But Won’t A Thicker Liner Fade Less Over Time
Why do liners fade? Good question! From our experience, liners fade or become “bleached” due to chemical erosion, sun fading, overstretching during the install process, and age. Over-chlorinating is the number one reason for a liner color fading. Just as excessive bleach will fade your clothes, over-chlorinating your pool will accelerate fading of a pool liner. Any chlorine level above 3 PPM will accelerate fading. To answer the first question, no, thicker liners will not provide any additional protection against fading, because both 20mil and 30mil liners use the same clear coat protection layer.
To sum up the liner discussion, it is our recommendation that you choose your pool liner based on the pattern you like best. If you don’t like your pool or the way it looks, it could lead to some of the problems discussed! You want to enjoy your pool and the way it looks! If you like your pool, you will take care of it!
How To Install An Above Ground Pool Liner
How you attach your new liner will depend on which type it is. The rest of the installation will be the same, regardless of liner type.
To prevent a wall collapse, only drain your pool when youre ready to install the new liner. Remove any remaining water with a pump or dig a small hole below the wall at the lowest edge of your pool, then cut open the liner at the hole, and allow the water to run out.
Now youre ready to install the new liner!
Youll Need:
Why Do Different Companies Have The Same Pool Liner Patterns With Different Names
Some pool liner manufacturers design a pattern and have their suppliers print them. Creating a print gives them an advantage, as they hold the patent for the design. Suppliers cant just take a picture of anothers liner and sell it as their own.
The suppliers that provide the material to manufacturers also have in-house designers their prints often get sold to many liner manufacturers. Liner manufacturers can name the patterns designed by suppliers anything they want .
This branding/naming is why you see the same liner pattern sold by different companies, with different names. They are buying vinyl from the same suppliers. Remember, just because the design is the same, it does not mean the thickness is also the same. The same print is often used on five pieces of vinyl of various thickness and quality.
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The Truth About Warranties
The average above ground pool liner lasts 7-10 years, so what does a 15-25 year warranty cover? Ultimately, a vinyl liner is a product than can be punctured. There is generally no difference between a 15 or 25 year warranty. Pool liner warranties mainly exist to cover manufacturer defects, namely vinyl seam separation. In cases of a puncture, it is extremely unlikely that a manufacturer would replace the liner unless you could prove it was punctured before installation, which is difficult to do. This boils down to the idea that warranty is not the determining value factor, but rather thickness, as the thicker the liner, the harder to puncture and damage.
Do Thicker Vinyl Liners Last Longer
As mentioned, the answer is that thicker vinyl liners are expected to last longer. Of course, thats dependent upon several factors, and again, depends on the ability of the installer. So the thickness of the liner does matter, but so does choosing a capable and experienced pool company.
Vinyl liners last 5-9 years, with a general rule being the thicker the liner, the closer it will be to 9 years. But beyond that, a thicker vinyl liner is a good investment in avoiding potential problems. They can withstand more damage without leaking and will require fewer patches and repairs.
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Aqua Pool Liner Colors
Aqua is becoming increasingly popular as a color profile. Traditionally, when people think of pool colors, they think of blue, not just any blue, but a BLUE blue. Tan-colored pool liners are becoming increasingly popular among individuals who do not want a basic blue pool.
Sandstone liners will give your pool a more aquatint and a lagoon appearance instead of concrete liners. Combining it with copings, stairs, skimmers, or even a slide is an excellent choice to get the best aesthetic results when using an aqua liner.
The Liner Is The Most Important Part Of An Above Ground Pool
Liner thickness is an important fact to understand. It may seem like a small difference, but it’s a discrepancy that we want Shelly -and all our other customers- to be aware of because the liner is the most important part of an above ground pool. It’s common practice in the pool industry to refer to above-ground liners with reference to their gauge, and because of that we would never advertise or sell one as 25 mil. We only deal with top quality liner manufacturers that carefully shape each liner with a minimum of stretch to meet National Spa and Pool Institute standards. We’re not aware of any manufacturers that make or sell a true 25 mil thick liner for above-ground pools. In fact, most dealers, whether online or in-store, get their liners from the same limited number of manufacturers. This is why most dealers show similar liner patterns every year. Typically the only difference is going to be in price. With that in mind, please be cautious of anyone that represents an above ground liner as a true 25 mil thick.
Regardless the actual thickness, all our liners are backed by top-notch warranties, and you can rest assured that Family Pool Fun stands behind its products. In this instance, the 25 gauge pool liner Shelly purchased came with our standard 25-year warranty, and we encouraged her to contact us if she ever experiences any problems with it during that time. We certainly want any customer to get in touch if there is an issue with a liner purchased from us.
