I have really good news and really bad news when it comes to having a leak in an above ground swimming pool. The really good news is that once you find the leak, it’s usually super easy to repair. The bad news is (yeah, you probably guessed it) finding the leak is difficult. Locating a leak in an above ground is so difficult that I don’t offer it as part of my services. Even if it’s the off-season and I’m broke, I’ll turn down a job to detect a leak. There are many cases where the leak is never found in an above ground and the only solution is to replace the entire liner. So now that I’ve scared you and lowered your expectations, let me give you some instruction on how to find a leak.
Check the Pool’s Equipment First
To check the pool’s equipment first is the easiest. When looking for a leak in an above ground pool, the hardest place to find it is somewhere in the vinyl liner. To avoid any frustration, inspect the equipment first (even if you have a feeling that the leak is inside the pool). Follow this checklist first. The leak may be outside the pool.
- Clean the equipment area
If the pump/filter area is cluttered or overgrown, clean it first. Pull out all the weeds and store the pool toys, outdoor items and rocks/mulch away from the equipment. If there is an ant pile that formed under the pump, kill the ants and clean area. - Turn on the pump
Some leaks will leak more when the pump is on. Since it is easier to see a bigger leak, you’ll want the pump on. - Inspect the general area for signs of wetness
Water is wet. Duh! So it stands to reason that any signs of wetness are your best signs for a leak. - Look closely at everything
When I say closely, I mean get down on your hands and knees and look at all the components, hoses, fittings, and lids for drips. Sneaky leak alert: Pay close attention to the area directly underneath the pool’s pump. Pumps have shaft seals that can leak straight down into the ground and sometimes there will be no visible ground moisture.Have a dry towel handy in case something is questionable. Wipe the area dry and inspect for any new signs of wetness to appear. - Inspect the skimmer and return at the wall
The pool’s skimmer box and return are two common spots for leaks. Water travels downward due to gravity. Duh #2! Because of this, look directly under the skimmer box and return as that is where the leaking water will travel. If you are not sure, again use the towel to dry the pool’s wall and reinspect for any signs of newly formed moisture.Don’t be in a hurry; take your time. Some leaks are deceiving and require patience to find. If you’ve checked out all these spots and have come up dry, it’s time for the real fun.
Tips for Finding a Leak Somewhere in the Vinyl Liner
This may not be an easy task. The best piece of advice I can give here is to be patient. A leak can be anywhere inside the pool and there is not one soul on the planet that can find some of these so don’t be too hard on yourself if you don’t find it quickly. Here’s what I do listed from first to last:
- Turn off the pool pump and let the water get completely stillYou’ll need to be able to see the bottom of the pool as clearly as possible while you are standing outside of the pool.
I think I found the leak….
- While you are standing outside the pool, inspect the pool’s bottom all the way around
Most above ground pools have sand or earth based bottoms and coving. When there is a leak in the vinyl, the water usually leaks out in the ground somewhere underneath the pool. In most cases (but certainly not all) the leaked water travels through the sand/earth bottom and causes the earth to wash away leaving small valleys or divots or holes in the pool’s bottom that was once flat. Some of these washed away areas under the pool are visible and will tell you where the leak is in the liner. If you see something like this, it’s time to get in the pool (SEE STEP 5).
- Check the outside of the pool
Didn’t see anything while you were following the previous step? OK, then while you are still outside the pool, you better check the outside bottom of the pool. If it’s covered, dig around the wall at the bottom and expose the bottom track. This is the tracking that the pool wall fits into at the bottom. Clear away any mulch or rocks or dirt so you can easily see if there are any signs of excessive wetness next to the track.What makes this tricky is that your ground may hold moisture naturally so just because you find some wet ground doesn’t mean it’s a sign that there is a leak in that area. Look for signs of excessive wetness close to the pool as a sign for a leak. - Time to get in, but first clean the pool
Before you consider getting in the pool to find a leak, clean and vacuum it. You are looking for a small hole in the liner so dirt and leaves sitting on the bottom will make it tougher to find. Make sure the water quailty is good too. Swimming in a slimy, cloudy pool sucks. Have a good dive mask or goggles and some kind of applicator that is filled with a food coloring or dye. Also, it would be really nice if you have a diver’s weight belt to keep you down in the water. Again, before you get in make sure the pool pump is off. - Get up-close and personal
A hole can be anywhere in the liner, but most of the time the hole is at the bottom close to the pool’s wall. Put on your mask, take a breath, and swim to the bottom getting up-close and personal with the liner. Closely inspect any of those small valleys or divots you saw earlier for small holes. If you see what may be a hole, shoot some of the dye you have from your applicator around the area and see if the dyed water draws into the hole. If it does, voila, you have found a leak.
