This Short Article Will Make You a Much More Informed Pool Liner Buyer in 2020
Educate yourself before you buy
Vinyl swimming pool liner installation isn’t easy. I have sold thousands of pool liner installations and one thing I am uniquely qualified to say is that a large portion of the liners purchased online by do-it-yourselfers never actually get installed. I know this because, over the years, I have seen hundreds of brand new pool liners folded up and sitting at the side of the road for trash pickup while I am there to provide a pool liner quote. I always ask about these pool liners and I usually get one of two answers as to why they are being trashed. The first answer is that they didn’t fit and the second answer is that the liner was damaged during the installation process. This makes sense because my first year installing liners I personally damaged (and had to replace on my dime) 6 pool liners. The problem is that there are many ways to damage a pool liner and there are many ways to screw up the measurements of a pool liner. The following three things are extremely important to know before buying a DIY pool liner online.
You do not get your money back
When you purchase a liner online to install on your own you will be accepting full responsibility for the proper fit and the installation. If it doesn’t fit… you lose your money. If you damage the liner during install…you lose your money. But it gets even worse. After you lose your money you will still need to hire a company at full price to replace your liner correctly. The problem is that while you are waiting for the pool company to measure and manufacture your second liner the pool bottom will be exposed to rain which can cause expensive damage and will cost you even more to repair.
Liner installation is a high-level skill and an art
Our liner installers are not allowed to install a pool liner on their own until they have installed 100 pool liners with a master liner installer supervising them. This is because it takes 100 pool liner installations in order to gain a basic understanding of the many things that can go wrong. Even after installing thousands of pool liners our liner crew will still come across completely new and unexpected challenges every now and then. It takes a long time to become good at liner installations… it is as simple as that.
Even if it gets installed the liner may not last very long
I have seen pool liners installed by Do-It-Yourselfers that were functional installs but that looked horrible and most likely only lasted a year or two. If the liner is not installed correctly it won’t last long. With fifty to one-hundred tons of pool water sitting on top of the pool liner precision is key and precision is almost impossible for a first timer…even if they are mechanically inclined. There is just too much to know.
Do-It-Yourself pool liner installations are not recommended due to the high risk and cost of failure. Think twice before taking the DIY leap of faith!
Did you know that pool liners don’t color fade when the pool is equipped with a Drinkable Pool Water System? No Salt, No Chlorine, No Ozone, No Kidding.