Articles

GOOD WATER CHEMISTRY

There are no guarantees when it comes to water chemistry, but here is a good guideline:

1. Keep the chlorine level consistently at 1.00 to 1.5ppm, and shock weekly with non-chlorine shock.

2. Maintain the PH between 7.4 and 7.6, using dry acid to lower, and soda ash to raise.

3. Before raising PH, be sure the alkalinity level is above 120ppm. Raise with Sodium Bicarbonate. Do

this first, then recheck the PH and adjust if necessary.

4. Use a metal remover monthly.

5. Don't use Tri-chlor tablets in a floater or skimmer basket, only in an offsite chlorinator.

6. Use a Kafko safety cover to minimize stain causing debris in the pool.

WHERE DID THOSE WRINKLES COME FROM?

One of the great mysteries is how can a pool liner develop wrinkles later in life when the fit was

perfect when installed. Numerous tests have shown that a low PH will cause a liner to "gain

weight" by absorbing water. This will also cause dimensional instability, making the liner

stretch, resulting in wrinkles.

Major causes of low PH, other than improper maintenance, are use of tri-chlor tabs and insufficient

levels of cyanuric acid (conditioner). Tri-chlor tabs should never be used in a floating dispenser.

If used in an autochlorinator, PH must be monitored and adjusted frequently. The free

chlorine level should be maintained below 3ppm, and PH kept at 7.4 - 7.6.

Cyanuric acid levels of 50ppm have shown to reduce the effect of dimensional instability at various

PH levels, adding insurance against wrinkling. This is also true for pools that normally don't

require conditioner, such as brominated or indoor pools.

LINER INSTALLATION TIPS:

Take your time measuring to assure that we have accurate and complete dimensions.

Don't forget corners, slopes, rod sleeves on steps if desired, and wall height.

Fully prep the bottom and walls, replacing foam and pool crete as needed.

- Consider weather conditions. The darker the color, the more sensitive the liner is to

expansion from heat absorption. Avoid extremely hot or cold conditions.

- Remove footwear before getting into the pool for installation.

- Install step sections first starting at the bottom step, and working your way up.

- After the bead is installed in the track, make sure there are no wrinkles when the vacuum is

turned on. If there are, turn off the vacuum and readjust the liner. If wrinkles persist in the

shallow end, a plunger can be used to remove them with 12 inches or less of water in the

pool.

 - Check and replace rubber ladder bumpers that are hard or deteriorated to avoid damage

caused by metal pushing through.

- Inspect the pool floor and remove any stones or debris before installing the liner.

- Make sure you have an airtight seal at all panel joints, and the intersection of the coping and

the pool wall. Use duct tape or silicone to seal.

- Replace faceplates, gaskets, and screws at skimmer, main drain, and wall fittings.

- Position and unfold the liner according to the instructions that are included.

DON'T DRAIN YOUR POOL

Draining a pool is risky even for gunite, but will USUALLY be a disaster for a vinyl liner. Vinyl liners are made to fit,

but are always smaller than the actual hole, and are stretched into place. If this wasn't done, you'd have wrinkles

everywhere. In fact, it's common (but WRONG) to undersize when measuring. This avoids wrinkles, but cuts the

liner's life expectancy dramatically. When you drain a vinyl pool, the liner tries to return to it's original, unstretched

size. If the liner is over a year old, it will have lost a lot of it's elasticity, and WILL NOT stretch back into place.

For liners that have not been originally overstretched, and it is absolutely necessary to drain the pool, there is only

one route to take: Drain until there is 8" of water at the shallowest point, then refill. But watch the pool as it drains. If

the liner has been overstretched, it will pull away from the corners. If it does, STOP! You've gone as far as you can.

Any attempt to drain a vinyl pool should only be done if the water is in such a state that it can't be cleared by any

other method. The customer should be made aware of the risk. If the liner is over 2-3 years old, quote a new liner

price before beginning!

PATCHING A TORN LINER

Regardless of the care given a liner, tears can occur. But many tears can be repaired easily using today's underwater

glues such as RH-66 VINYL CEMENT. First, cut a patch the approximate size of the tear, using an

oval shape. This will prevent curling at the edges. Spread the glue on the underside of the patch. If the torn

area is reachable from the side of the pool, you don't need to get in or drain any water. Hold the patch in place,

and smooth it around the edges. The glue will dry very quickly, so be precise. In deeper areas, it may be necessary

to dive in, or work with a pole and brush to position the patch.

