Above Ground Pool Maintenance – Florida Coast Above Ground Pools

When To Replace Your Above Ground Pool Liner

Admin — Sun, 21 Feb 2021 19:01:37 +0000

Above Ground Pool Liners Don’t Last Forever

The actual life span of your above ground pool liner can depend on may factors and many of them have nothing to do with how well you care for your pool. Long sunny summers in Florida mean more swim time annually compared to places like Michigan. This equates to more exposure to the sun’s vinyl damaging UV rays which harden and fade your pool liner. Aside from pool liners, the sun can also harden and dry out plastic parts like liner coping, pool skimmer boxes and gaskets. Bad gaskets account for the majority of skimmer leaks and skimmer leaks are the main cause of pool wall rust out and failure.

Long summers also mean more pool activity which can lead to punctures from toys and pets. Of course punctures are the norm for vinyl liner pools and they can easily be patched if you know you have a leak and where to find it. If you have an above ground pool or are considering purchasing one, be sure to pick up a vinyl repair kit. They are about $20 at any local pool store and one kit will patch dozens of leaks if needed.

More Than Just Sun And Kids

My advice for anyone wanting to make the most of their pool and liner would be to buy a good heavy duty liner to start with and take some simple measures to aid in it’s longevity. Start by purchasing at least a 25ga liner with your new pool or as a replacement. 25ga heavy duty liners are thicker material and will last longer and be more resistant to punctures. If you want the best of the best purchase a Doughboy pool liner. The Doughboy liners are better yet and made of materials that usually last 3 times longer than other brands including the 25ga heavy duty ones. But be prepared to pay at least double for the Doughboy brand pool liners.

Keep your pool covered when not in regular use. A pool cover is cheap insurance against the sun’s damaging rays. I would much rather spend a little money every few years for a pool cover over premature liner replacements. $50-$100 for a cover is far better that $400 for the average pool liner and $500 to install it.

Maintain the pool and the area around it. I would also limit the types of toys that are allowed in it to reduce the chances of liner damage. If you suspect you have a leak you probably have at least one if not more. Spend some time searching for it and get it patched, leaking pool water is very corrosive and will cause pool rust very quickly.

Lastly, don’t be a cheap skate. Typical 25ga pool liners don’t last more than 5 years in Florida and cheaper 20ga. liners may only last 1-3 years. Don’t try to see how long you can avoid replacing the liner, by doing so you are allowing corrosive chlorinated water to leak against the metal pool parts including the pool wall. This leaking water is eating away the metal and shortening the life of your pool. Replacing the liner every 5 years will allow you to visually see the inside of the pool wall and address any issues. Be sure to replace skimmer gaskets and other questionable plastic pieces at the same time. By doing this your above ground pool can live for 15-20 years in the tough Florida environment.

Pool Liner Coping, Do I Need It?

Admin — Sat, 20 Feb 2021 22:40:29 +0000

Above Ground Pool Liner Coping

For all the do it yourself pool liner installers out there this blog is a great read. I was inspired to write it by a pool liner replacement we recently did in Deltona where the home owners gave up on doing the liner change themselves. They built the pool originally and did a very nice job doing so, but a change in liner design derailed their valiant efforts. If a self installed pool liner change is in your future, reading this blog may prove to be quite valuable one day.

What Is Pool Liner Coping For Above Ground Pools?

Pool liner coping simply installs on top of the pool liner and holds it firmly onto the pool wall. Liner coping is needed to hold the liner in place while protecting it from being damaged by the metal stabilizer bars. The metal or sometimes resin stabilizer bars squeeze the coping ensuring a tight grip on the pool liner preventing it from slipping off the pool wall and down in the water. Coping is always made of plastic and comes in strips that vary between 2 and four feet in length. The shape of the coping can vary but it’s mostly flat or V-shaped like the image above.

Liner Coping And Different Style Liners

Today most all above ground pool kits come with either an overlap or unibead pool liner. The unibead liner is considered an upgrade because they are a fitted liner and designed for a specific pool wall height. When purchasing one you must know the height of the pool wall for proper fit. The reason for upgrading to the unibead or J-Hook pool liner is they are more decorative, easier to install and have the coping built into their design.

Because the upper lip of the the unibead/j-hook liner is so thick no additional coping is used. The extra cost of this type of liner is usually offset by the fact no coping needs to be purchased for it’s installation. This usually makes this type of liner the better way to go for most self installers.

Now back to our frustrated home owner I told you about in the beginning of this blog post. When these nice people first bought their pool it came with the unibead or j-hook pool liner to start with. After several years of use it was time for them to replace it, so they purchased a new overlap liner to save some money. Once the pool was disassembled and readied for the new liner the problems began as overlap liners require coping strips to keep the liner attached at the top of the pool wall and their pool had none to begin with. So after many days of trying to keep the liner on the wall, filling and emptying the pool several time, they finally gave up the fight. Luckily for them the liner wasn’t ruined in the process, but could have been if they went much further.

If they had only known that pool liner coping is required on all overlap liners they may had gotten through this project successfully. Just remember that all overlap pool liner need coping strips to secure it to the wall and they should be replaced when changing the pool liner every time. If you always buy a coping kit for your size pool you’ll never have an issue similar to this. Pool liner coping kits aren’t expensive and they’re great insurance that your liner installation will be a better one.