Swimming Pool Store

Every swimming pool owner is likely to need to know how to patch a hole eventually.  Pool repair projects range from simple vinyl patches on vinyl liners of aboveground or inground pools to repairing cracks and major damage to fiberglass or concrete inground pools.  Larger repairs require often require professional intervention unless the pool owner is an experienced handyman.  Here are some tips for patching your pool, whatever type it is.

1.  If you need a patch kit for a fiberglass pool, you can find such kits at boat dealerships and auto body supply houses as well as from a pool supplier.

2.  Sometimes it makes more sense to replace a badly damaged vinyl liner rather than trying to patch it.

3.  Never completely drain a fiberglass pool and leave it drained.  It needs water in it to keep it from being damaged by the water in the soil surrounding it.  If not filled with water it will float on the ground water, which will force it out of the ground, and may even damage the installed plumbing in the process.

4.  If you find a crack in your fiberglass pool, get it fixed quickly.  It is likely to get much worse if you procrastinate.  If water begins to seep through to underneath the pool, it can begin to rot.

5.  Some small cracks in the surface of a fiberglass pool are normal signs of weathering and do not need to be repaired.

6.  Vinyl liner pools can be patched underwater, but the patches may hold better if the pool is drained to below the patch and then refilled.  Do whichever seems more logical.

7.  You can fix a hairline crack in a gunite pool by painting it with swimming pool paint.  These paints come in rubber and epoxy forms.

8.  Badly damaged concrete pools can be restored, but should probably be checked out by a pool professional to rule out structural damage that will continue to cause problems.

9.  Cut vinyl patches in a rounded shape.  Sharp corners on a vinyl patch make the patch more likely to come off. 

10.  Press a vinyl patch well, eliminating all air bubbles.  After ten minutes, press it again all around.  Pay special attention to the edges of the patch.

11.  If you decide to paint your inground concrete pool, use the same kind of paint that is already on the pool.  This is best determined by taking a chip of it to the paint store.