how to reattach vinyl liner in spot where it's slipped out of the "channel"

[heatherc]

...this happens every year to me in a couple of spots...what I do is pour boiling water over the area and use a popsicle stick to push the bead into the track.....I'd be too afraid of ripping the liner by using a screwdriver.

[tenax]

thanks a bunch, heather..i'll give it a whirl

[tenax]

just an update and for anyone else with the problem. i bought a strip of the "channel lock" for about 3 bucks..about 8 ft of it.there are 2 kinds at my local pool store..last year, the stuff i bought seemed quite thin and too wide so i had to cut it..was easy to break with even a rubber mallet as well. this time, i bought narrower stuff that seemed a bit thicker. used water at max tap heat that i then nuked for 5 minutes..not boiling but very hot, lowered the pool level about 4 inches (it had been about 3 from the concrete surface before i started) and it worked great. i fixed about 10 spots ranging from about 2 inches wide to the one that started this which was actually 8 inches wide! it's a 20 year old liner or so so it's pretty stiff, but the hot water stretched it nicely and i was able to do a one man job on it. very pleased. i had tried the hair dryer last night to get a sense of how easy to pull but the hot water was a lot safer of course and i think did a better job stretching the vinyl over a larger section as it covered more area..

[heatherc]

...I forgot to mention that anytime we do this we use liner lock to hold it up....glad you found out about that! Our liner is getting older as well, but the longer this works the better!!...I am hoping to add the liner lock around the whole perimeter this summer just for added measure.

[matt4x4]

Just a couple of recoomendations if I may:
DON'T use boiling water - hot - yes, but boiling can damage the liner.
I'd advise against installing liner lock around the entire perimeter, if it's holding on it's own, great, once you install liner lock, you're stretching something that didn't need it in the first place and risking a crack in the receiver channel as well. Remember that the stuff is all older and has been exposed to UV rays for a long time now, UV rays trend to dry out plastics, making them brittle and the adding of liner lock can split a perfectly good portion of your receiver channel, so unless it really needs it, I'd be leaving it alone.

[Sumo1]

A friend of mine who has a vinyl pool says he's used thin strips of old credit cards to secure his liner and they worked well. However, he said that even better is to use 8" cable ties with the thick end cut off. Good luck!
Hal

[cleancloths]

I once had a similar problem, used a hair dryer to carefully stretch the liner and pop it back into place. I tucked pennies and dimes in to hold the liner for about a week. After that time everything settled and I took out the loose change and it has been fine for years.