Pool Wall out of Track

by Loretta
(New Jersey)

One side (about 4') wall of my 24' Aqua pool (52" high) is slightly inside the track, about 1/2 to 1 inch. The water appears uneven (under 1" higher) when you look at the patterned liner in that section. We had a bad winter with a lot of ice on the cover before I had time to pump off the cover water. I didn't even notice the problem until recently. The pool is entirely filled and we have been using it this summer and seems fine, but I am worried. The wall is not buckled in any way, but has a very slight dent in the middle about halfway up. When I stand inside the pool, I feel a slight ridge near that wall so I am guessing when the wall went in, maybe it pushed some sand up towards the inside of the pool?
Is this dangerous? Can and should it be fixed now? Any advice you offer would be greatly appreciated! Thank you!

Hi Loretta. In order to fix this problem the pool would need to be drained. You will need to watch it closely to know how safe it is. The most common problem you might have will be the cove coming out from under the wall. If the cove stays intact, and nothing escapes from the opening created by the wall being out of the track, you are probably OK.

Repairs should, of course, be made at some point in time. The water should be lowered to about 4”. You should then be able to push the wall out at the same time the track is being raised by wedging a screwdriver under it and lifting. The track probably needs raised to keep the wall in place. It is also possible that one or two of the posts need to be lowered, they may have raised and not settled after the freeze.

When the repairs are done, inspect the cove with your feet through the liner, if it feels in place, it should be fine to fill the pool. If the cove was disturbed, you should pull off a few top rails to get in behind the liner, and make the repairs.