Many customers ask us our professional opnion regarding liner pads and if they are really necessary. Do they really help prolong the life of your liner?

 

We did a bit of searching on the subject and could find no third party source to tell us the answer,or any double blind placebo studies such as done in drug research.  So we guess the scientific community has not yet tapped into the need for independent verification of pool liner ware and tare. 

 

All joking aside the answer is:  that it really depends on how often you plan on replacing your liner.  How long do you want it around? Do you want the longest life (protective pad) or the lowest cost solution (no liner protection)?  If you want to give your liner the most years possible then the gorilla pad is for you.  Some folks like to make sure they will get the best and longest wear out of there liner, others are ok with replacing it every few years.

Do the liner pads we have really help? We carry the Gorilla Pool Pad, the Happy Bottom, the Perfect Bottom and another lower cost Liner Pad.  All have different features but will prevent roots (especially the pesky nut grass root) from working there way up into the liner.  They also tend to add some structure to the sand bottom of a pool so that sand wont be prone to moving around with heavy foot traffic. They are also perfect for intext style pools that do not sit on a sandy bottom to provide some protextion for the bottom.

We are also a bit amused by Blue Waves pictures with the Gorilla and perhaps more amusing the broken class bottle under the pool. Here is a pro tip for you!

Seriously though, we do recommend that liner pads be used in the following circumstances:

• Have an intext style pool
• You have nut grass
• You have had bad luck with your current liner and it seems to need replacing or patching often
• You are the type that likes to do things once, and let them last for years
• You have a unusually rocky or bumpy soil in your yard
• Large trees are near by
• And in some circumstance we have even heard that ants can cause issues, so if you have any ant problems it may pay to use one

Another important fact is that the corner of your pool should most definitely have either sand built up or you should use some pool cove. While doing our liner replacement, one high cause of failure was the lack of this corner build up, it really stresses your liner out at it weakest point (the corners). These are not required for intex style pools without steel or resin walls.

The bottom line, its a judgement call. You don’t have to get one but they sure are nice when you have one. Just don’t put them over any glass bottles please!

Please leave a comment and let us know your experiences!