A Vinyl Liner Swimming Pool is a great value.  When this pool is built properly you will have many years of enjoyment! 

Here are the 8 most common mistakes made when building a Vinyl Liner Swimming Pool:

1. Pool Dug to Deep-  A lot of pool builders believe that you should dig the pool a couple of inches deeper than the Liner Manufacture's Specified Depth.  They do this to make the liner stretch, to ensure that you have no wrinkles.  By building a pool this way you will shorten the life of the liner.  The liner needs to be installed correctly to the manufactures specifications to make sure that it will last as long as possible.
2. Pool Dug not Deep Enough- A lot of pool builders try to cut many corners to save a buck here or there.  They will try to use less bottom material (Portland cement and vermiculite). Most builders will tell you the material used under the liner on the floor is not structural.  This is incorrect, Liner Manufactures specify that a minimum of 2" of Portland Cement and Vermiculite be installed to properly support the liner.  We have seen way too many bottoms that are only a 1/2" thick.  While this may support the liner when first installed it will soon crack and cause an uneven surface for your liner.  Even worse when it is time to change the liner you will have a lot of repairs needed.  It may even need to be completely removed and done properly.
3. Not Allowing the Backfill to Settle Properly- Most Customers are always in a hurry to get in there pool and start enjoying.  A Vinyl Liner Swimming Pool will need to be dug at least 2 to 3 feet larger than the finished size or the pool.  This is in order to properly set the walls and braces and then concrete them in.  This soil needs proper time to settle and compact.  If you place the concrete on top of this material too fast it will settle in the future and can cause the deck to crack and heave.
4. Not Plumbing the Pool Properly- Most builders still believe that 1 1/2" plumbing is fine for proper circulation.  According to the Virginia Grame Baker Act,  your suction lines water must not travel maor than 6 feet per second.  1 1/2" pipe can not handle anymore than 37 gallons per minute. There are only a couple of pumps that will push water that slow. Properly plumbing the pool will allow your pump to operate efficiently.
5. Oversizing the Circulation Pump- Most pool builders will usually install a pool pump that is much larger than required to properly circulate and filter the pool water.  If your pump is over-sized, your plumbing will most certainly be undersized. If you force too much water through the pipe it will overwork the pump and shorten it's life. 
6. Undersizing the Filter- Most pool filters are too small for the pumps that they are installed with.  It is very important that the filter will have the proper gallons per minute going through it.
7. Not Pouring the Concrete Thick Enough- Because most Vinyl liner pools are built with Aluminum Coping, a lot of builders will only pour 2 1/2" thick concrete.  The concrete should be a minimum of 3 1/2" thick to 4" thick.  If the Concrete is too thin it will crack.
8. Using Main Drain Suctions-  The biggest problem with using main drains are that if the liner floats it can cause the liner to tear around the main drains.  They also have much smaller holes now and cause a lot of debris to get collected right at the main drains.

If you make sure that your Vinyl Liner Pool is built properly and that you contract with the Right Pool Builder.  You will have many years of enjoyment!