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With So Many Options To Choose From Here Are Tips For Finding The Best Liner For You And Your Pool
When choosing a vinyl pool liner, the possibilities are truly endless. From colour and pattern to texture and thickness, you have the opportunity to customize your pool liner to your specific tastes.
But how do you know what options will work best for you and your pool?
As with everything else you need to consider before installing a pool, youll also need to consider the various types of pool liner options to find the best fit for your budget, pool, backyard, and preferences.
Summary & Conclusion Best Above
Above-ground swimming pool liners are not all created equal. Dont buy a pool liner if you cant tell how thick it is. If you are purchasing a pool liner from Company A, find out how Company A describes the quality and thickness of their products, and then buy the best they offer. Its just not that much more money.
You should also try to find out if the floor is thinner than the wall. Ask your sales professional to show you patterns available in their thickest vinyl. Unfortunately, many will not know the real measurements. So then buy HG versions or Perma 2500 liners. Never buy a pool liner based on the gauge, as in 20 gauge.
And remember the best above-ground pool liner you can buy is a 20/20 mil meaning a 20 mil wall and 20 mil floor.
We would like to sell you a quality liner. Moreover, we want to install it for you if you are in our service area. Pool Liner Shop
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Above Ground Pool Liners
Installing your own Above Ground Pool Liner is easy you can do it yourself and save big! You will need to know some basic information about your pool in order to determine what liner is best for you. Here are some questions you need to answer before you can choose the correct liner for your Above Ground Pool.
Our Above Ground Liners are manufactured in Canada and the United States. This means our vinyl is superior in quality and workmanship. Our liners only use 100% virgin vinyl material.
Installing your own above ground liner is easy – to get started, you will need to know:
- The size of the pool
- The wall height of the pool
- The liner connection style
- The condition of your current coping
What Are The Different Types Of Pool Liners For Above
There are three different types of liners that you can use to upgrade your above-ground pool.
They include UniBead , beaded, and overlap liners.
Overlap liners are draped over the edge of the pool wall. They are an inexpensive option. The liner goes over your pool wall and is locked into place with the rail of the pool.
Next, beaded liners! These are secured to the pool wall using a snap-in track or receiver. In terms of ease of installation and speed, they are easy and fast.
Unibead or J-Hook liners are also easy to install. Line up the liner with the J-Hook and its hung on the pool wall and covered with the pool top rail.
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Video Answer: Picking The Perfect Pool Liner
A circulation range between 1.0-1.5 ppm of chlorine will kill off bacteria in swimming pool water in most areas of the U.S. High concentrations of chlorine will attack the liner and bleach it, thus damaging it. Any level below this range will weaken its ability to kill off bacteria.
The water in the pool helps hold the liner into place. If you drain your pool you can cause your vinyl pool liner to shrink and upon refilling, if the liner has lost its elasticity it can cause the liner to rip or tear. The liner can also become hard and brittle.
Saltwater is extremely corrosive to certain types of metal pipes and pool equipment. Occasionally, saltwater pools are equally corrosive to pool liners. If saltwater wears away the lining of a pool long enough, it will create holes or tears in the liner. Once the liner tears, you’ll have no choice but to replace it.
- Clean the liner with warm water and a mild detergent to remove any additional dirt or debris from the liner. Scrub at the scale with a scrub brush or scrubbing sponge to remove some of the scale and let the liner completely dry.
Vinyl Liner Manufacturer Stock
All manufacturers buy stock from suppliers, some from the same suppliers. Some vinyl is cheap and includes recycled plastics with little plasticizers. Some prints will not hold up well to chlorine and UV rays, some will. Some liner prints/patterns come in more than one thickness. Same print/different vinyl quality!
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How To Select Above Ground Pool Liners
Just like in ground pools, proper measurements are also essential in choosing the best above ground pool liners. After making these calculations, choose the type of liner that will work best. Depending on the type of above ground pool, you can determine the kind of pool liner to use. Factors, like the pool size and shape, can help in making a decision.
If you have a standard pool, you may not want to fuss about designs, patterns, or aesthetics. In this case, the overlap liner may be your best option. These liners hang over the side of the walls of above ground pools. This makes borders and designs unusable. Overlap liners are usually made up of one standard color and pattern.
Some pools have the overlap style, but owners may want to have more design choices. In this case, you can opt for a J-Hook or Unibead pool liner.
You can select beaded liners if you do not want excess liner material to hang over your pool walls. This is where precise measurements come in. Correct numbers can help in proper setup. Since you can fit this liner properly, you can choose from different patterns and designs. This will provide your above ground pool with a better look.
If you cant fit your pool with the options above because of the extra depth, the expandable type is your best choice. It offers more material to use for pools with deep center.
In any of these choices, it is important to have correct measurements to prevent wrinkles, creases and damage to the pool liners.
