Above Ground Pool Diameter

by Kristi
(Wisconsin)

What is the exact diameter of a pre-2005 Aqua Leader 30' pool? Apparently it's not 30'.



Hi Kristi. There is no way of telling the exact diameter of any pool unless you have the exact wall length. All makes and models vary slightly as to the exact diameters.

It is really irrelevant when it comes to constructing the pool. You want the pool to be exactly round, not exactly any one size.

I start by finding a center point and holding the end of my tape measure in place with a screw driver. I then lay out all the rails and connector plates. I assemble all of these and set them at the 15' radius mark. Using the tape in this fashion, like on this page, Above Ground Swimming Pool Installation, I am keeping the rails completely round.

Most of the time when I get back to the beginning the rails do not meet. This is because most pools are not exactly the dimension they claim to be. Now the entire circle needs to be enlarged are made smaller. This is where most people make their first pool building mistake. It is easy to just spread the last section apart and make the connection, or draw it together if it is to large. The right way to do it is to go back and move each individual track to a slightly different radius. When you are finished you might have 14' 11", but if the rails connect and they are all round, that’s fine.


That’s fine, at least for now. Now comes the part called the rail gap. This page, Diamond Star Pool Installation, shows bottom rails up against the stop in a connector plate. It's the last photo on the page. The distance between the bottom rail and the stop in the plate is called the gap and most pools have them. If you check the instructions most are very vague about this gap except to say it can be used to make the wall meet by adjusting as needed.

This means you should start with a very small gap at each rail connector. You then install the wall and see how lucky you are. If you are lucky the wall will be close to meeting at the end. If you are unlucky the wall will be a foot from meeting and you will have to take it completely down and re-set all your rail gaps. After a few tries you will get the wall to meet, and still keep your pool completely round.

The mistake usually made at this step is to make all your adjustment in either the last connector, or maybe the last couple of connectors. This will not leave you with a round pool. A small adjustment needs to be made in each connector, keeping the pool round.

When the wall is connected inside a set of perfectly round bottom rails, you now have your exact diameter. See why I say it really does not matter?