So you checked at the bottom of the pool all the questionable areas of the pool liner and found no hole. The next place to check is all the way around the pool where the wall meets the pool’s bottom in the same up-close, methodical manner. Still no leak? Now in the same way check the pool wall starting at the bottom and moving towards the top. Most wall leaks are lower so spend most of the time at the foot at the bottom of the wall.
If you still haven’t found the leak, it’s time to play manta ray. Very slowly swim very close along the bottom (like a manta ray) inspecting every square inch of the pool liner. If at any time you see something that may be a hole, shoot some dye in the area and see if the dyed water draws into it in order to verify the leak.
Now you’re over this. You’ve searched the pool’s bottom like a sand shark for a couple of hours and you look like a prune and didn’t find anything. Well, that sucks! I really feel your pain. The last thing you can do is allow the pool to drain without adding water. It will stop at the point of the leak and make it easier to find, but not always. At this point it may be time to get a new liner. I’d say if your liner is five-years-old or older, then go ahead and get a new liner. When liners age, they may start leaking in several spots as they become brittle.
The last thing I can offer you is good luck finding the leak. Sometimes that’s what it takes.
I started opening my pool yesterday. The water left in the pool over the winter (I live in Canada where 25C below 0 is common) was dark green – usually it’s fairly clear when first opened – so I added degreaser and then shock and added fresh water to the proper level (half way up the skimmer). It started to clear but is still murky today. Connected all the hoses and started it up. Everything seemed fine. I turned off the pump overnight. This morning the water level is down 6 inches! Can’t see any hose leaks or any leak from within because the water is still too murky. Around the outside perimeter of the pool I see no wet areas. Any advice? BTW, your article is great.
If the pool level just dropped 6″ after you hooked it up and worked on it, then it’s something you did. Unless it’s a coincidence that a major leak popped up at the same time you started working on it. Not likely.
Question: My husband bought a new pool cover last year. We haven’tbeen able to find one that lasts for very long. During the winter, he drains the water off of the top of the cover. Is that a good idea? is it possible that we don’t have a leak at all, and that he is draining water out of the pool? See is firm in believing that the cover is not porous, and I believe that he could have been draining water out of the pool. Our water level is two and a half feet now. Thoughts?
If your water level is only 2.5 feet, then you have a leak.
When I opened my 3 year old above ground pool, the water was lower than normal. There was only 25 inches in it. It is 56 inches high. We got a lit of rain this winter and spring so it was hard to tell if it leaked out. Somehow a bird managed to get under my cover and had drowned…of course. I fill it up ,long story short I have some dripping outside the pool. It’s not really affecting my water level..yet. I used the dye near that spot, and got nothing. I’m very disappointed. Especially only having 3 seasons of use out of it. It is my happy place. I have had Walmart pools, a fraction of the cost, that lasted longer. I’m going to try the pladtic bag mentioned in an earlier comment and be a sand shark and inspect every centimeter. One thing I have noticed is around the edge of the pool the sand has give and I have a little ditch about halfway around pool.. Could this be the culprit? Thanks in advance for any input!
Lisa
Did you get an answer yet?
My above ground pool leaked half way down during the winter and there are no puddles around the bottom of the outside of the pool. Why would that happen?
There’s not nearly enough information here for me to determine why. This is like asking why we only got five inches of rain last summer.
You must have a small leak somewhere.
My 18′, 48″ above ground pool is leaking. I found a couple leaks by cutting up a plastic shopping bag to make a flat rectangle. Then I used a pool brush that had a handle long enough to reach the bottom to push the plastic sheet against the bottom. I moved it slowly across the bottom and when it went over a leak, it was drawn down into the leak. The slight suction from the leak held the plastic bag against the bottom. It worked fairly well, but I still have another leak somewhere. I can’t reach the middle of the pool, and it is too cold to get into it now.
Good story. Thanks for sharing.
We had our pool installed at the end of July- 18′ round w/ center drain. We’ve lost 5+ inches weekly since installation- is this normal to have to add so much water weekly? I see no signs outwardly of a leak, the ground around the pool is firm and not soggy or wet. The pool does dip a bit in the middle as you walk from the edge towards the drain. I didn’t think evaporation would cause so much water loss..
Our liner is 5 years old. The liner usually fits snug/tight against the pool wall, but this year it seems to be “bubbling” above the water line as if “loose”, but the liner is very tightly secured under the top rail. What could be causing the liner to seemingly become “loose-looking”? Also, the water level at the skimmer has lowered over the last 3 days by about an inch. Could the bubbling be an indication of a leak somewhere? The pump/filter have bee thoroughly checked, in fact, the filter valve-set was replaced earlier this year and has been functioning beautifully for the last few months. I’m puzzled!