What Is A Pool Liner
A pool liner covers a pools floor and walls, providing a leak-proof barrier to hold water in the pool, while also creating a decorative appearance.
Pool liners come in various colours, patterns, and thicknesses, and can be purchased in standard sizes and shapes or custom made in almost any shape.
Pool liners are available as:
- Overlap linerswhich are popular, easy to install, and typically the least expensive option, but are difficult to replace and only come in a few colours and patterns
- Beaded linersare easy to install and replace, and come in a variety of styles
- Unibead linersthe easiest liners to install, remove, and replace.
During installation, a pool liner is attached to the swimming pool coping. However, pool liners are not permanent installations, so they can be removed for repair or replacement.
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Mil Versus Gauge Whats The Real Difference
If you are looking for the short answer to this, then here you go There is no difference between mil and gauge.
These are two terms common in the description of above-ground pool liners, and they make no sense because they have no meaning.
Both mil and gauge are units of thickness used for other things, but not for above-ground pool liners. The liner industry and retailers just use these terms to describe the product.
If you are older like me, you might remember the actor Ricardo Montalban in those famous Chrysler Cordoba commercials. With his beautiful Latin accent, he would describe the car as having rich Corinthian leather seats.
Now, a car having leather seats is nice. But to have Corinthian leather would be the bomb except for one thing there is no such thing as corinthian leather. It was just plain ol leather. Richardo sure sold a lot of those junky Cordobas though with just that one adjective that meant nothing.
Just like using the word corinthian to describe car seat leather, using mil or gauge with pool liners is the same. They are all meaningless.
What Is The Best Gauge For Pool Liners
20 gauge25 gauge
. Similarly, what is the best thickness for a pool liner?
To start, vinyl pool liners are usually 20, 27, 28, or 30 mils thick. The decision on whether or not to upgrade the thickness is yoursbut keep in mind that this detail that will be with you for 5-9 years. What you’ll want to know: The basics
Similarly, what is the best pool liner? Here are the best above ground pool liners you can buy:
- Best overall: SmartLine Waves of Poseidon 24 Ft. Round Liner.
- Best 24 ft pool liner: SmartLine Antilles Dolphin 24 Ft.
- Best SmartLine pool liner: SmartLine Stone Harbor 12 Ft. by 24 Ft.
- Best Swimline pool liner: In The Swim 24 Ft. Round Overlap.
One may also ask, is a thicker pool liner better?
The thicker a liner is, the higher the cost tends to be. Thicker liners offer a little added puncture/tear protection. Thinner liners have greater elasticity and can therefore provider a better fit in many cases. Thicker liners are more challenging to install properly.
How long will a 20 mil pool liner last?
10 years
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Where Is Gauge Or Ga Really Used
Gauge is a unit of thickness used primarily in the metal manufacturing industry. You can Google geek out on the origin of the term gauge in the early part of the industrial revolution here
Most guys over the age of at least 40 will know that when buying electrical wire, that its thickness is described in gauge or ga for short. We also know that its strange and senseless in that the higher the gauge number, the thinner the wire.
As an example, an extension cord with #12ga wire is thicker than an extension cord made of #16 wire.
This helps prove the meaninglessness of using gauge in describing the thickness of a pool liner because a 25ga liner is thicker than a 20ga liner is. This is the opposite of how ga or gauge is used.
Got A Leak Good Luck With That
Dont get us wrong. Leaks in above ground pool liners are super easy to fix, and its always good to know how to patch a pool liner. Just Get a repair kit and youll be swimming again before you can say Marco Polo. The challenge is finding the leak.
Unless its a huge, obvious gash pouring water into your yard, finding a leak in an above ground pool is notoriously difficult. If you want to take a shot at finding the pool leak, you can try the bucket test. But finding a tiny leak in an above ground pool is so challenging, it may take you less time to get a new liner and install it.
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Pool Liner Type: Beaded Vs Overlap
Pool liners come in a range of different styles by which they are hung on the wall of a pool.
- Overlap liners are amongst the most commonly used, and the material is simply hung over the wall of the pool and locked in place with a piece of plastic coping. This leaves spare vinyl material hanging on the outside of the pool than can be rolled up underneath the top rails after installation. It can be more difficult to properly install overlap liners with colored borders, as there is no tracking piece to ensure youre installing the border line straight. Overlap liners are generally a less expensive option.
- UniBead liners come with a universal bead system installed. The liner has two clips, a J-hook style that comes with a lip on the edge that slips over the wall of the pool, as well as a standard clip that can fit into an existing bead track. This can make installation simpler as there is no excess material to account for, making alignment of the border of the liner significantly easier. Below weve included a video explaining how a beaded liner is installed for those unfamiliar.
