12x24 Intex Ultra Rectangular Pool setup - what about walls leaning in?

[SusanG]

Hey Everyone,

I have a 12X24X52 Intex Rectangular Pool and I have a question about the setup of this pool. The instructions and online reviews all mention that the long sides will cave in when you start filling it with water. Well the sides are definitely caving in! My question is how much is too much? The pool is about 2/3rds full. Should I stop filling the pool or just go ahead and fill it up? Any advise would be appreciated.

Thanks..

[PoolDoc]

Sorry it took me so long to respond and upgrade your membership.

I saw this post, and spent some time looking for information, but then didn't get back to you. Anyhow, here's what I found:

1. The side walls on Intex rectangular pools *normally* bow in during filling.

2. Usually, they will straighten back out once full.

3. Occasionally, they remain bowed.

4. There is no definitive explanation -- that I could find -- regarding the occasional persistent problem.

5. BUT, it's clear that proper site prep (= LEVELING!) is even more important with rectangular pools, than with round ones.


OK, that's what I know. Here's my guess: failure to fully level the site and failure to fully follow the instructions about alignment and set up are usually the cause of the persistent problems. But, as I said, I'm guessing.

I'm sure you will (or have) looked at some of the other forums and discussion sites. Let me give you a tip, learned from operating this forum for 15+ years: posters often leave out embarrassing details about their shortcuts or mistakes. They will fully discussion problems with the product, but a large portion get quite shy about the details of their OWN mistakes. Keep this in mind, when reading about some of the problems.

Intex is NOT the best ever, at customer service. But, in general, there products work as designed and, in general, they will eventually stand behind their products. However, they do occasionally suffer from erratic product quality -- a characteristic shared by many other Chinese procuts -- so it's possible that the bowed walls problem is a result of a plant, or assembly line, that's putting out deficient product.