How to Get Rid of Water behind a Pool Liner for an Inground Pool
- 1). Rent a submersible pump with a rubber bottom from your local home improvement store. The pump should come with a long, thick hose. Connect the hose to the pump's water output. Lower the pump into the pool until it rests on the bottom. Place the other end of the hose as far away from the pool as possible, since if water became trapped due to saturated ground, you don't want to introduce more water to that area. Plug the pump in to turn it on. Pump out the pool water until the water level is approximately 2 to 3 feet below the liner track.
- 2). Dislodge the liner from the track by inserting a butter knife into the space between the track and the liner and gently pulling the track out. Pull the track out from the area that appears to be holding water behind it. Do not pull more than 2 to 3 feet of liner length from the track. You can skip this step if the liner has already dislodged from the track.
- 3). Purchase a small external pump from your local home supply store. Most small water pumps will require an oil based lubrication to be poured into them before you begin pumping. Regular household vegetable oil will do. Follow the pump directions before adding the oil. Insert the small garden hose that came with the external pump between the liner and the wall. You can substitute a shop vac for a pump.
- 4). Pump as much water out from behind the wall as you can. Keep the end of the hose submerged at all times to avoid burning out the pump motor. Turn off the pump and set it aside.
- 5). Place a large shop towel behind the lining as close to the bottom as possible to absorb the rest of the water. Pull the soaked towel out and twist it tightly to wring out the water. Wring the water from the towel far away from the pool. Repeat this step until you can not soak up any more water. The remaining water, if any, should absorb into the ground below the pool liner.
- 6). Heat the top 12 to 18 inches of the vinyl pool liner with a blow dryer or boiling water while stretching it by hand to place it back in the track. Take your time with this step so that you don't tear the vinyl.
- 7). Push the top of the vinyl into the track so that the lip on the vinyl slides over the lip in the track. This will take a little elbow grease and patience. Tug gently on the vinyl once it is in place to ensure that you set it correctly. If the liner comes out you will need to pull and push more of it back into the track.
- 8). Insert bead lock into the space where the liner is placed into the track if you can't keep the liner from coming out. This product can be found online. If your liner will stay in the track without it, you do not need to purchase this product.
- 9). Fill the pool back up with water to your desired level. The pool should be filled to at least halfway between the top and bottom of the skimmer holes.