Mount Laurel, NJ Pool Collapses Due to Improper Maintenance and Age

When uneducated homeowners attempt to take on pool maintenance themselves, the results can sometimes be disastrous. When the pool is over 30 years old, the results can be even worse. Landscaping Inspection Services inspected a pool in Mount Laurel, NJ that had completely collapsed on two sides due to both the age of the pool, and the “maintenance” performed on the pool by the homeowner, who was not a professional.

Our inspector spoke with the homeowners who stated that they had been winterizing the pool themselves for the past five years. What our inspector found showed poor care and neglect on the homeowners’ part.

Inspection of Mount Laurel, NJ Pool

The homeowners stated that the pool had been filled with water when they had closed it for the winter. During his inspection, our inspector made the following observations:

• The pool structure was wooden, which is no longer considered industry standard, and the pool was over 30 years old.
• The pool cover had been stapled to the wooden ledge of the pool.
• The pool did not have a vinyl coping.
• The pool walls and supports were severely rotted away.
• One long wall and one short wall of the pool had completely collapsed.
• The pump was in poor condition, and the wiring to the pump had been cut off completely.

Cause of Loss for Mount Laurel, NJ Pool

Our inspector determined that the rotting of the pool structure was due in part to the age of the pool. Years of water seeping behind the pool lining had caused the wooden structure to rot away. However, the homeowner contributed to the issues by improperly winterizing the pool. By stapling the cover to the pool ledges, the entire weight of the cover was on the ledges. Once the water level dropped, the cover could not move, and instead the pool walls collapsed under the weight.

Our inspector recommended that the pool be entirely replaced. As two of the walls were irreparably damaged, as well as the fact that wood is no longer used for building pools, our inspector concluded that this pool could not be saved.