Swimming Pool Leaks: Causes and How to Find Them
Not overreacting to water loss is essential. In other words, just because you notice water levels dropping, doesn’t necessarily mean your pool is leaking. You have to account for other factors. There are 3 perfectly good explanations for swimming pool water disappearing.
First of all, it could be a pipe, or plumbing leak. Second, you could have a swimming pool shell leak. Lastly, you could be losing water to evaporation. Actually, having a lot of people in your pool splashing around can cause a large amount of water loss too.
If you put more water in the pool and make a “no splashing, no diving” decree and still notice water loss; then you need to dig a little deeper. The next easiest, to test for, is evaporation. This involves a little bit of a science experiment. What you want to do is fill up something with water. Preferably you want to use a large container of some sort. Next, you will place the container full of water on the first step of your pool. Once your container of water is on the first step, compare the water level of the pool to the water in your container. You want the pool water and the container water to be level. If the levels are not even, add or remove water to/from the container, until it is level with the pool water. The next step will not make you very popular within your house, or your neighborhood, depending how many people use your pool. However, it is an essential step. You have to close your pool, to all swimmers, for a few days.
After waiting for a few days it’s time to check our experiment. The water level in the pool should still be the same as the water level in the container. You may notice the water went down some. As long as they are still level to each other, you’ll know your missing swimming pool water was due to evaporation. However, if your swimming pool water dropped drastically, in comparison to the container water, you probably have a leak.
If you have a leak, the next crucial step is figuring out where that leak is. The best initial place to start is by examining around the pump and the filter. While looking, if you spot any wet or damp areas, you may be close to finding the source of the leak. You should try and track the water to see exactly where it is coming from. The majority of the time, your leak will be stemming from a connection problem with one of your pipes.
If your leak problem isn’t from any of your pipes, unfortunately, you probably have a shell leak. An above ground pool shell leak is much easier to contend with than an inground swimming pool shell leak. With an above ground pool, you just have to find a hole where the water is coming from and repair it. It’s a lot trickier when you own an inground swimming pool. You’re going to have to try and examine the shell from inside the pool, or by searching the surrounding areas of the shell.
If you don’t know anything about fixing the shell of a swimming pool, like most anything else, it’s best to leave it to the experts. In fact, if you can’t find the shell leak, it’s best to just call in a professional, to help you fix your pool. As mentioned, this is especially true for inground swimming pools.
The process of elimination will help you determine what is causing the loss of water in your swimming pool. Finding out the cause and then where the leak is coming from is important. Once you find the source, you can determine whether it’s best to call in a professional pool repair person or not. If you can’t find the source of the leak, it’s suggested you call in a professional. Remember, when it comes to a swimming pool leak; a small problem today could escalate into a much larger one tomorrow.
