Swimming pool draining discussed by Express Pool Care contractors
Should you drain your swimming pool? It’s a question the swimming pool service contractors from Express Pool Care contractors get asked occasionally. The short answer is, “no.” To expand upon that, the longer answer is, “if it is necessary, it should be done by an experienced swimming pool contractor.” There are very few occasions on which a pool will require draining. Even many repairs can be effected underwater or with minimal draining by an experienced pool professional.
If there is a need to drain your swimming pool, it is not a task that should be undertained by an inexperienced individual as it can lead to dramatic — and very costly — damage to the pool.
Should you drain your swimming pool?
Here are some times when a pool draining is necessary and why an untrained person should not attempt this on his or her own.
- Vinyl liner pools pose the highest risk of damage to a pool if you’re untrained. A vinyl liner swimming pool will not have the structural integrity to withstand being drained. Draining a vinyl liner pool could lead to a collapse of the pool walls and cause damage the plumbing and electrical work. It is the water in the liner and the backfill dirt that keeps everything in place. Once the water is removed the liner will crumple and the backfill dirt will shift. Once the water is drained, the liner floats away from the walls. If there is ground water that has seeped in under the pool liner, that will cause the liner to float and wrinkle.
- Above ground swimming pools run the risk that the liner will shrink during the draining and could lead to tearing when the pool is refilled. The older the pool liner is, the less it will stretch during the refill process.
- When dealing with fiberglass swimming pools you can run into ground water issues. Also, when you drain a fiberglass pool it may “float” in the excavated area and that could damage the fiberglass itself and the plumbing and electrical.
On the rare occasion that your pool contractor recommends draining your swimming pool, it is best to leave it up to him and his expertise.