Yes it could indicate a leak. It can also indicate a concentration of chlorine on the liner in a local spot. Most of the time, I honestly don’t know why the liner does that.
Above ground 24′ pool – square skimmer – water leaking out of the ‘cutout guides’ to use when using a rectangular skimmer. Replaced skimmer gaskets – used food coloring – no leaks found. Taking a guess that leak is high on the wall and water is working its way around the pool between the liner and the outside wall and leaking out at rectangular cutout guides. Looked carefully going around waterline 3x but nada – will continue to look – does it sound like I’m on the right track ?? Thanks for any and all advice.
Is your pool’s water level going down? Do you have a bead channel and beaded liner? If not, you have a high leak. That is kinda rare unless you let dogs swim in the pool or you have kids that bring sharp or gougey things in the pool. look all around the pool. The leak could be anywhere.
We have a softball size sinkhole in our not even year old liner. We have a gorilla pad under the new liner and the pool company cut the old liner and left that as a base too. How could I have another sinkhole? I’ve checked this area for over an hour for a hole of any sorts. I do not see one. Suggestions? The only way to fix it is to drain it and pack the sink, but from reading all over the internet, they say not to drain an existing liner for fear of it shrinking. I’m at wits end w this pool. I’ve talked to 2 pools companies and they botht said to leave it. How bad is this for my new liner?
If the hole is staying the same size then its not doing much at all to the liner. And I don’t recommend you draining it either although it could be drained and repaired and immediately refilled without any issue. You’ll probably have to do it yourself because a pool guy is not gonna want to take the chance on doing it. That may tell you something.
Could I have a
Problem with termites or nut grass? I have tiny holes in the bottom of my liner. Also does it matter what thickness the liner is when ordering a new one. We have only had this one two years but we ordered it online instead of buying it at our local pool place.
Hard to say for sure but it may be termites. And I’m not sure what you can do about it. I say put in a new good quality heavy gauge liner and see if it happens again.
It might be ants. I have read many articles that say to spray around your pool for ants because that is a huge problem. When they get underneath they like to eat the liner.
We have a leak, but it only started when we changed our skimmer. So, my husband took it out again and reinstalled it, still a leak. Then he decided to change the jet, still leaking; but the leak stops just below the skimmer. We have no wet areas around the pool, but we have some wrinkles in the liner at the bottom that were not there before – could this be where the leak is?
If the leak stops at the skimmer, then it’s leaking at the skimmer. It wasn’t installed right. Go to my article on how to install a skimmer and try it again.
I’ve only come to terms that most likely I have a leak.
The soil next to my pool is SUPER saturated. I tried building it up because it’s the lowest part of my yard.
It’s only worse now. The level in the pool has dropped consistently.
Does it make sense to focus my attention on that area of the pool?
It would make common sense to concentrate on that area but we are talking about a leak. And sometimes with water leaks, common sense doesn’t work. Check out my article on how to find a leak in an above ground pool and good luck.
after 4 days looking for the leak I followed your instruckions and you said to be patient and most leaks are at side wall bottom I calm down took my time and found the leak at the side wall at the bottom less than 1 hour thank you soooo much your the best!!!!!
I am pretty sure some of the seams on my brand new rectangular intex pool liner are leaking. All of the puddles forming around the middle on one side, and at the end all coincide with seam joints. Since my inspection of the inside of the liner with red food color showed no indication of the color being leached through the seam joints, I was wondering if laying several yards of white muslin flat under the problem areas, then filling the pool to 12 or 18″ then applying lots of blue color or dye in those areas and waiting for a couple of days to empty the pool. Then, carefully inspecting the muslin as I lift the liner looking for blue hot spots where the dye may help indicate where the leak is originating. My only question would be how do you patch a seam? Should I cut a square the entire width of the seam and patch it like a large hole, or should I try using that liquid seal stuff in the quart bottle? I thought I read somewhere that the liquid leak fix isn’t for above ground vinyl liners…only in ground liners. Any suggestions are greatly appreciated
I really don’t think that will tell you much but hey, you never know. Water from leaks can travel away in very strange ways so it’s really hard to determine where a pool is leaking based on the outside of the pool only. You said this is a new Intex pool? I say contact the Walmart you bought it from and get them to send you a new one. They have millions of those landfillers and Walmart will take back or replace just about anything.
I found the leak on the bottom of the pool liner. Just wanting to know if there’s a way of fixing the leak without having to drain the whole pool.
Buy an underwater patch kit and follow the directions
We just installed our new pool after many days of preparation. After getting about a foot and a half of water in it we discovered a leak. Water was seaping out over the pool ground cover. After trying the food color with no luck I attached a plastic drinking straw to the end of a nozzle with a on the air compressor and worked it Between the liner and ground cover. Guess what? Bubbles came up from under the pool. May not work for all depending on where the leak is it it’s worth a shot!
