canvas slips, and falls to the water level.
Nevertheless, information technology won't usually fall straight down to the water. Large sheets of ice on a pool oft fall unevenly, at jagged angles to the puddle wall and pool liner.
A 6″ sheet of ice on a 24′ circular pool tin can counterbalance over 6 tons, and with abrupt icy edges that can rip a pool liner, you tin empathize why this may be your largest wintertime worry nigh your aboveground puddle – leaking water in a puddle with a large ice sail on the surface.
Leaking Winter Pools
Water leaks are non merely a nuisance in the swimming season, but they really are much more mischievous and detrimental in the winter months. Without the water level in the puddle to support the ice sheet in a higher place it, a leaking pool can exist damaged from the ice canvas when it falls or shifts. Under the comprehend, ice will grade because of freezing pool water. Water ice will also grade on tiptop of the cover from snow and ice accumulation. If the puddle water beneath the water ice sheet was to bleed out, the support for the water ice is gone. In both situations, the water ice will settle where gravity takes it and the but thing standing in its way is your pool walls and pool liner.
A leaking puddle can also crusade extensive damage to the aboveground pool's frame. While the puddle is covered, if y'all notice the cover sinking into the puddle (from a leak in the vinyl liner) and/or there is visual stress where the encompass meets the top rail, we propose releasing the encompass into the pool. This will relieve the stress and tension on the comprehend that tin can cause a collapse. If you are able to discover fifty-fifty a slight leak during the pond season, take every step possible to fix any leak before endmost the pool.
If you demand to, add water during winter to keep the level upward, until information technology can be fixed. For more info, see our related post "Assistance! My winterized puddle is leaking water!"
Ice & Snow Repairs to Aboveground Pools
Wall damage may seem irreparable, and in some cases it is – but in other cases, in that location are methods for repairing an aboveground pool damaged past snow and ice.
Since almost aboveground pool walls come in a continuous gyre of sheet metal, you can't usually just society a new panel, unless the damaged area is a split stainless steel panel used for the skimmer and render, which is not very mutual.
Straightening Pool Walls: You tin ordinarily straighten out near aptitude and buckled steel walls and uprights. All you need is lumber and a large hammer or maul. Lower the h2o in the pool to a point below the damage, and pull the liner away from the wall. Have a helper concur a large kicker – heavy 6×vi lumber nailed into a triangle shape, on the inside of the puddle, while you hammer on the exterior. Heavy blows will flatten the wall, remove the creases, and restore the wall to full peak.
In cases where the pool wall is aptitude, bowed or buckled, you can use full wall height canvas metal pieces, 'glued and screwed' in identify, on the inside of wall. Duct record the wall repair canvas edges and embrace with Wall Foam, before reinstalling the pool liner.
Pool Wall Repair Panels: The best canvas metal pieces for wall repair are called 'Flats', don't bother with the 12″ wide gyre sail metal, information technology'south not very strong. Find a 48″ alpine flat sheet of Galvanized Steel with thickness of 20-30 Gauge. Securing a full height piece is more work, but will add together strength to the expanse, and give you better odds for a successful pool wall repair. Find these online, or at your local metal supply visitor.
Fixing Buckled Pool Walls: On crumpled or bent pool walls, first bang out the bumps with the method described in a higher place, to restore the wall to total height *important*.
Skimmer holes and return holes can exist drilled and cutting out if needed. Secure with Liquid Nails, followed by small-scale rivets or screws every three″ on both sides, then duct record the edges. Finish with a layer of Wall Cream over the expanse, or around the entire pool wall.
Preventing Ice & Snow Harm
-
E'er use an Air Pillow under winter pool covers. - If the puddle leaks during wintertime, release the pool cover.
- Remove snow buildup on meridian of the pool – carefully.
- Use skimmer closures similar Skimmer Plug, to protect your skimmer, and wall.
- Use a good Puddle Cover Pump to keep the ice canvas thin.
This wintertime has been tough on aboveground pools, I hope this post answered your questions about your particular state of affairs. If not, leave a comment beneath, I reply them personally!
And hang in there, you'll become through this!
Davy Merino
InTheSwim Blog Editor
(2 votes, average: 3.50 out of v)
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