Pool Installation on a Slope

[PoolDoc]

Rather than cinder blocks, you might want to use the 12" x 12" x 2" patio blocks. You'll have to sink them flush with the dirt -- maybe leave them a bit high, since I'm not really sure how stable that dirt might be.

A couple of other points:

=> It's common to put a cheap tarp under the pool, and cut it to fit. That might help stabilize the dirt IF you make sure to cut off all the extra, so the tarp does NOT channel rain water under the pool!

=> You want to make SURE that rain water does not run around the circle. Once the pool is up, you may want to mound the dirt along the upper edge, so rain water is channeled around the pool rather than under it.

[NekroDan]

Thanks, Ben! So the patio blocks you're talking about, you mean these that I found at Lowes? If so, I'd really only have to buy as many as there are legs on the pool then, right?

=> It's common to put a cheap tarp under the pool, and cut it to fit. That might help stabilize the dirt IF you make sure to cut off all the extra, so the tarp does NOT channel rain water under the pool!

So would stabilizing the dirt eliminate the need to tamper the ground? I guess I'm trying to figure out how this would benefit me in the long run. Keep in mind, I have a Gorilla Pad that I put down first. Right on top of the Gorilla Pad, I place down the tarp that came with the pool, then the pool goes on top of the tarp. This is how I'd set it up both times before I've had to drain it. So if I do what you're suggesting, can I still use the Gorilla Pad or would I need to leave it out of the equation the next time I set it up?

=> You want to make SURE that rain water does not run around the circle. Once the pool is up, you may want to mound the dirt along the upper edge, so rain water is channeled around the pool rather than under it.

Can you explain what you mean by "make sure the rain water does not run around the circle?" I guess this whole part kinda threw me off.

Do you have any links or guides I can access for instructions on any of this and any other of my questions in my last post? Also Ben, what do you think about the huge dip on the outer/lower edge of the circle in pictures #1 and #2? I can't leave it like that, can I? If not, is there a way I can secure that for free?

Thanks for your response

[PoolDoc]

Yes, block under the legs only.

What I was talking about is that you do NOT want water making a channel either UNDER or AROUND the pool. Since you are on a slope, and runoff will head right for the pool, you have to re-direct it, somehow.

[Watermom]

We have a slope, too. We built a retaining wall around the pool, leaving enough space to walk around the perimeter of the pool. We buried a piece of flexible corregated perforated pipe in this space and directed the water away from the pool. I don't know what you call it, but there is some kind of a cloth sleeve that the pipe was put inside. It lets water in but keeps dirt out. Then, we covered the pipe with rocks. It seems to have worked as we have never had an issue with water.

There are some pics in the following thread that were taken when we replaced the pool a couple of years ago. You can't see the drainage pipe, but you can see the retaining wall.

http://pool9.net/wm-pool-advent/

[NekroDan]

Ah, I see what you mean. Can you elaborate on "somehow?" Maybe more pictures will help, but that's kind of where I was coming from with my original question, what are my options on re-directing the water based on my environment?

PICTURE #5
http://i.imgur.com/MeaD9DX.jpg

PICTURE #6
http://i.imgur.com/qzn8jEN.jpg

Also, what did you mean by your tarp explanation in your earlier post? Are you saying it'll help to compact the ground so that the un-tampered areas won't need to be tampered? Thank you again for your input