I love this!!! Thank you!! We just set up the pool and same thing, a little water leaking out. I’m going to tell my husband about this!
I have the same problem and now it is Spring and the pool is gross. Getting in it is not an option.
My leak is presumed to be about 3 inches of below the skimmer as that is where the water has drained down to. Heavy rainfall brought it above a line I marked and then it came back down again after a day or two. I am thinking of removing the top rails one by one and using a compressor to blow air carefully between the lining and the wall of the pool. I am thinking if there is a small leak that it will presumably blow bubbles out a tiny hole that is somewhere. Thoughts? Crazy?
any luck with the air compressor leak detection ? I also thought this might work but haven’t tried it yet
Did you try the air compressor idea? We are thinking of trying it to. Just wondering if anone had luck with it.
I would also like to know if 5he air compressor idea worked. We were thinking of trying that too.
I haven’t tried that yet but I’ll bet it works most of the time.
You seem very knowledgeable. So my leak is coming from under the pool and there is a constant flow of water coming out. What could that be? What should I do to see where it is leaking from?
Get the liner out and shine some light behind it, may be you find some tiny holes.
Do you even own a pool?!?!?
LOL!! Get the liner out?!? Um yeah… cos the pool is a 40000 litre pool….easy as, bro!!!
Love the humor… it’s been weeks and we’re still looking..Maybe a new liner is in order. Thanks
Very well written advice…I do have a couple base divits…will inspect them closer…Thanks !
Is it possible to have a leak between the skimmer box gaskets? The guy that did the plumbing was absolutely hopeless and came back 5 times.. I noticed that the gasket on the outside under the skimmer is pinched and can’t be seen in the centre .. I can’t find any holes as it’s a new pool but I’m seeing wet soil 1 meter kind beside the skimmer box on the ground and not near the pipes underground .. hope that makes sense
Yes that gasket can be pinched which can then cause a leak. Can you see bubbling behind the liner or is the ground wet in the area around the skimmer?
Thanks for the article, Dan. What if the leak is on the drain itself?
If you have a leak from a bottom drain, that’s usually a tough fix. Take off the cover and see how tight the screws are that hold the ring. If loose, tighten and recheck for a leak. If tight, you’ll have to change the gaskets which won’t be easy.
My advice is if you are changing main drain gaskets, drain the pool down to about a 6″ depth first. There are two gaskets. Replace them both. Main drains usually leak because there is dirt in some of the screw holes which are preventing the screws from tightening the ring. Check for this by making sure each screw tightens all the way down. If you have some dirt in the holes, clean them out. It won’t be easy!!
Once you know all holes are clean and the surface of the main drain is clean, replace the two gaskets and tighten the ring and refill the pool immediately.
Thanks
Dan
Dan it is in the middle of winter Ice and snow …we closed the pool in fall everything was good. We noticed water under cover was getting lower, looked all around pool , no water anywhere so we put water back in pool (at this time 30* out) a couple days later it was down again. Called a pool place and they suggested to keep water in it, at least 2 feet Well we did this. It is now 2 months later and we looked out and the pool is empty, cover has fallen to the bottom on top of the ice and snow. No water hose , frozen in pool. Will the pool fall in?? Please any suggestions? We decided before this happened we were getting new liner so that’s that just affraid will fall in.
Please help
Peggie
Your pool should stay up and in place while it is empty with no issues. The only thing that would hurt it is an extreme wind storm so be mindful of that.
Well the first paragraph brought me to tears and laughter. I’ve checked my equipment and truly believe it’s my 20 years old liner. Yes I said 20 years. So after all I’ve read at least I got my money out of it.
Did you replace liner, any issues with the old pool? I’m in the same situation
Carl
Ha! Well, at least you’ve made me smile a bit as I am beginning to understand the challenge ahead. Good to have some clear expectations, albeit, even if it isn’t good news. Thanks for the advice! Wishing me lots of luck as I go on the hunt. If I’m not too annoyed, I’ll try and remember to give an update! thx!
What I love most about this article is your sense of humor bc after 3 hours searching, it’s still leaking so I came back to reread your info. (All great) I am still determined!!!
I got lucky and followed the steps first finding the concave washed out divot then after about 3 hours of looking found holes that could have been punched by the tip of a pencil but which allowed about an inch of water out a day. The holes were so small that they could have easily been mistaken for a grain of sand or dirt because they looked dark. Without weights it was difficult to keep my legs from flipping up over my head and getting the water out of my ear after so long under water was a challenge; but the pool is now holding water. Thank you for good advice.
Is it better to fill the pool back up before looking for the leak. This way you can get the water clean?