What you get from a vinyl swimming pool liner

The finished surface of a pool is an important element. It is the one component of the pool that consistently comes into contact with the pool’s water and the various chemicals that it contains. It is the material that swimmers and bathers touch and it is the visible and aesthetic part of any swimming pool that everyone both in and out of the pool sees.

In short deciding on a pool liner is a critical decision and one that, if you get wrong, you will have to live with for a long time.

So what are the options when it comes to lining the structural surfaces of a typical home owner swimming pool? Well there are two choices and they are:

• Ceramic tiles which are bonded to the structural walls and floor of the swimming pool with a marine quality adhesive and sealed with a waterproof grout sealant. This is the traditional or old way of doing things.

• A material swimming pool liner manufactured from hardwearing, flexible and colour fast vinyl. This is the fast, cheap and more modern way of lining any swimming pool.

More about tiles

The first of these two finishes is the traditional and ever popular hard wearing one composed of fired clay tiles that come in a huge range of patterns, colours and sizes. Many companies make and sell them and just as many will install them in your swimming pool. The installation costs for a tiled pool are high and labour intensive and the tiles themselves are costly to purchase. Additionally, this method can be disruptive with mess, mud and general mayhem generated during the build. However, with a new pool installation this will simply continue the construction process.

The outcome of a tiled pool finish is a tough, attractive and very hardwearing pool surface that can last for decades. In addition to the good looks this method of construction is resistant to almost any chemical or bacteria, germs etc and it is easy to clean.

Tiles can only be used on a constructed below-ground pool, they are not suitable for above ground swimming pools.

More about vinyl liners

The second method of applying a surface finish to the walls and floor of a swimming pool is to use a modern vinyl pool liner.

In many cases these liners copy the aesthetics of tiles and they come in a near unlimited number of colours, patterns and swimming pool size and shape fits. You can have a unique design created for your pool, or you can pick from a vast array of colours and ready made designs. In both cases the cost will be a fraction of that required to install a tiled lining. If you then add to this the fact that a vinyl liner can be fitted in one day, you start to see the advantages of vinyl linings in swimming pool applications.

Furthermore, vinyl is not just cheap to buy and easy to fit, it is also extremely durable and hard wearing. So much so that many suppliers actually offer a 5 or 10 year warranty (often subject to the fitting being undertaken by an accredited fitter) on their liners.

A distinct advantage of vinyl liners over tiles is their soft and slightly padded tactile feel – a result of the vinyl fabric. Tiles are tough and they also have edges and hard surfaces. This means that you can bang or knock yourself against them resulting in bruises or grazes. Vinyl liners have a much softer feel and they have a smooth surface that means that you are less likely to hurt yourself accidentally when swimming or bathing. They are better for families or busy activity based home pools.

Vinyl liners can also be used to cover an above-ground pool by using the overlap system.

Which to choose

When it comes to selecting a pool liner you have two very different choices. A traditional, expensive and long installation duration option, or a cheaper and faster installation option.

Which you choose will probably depend on a number of factors like available budget and any preference for either tiles or vinyl, however both will provide a good, attractive, durable and long lasting solution to the pool liner conundrum.

One point to remember is that removing and replacing a vinyl pool liner is comparatively cheap and quick and this makes changing to accommodate different liners styles and fashions easy. The same cannot be said of the tiled pool lining.