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Effect Of Stabilizer (Cyanuric Acid) On Vinyl Liner


Ken Testa

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I have a problem. I have an 18 x 33 semi in ground pool with a vinyl liner. I also have the semi circular sinkable stairs in the pool. They type you put concrete blocks in to sink the stairs and hold in place. I put stabilizer I the pool for the first time about a month ago. I must have poured it into the skimmer too fast because the suction pipe got clogged solid with the stabilizer granulars. I had to use a garden hose to unclog the PVC suction pipe connected to the skimmer. In the process a lot of the stabilizer granulars got flushed back into the pool. I quickly vacuumed it up but a lot got stuck under the stairs which sit directly on the liner. I tried to flush it out but probably only pushed it further under the stairs. Now, a month later I'm losing a lot of water from the pool and I don't see any obvious leaks. Do you think the cyanuric acid stabilizer burned through the liner under the stairs?? Thanks! Ken

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It's possible because Cyanuric Acid when concentrated will form a saturated solution with a pH of 5.6 in typical pool water (4.3 in unbuffered water). While not extraordinarily low, a low pH can weaken vinyl. Are you able to remove the stairs to see if there is a leak/hole under them?

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  • 4 years later...

For future readers...powder cya needs to go in pantyhose and dissolve. Cut a leg off the hose and fill up about 1.5 pounds amd tie it off. Use on a broom stick amd place in front of a return and let it dissolve. Squeeze often to release fine powders.  Some people drop that into a skimmer which is OK if you use skimmer socks on the basket. I dont recommend that way as I've seen them get sucked thru and clog the pipes or get back to the pump

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  • 3 weeks later...

It's possible since the pH of a saturated solution, which would occur in the vicinity of the powder sitting on your liner, is 4.8 and vinyl liners cannot withstand low pH. I always pour it SLOWLY into the skimmer with the filter running and run the filter continuously for the next 24 hours or longer (It takes about 48 hours or so to fully dissolve). DO NOT clean or backwash your filter during this time or you will just wash away the CYA and be sure to start with a CLEAN filter! Backwash, change , or clean the filter before adding the stabilizer. I have never run into a problem with clogging pipes or hurting the pump as long as it is added slowing and in small increments (about a cup at a time or less) to the skimmer. Don't just dump it all in at once.

 

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