PATTERN COMING OFF LINER

To understand why the pattern may flake off a liner, a basic understanding of the printing procedure mustbe covered first. The print pattern is applied by a process called "roto-gravure" printing. The inks usedare solvent based, and when applied to the vinyl, they actually bond themselves by "biting" into it. Then aclear "top coat" is applied to increase abrasion resistance and provide an additional layer of UV protection.Patterns coming off or fading are almost never a manufacturing defect. The cause of ink flaking off is lowwater PH. An acidic environment will weaken the bond by softening the top coat and eventually the inkbeneath. The lower the PH is, the more acidic the water is, increasing the likelihood of damage. The effectis cumulative and irreversible. Once the softening occurs, the coating and inks are susceptible toflaking and abrasion. High chlorine levels will compound damage by bleaching the exposed inks.Recently we have seen liners that not only have had the print lift off, but the inks ended up on the stepsand pool sweep, making quite a mess. A water test revealed a PH of 6.8 and a chlorine level of 5ppm.

**ALWAYS KEEP PH AT 7.4 TO 7.6 AND CHLORINE BELOW 2PPM **

IF TRICHLOR SANITIZER IS USED IN VINYL LINED POOLS:

DO NOT allow the pH of the pool to drop below 7.4. Ideal is 7.4-7.8

DO NOT allow chlorine levels to exceed 3 ppm using Trichlor sanitizer.

DO NOT shock or super chlorinate your vinyl lined pool with Trichlor. Potassium Monopersulfate should be used.

DO NOT continuously heat your vinyl lined pool to temperatures above 82 degrees Fahrenheit. Hot water will dissolve

Trichlor sanitizer at a faster rate making the water very aggressive to the vinyl liner.

DO NOT allow true total alkalinity to drop below 90 ppm when Trichlor is used as the sanitizing agent. Ideal is 90-

125ppm

DO NOT use Trichlor in a floating dispenser, and always circulate the water for a minimum of 8 hours per day. 24

hours in season is recommended by many pool professionals.

DO NOT forget to correct for cyanuric acid level when measuring true total alkalinity. True total alkalinity equals

measured total alkalinity minus one third measured cyanuric acid level. Ideal cyanuric acid range is 25-80ppm.

VINYL STAINING

Stains on vinyl liners seem to appear on their own, but there is usually a more identifiable cause. Over

the next few issues, we will cover some of the more common ones. Without question, the major reasons

for staining of a liner are improper maintenance and poor water chemistry.

Biological stains are common, and can appear on the pool floor, walls, and even above the waterline.

Often they are caused by algae or mildew that collect behind the liner. (It's that mess you see on the

wall foam when you remove the liner.) Even with the biocide protectors built into today's liners, colonies

of bacteria can work their way through the liner, weakening the bond between the printed ink pattern

and the material. This can cause stains of various colors, fading, and possibly rubbing off of the pattern.

Another cause of stains originating from the backside is groundwater. A change in water table levels, or

weather conditions can cause a sudden outbreak. The resulting staining on the backside can eventually

seep through to the printed side. Treatments include soaking the surrounding soil with fungicides or a

chlorine solution before the next liner is installed.

The second type of staining is classified under organically caused. These are generally caused by something getting into

the pool and being allowed to sit on the liner for too long a time. One of the most common scenarios is

the homeowner has recently fertilized his lawn on a windy day. Fertilizer granules blow into the pool and

dissolve, leaving speckles of a golden color all over the liner. Similarly, leaves and grass clippings can

settle on the bottom and sides of a pool leaving brown stains that can be very difficult to remove. Tree

branches hanging over a pool can be very attractive, but the resulting debris that falls into the pool will

leave ugly stains if not removed immediately. Automatic pool cleaners may not get them in time, and

may not pick up hard objects like acorns and nuts. Diligent maintenance is the only real solution.

Another common cause of stains is caused by bathers pouring on the sunscreen, then jumping in the

pool. These oils float on the surface, collect dirt, then attach to the vinyl. If not removed quickly, the gunk

will eventually oxidize in the sun and turn the liner brown. Again, good maintenance including cleaning

the tile area at least weekly will keep your liner looking beautiful.

Now we get to the sometimes confusing

area of poor water chemistry. Low chlorine levels, or infrequent pool shocking will allow algae to grow,

leaving green, brown, black, or pink stains. If the PH is not kept in balance, the chlorine becomes less

effective causing similar results. If the alkalinity is not kept up to a certain level, the PH can fluctuate. If

metal removers are not added to the water regularly, the fill water may contain iron, copper or manganese

which will leave reddish brown stains. This can also occur with copper based algaecides that are

commonly recommended for mustard algae outbreaks.

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