Last year I installed a 27' Esther William that is half buried. My backyard is on a hillside that slopes down to a wooded area in which I dug out a 'shelf' into the hillside using a skidsteer. The front half of the pool is buried about 38" into the ground. I wrapped the buried part with tar paper to give some extra protection and installed perforated drainage at the pool base and covered it with pea gravel. I filled the pool before backfilling the remaining void with topsoil that I had dug out earlier. Its been almost a year and no issues. I've also dished out the middle of the pool so I have a nice 5'8" deep center. I'm confident that when I eventually have to replace the liner that the fill will be solid enough that there won't be a chance of collapse.


I bought the pool used on craigslist and the previous owner had the pool half buried for about 15 years and I found very little corrosion on the pool when I removed it. Esther Williams pools are made of individual extruded aluminum panel so this may of helped protect it better vs steel. I did repaint every piece with aluminum primer and multiple coats of white oil rustoleum enamel.

If done right I don't there is an issue with burying a pool. I would recommend an aluminum pool vs a steel one. Craigslist usually have ones for a good price.