How to Locate Hole in My Intex Easy Set Pool Ring Leak

Reederoo

I have had a 16' round Intex above ground pool for a few years and have spent a lot of time and frustration keeping the inflatable ring inflated. This has caused multiple instances of thousands of gallons of water flooding my yard when the ring got too low on air. It also caused my skimmer to regularly suck air when the ring go too low and the mounting bracket didn't stay in place. I've tried many tips mentioned on this forum and elsewhere for finding and fixing leaks with some success, but recently I found what I consider to be the 2-part fix to end all fixing, and it was also cheaper and easier than everything else I have tried or read about. I am posting it here so it will be easy for others to find:

This is a 2 part idea to solve 2 time consuming issues with the ring, so let me list them separately. If you don't have large leaks or sunburned ring, skip to part 2.

PART1: Fix large leaks in the ring that don't stay patched in the sun. I had a large (1/2" slit) leak in the ring that patched fine with the vinyl path kit until the sun came out, at which point the patch got gooey and leaked. I found that if you patch it in the evening when it is cool, and then spray the patched area with white rubber leak seal spray:
Rust-Oleum 267970 12-Ounce Leak Seal Flexible Rubber Sealant, White

Rust-Oleum 265494 12-Ounce Leak Seal Flexible Rubber Sealant, Black - Flex Seal - Amazon.com

it keeps the patch cool and prevents it from leaking. It also provides another layer of sealing in case there is a small leak in the patched area. This can also seal small leaks on the top if you can't find exactly where they are, but if you do part 2 of this solution, you won't care about small leaks.

I also highly recommend spraying this on any sunburned areas of the ring. I live in the Mojave desert, so we have intense sun that turned the ring black on the top. This is where the 1/2" crack formed. Spraying the burnt area with the white rubber sealant prevents it from getting further damaged and seals any small leaks. You do need to mask a bit around it to leave a clean line if you care how it looks. Also shield the water with cardboard to prevent overspray getting in the water. The skimmer can handle any little bit that still gets on the surface. There is a brush on leak seal, but it doesn't come in white, so it would seal leaks, but wouldn't work to keep a patch cool for large holes.

PART 2: Fixing small leaks WITHOUT HAVING TO FIND AND FIX THE LEAKS!!!!!! (This is the one that I think will save many people a ton of work)

Don't waste time with soap, saran wrap, stethescopes, or even making your pool look white trash with PVC pipes and noodles propping up the ring, or even doing surgery to insert objects inside the ring to keep it boyant. Here is the only fix you will ever need:

1) 1 rubber stopper #3 size with 1 hole ($2 if you can find just one at a local hardware store, otherwise $10 for many at amazon)
GSC International RS-S-1H-2H-1LB Stoppers Rubber, Assorted Solid, 1, and 2 Hole, 1 lb., Pack of 38: Amazon.com: Industrial Scientific

2) any aquarium air pump and some tubing (~$10)
Amazon.com : Tetra 77851 Whisper Air Pump, 10-Gallon : Aquarium Air Pumps : Pet Supplies
Amazon.com : PENN PLAX Standard Airline Tubing Air Pump Accessories, 25-Feet : Aquarium Air Pump Accessories : Pet Supplies

3) a right angle drip tubing flag connector to connect the tubing to the rubber stopper ($2)
Amazon.com : Raindrip 122010A 10-Count 2 GPH Flag Drippers : Hose Drip Systems : Patio, Lawn Garden

Now just remove the plug from the ring and replace it with the rubber stopper. Then insert the flag dripper into the stopper and connect the tubing so that it hangs straight down and runs to the air pump. Just leave the pump running 24/7 and let it keep the ring perfectly inflated without fixing your leaks! It costs about $0.005 per day to operate, and the pump has such low pressure that it will never overinflate the ring. It will just fill it up until it is full and keep it there as long as it is plugged in. Some larger pumps may be too strong, in which case you may want to add a tee and drip valve to allow some to escape, but the small pump I had lying around worked perfectly without anything like that. There are also adjustable pumps that would allow you to dial in the firmness of your ring, but that is probably overkill. Also, you might want to replace most of the aquarium tubing with drip tubing to prevent it from rotting in the sun, but you will want to use a drip connector to transition back to the softer tubing for connection to the pump. I also loosely covered the air pump in some aluminum foil to keep it from getting damaged in the sun, since it is outside near the pool. I already have power running to my filter and chlorinator, so I plugged the air pump into the same cord.

I have had this in place for a few weeks now and it has kept the ring perfectly inflated. No more fluctuation with heat either (it used to be tight in the sun and droopy at night after cooling down). The best part is, I still have small leaks that I never fixed, and I just don't care anymore! I don't even care if I get more small leaks in the future, because I already know I won't have to spend one second of my time finding it or patching it. The pool also looks and functions exactly as it did when it was new (except for the white rubber coated part from part 1 above), since the ring is still tight with air, and not saggy with random objects stuffed inside, or flopped over a bunch of pool noodles propping it up.

I hope this helps other people to never spend another minute fixing leaks in their inflatable ring! Feel free to comment if anything is not clear or you have questions on how to make this work.

Kim heath

Awesome. This is so awesome of you to share! We are gonna implement your 2 part plan today and ill let you know how we do. We have been struggling, wasting water, chemicals, money on patches, tapes, glues and loads of time and hard work to only be let down every day.

Krystiemb524

I have had a 16' round Intex above ground pool for a few years and have spent a lot of time and frustration keeping the inflatable ring inflated. This has caused multiple instances of thousands of gallons of water flooding my yard when the ring got too low on air. It also caused my skimmer to regularly suck air when the ring go too low and the mounting bracket didn't stay in place. I've tried many tips mentioned on this forum and elsewhere for finding and fixing leaks with some success, but recently I found what I consider to be the 2-part fix to end all fixing, and it was also cheaper and easier than everything else I have tried or read about. I am posting it here so it will be easy for others to find:
This is a 2 part idea to solve 2 time consuming issues with the ring, so let me list them separately. If you don't have large leaks or sunburned ring, skip to part 2.
PART1: Fix large leaks in the ring that don't stay patched in the sun.
I had a large (1/2" slit) leak in the ring that patched fine with the vinyl path kit until the sun came out, at which point the patch got gooey and leaked. I found that if you patch it in the evening when it is cool, and then spray the patched area with white rubber leak seal spray:
Rust-Oleum 267970 12-Ounce Leak Seal Flexible Rubber Sealant, White

Rust-Oleum 265494 12-Ounce Leak Seal Flexible Rubber Sealant, Black - Flex Seal - Amazon.com

it keeps the patch cool and prevents it from leaking. It also provides another layer of sealing in case there is a small leak in the patched area. This can also seal small leaks on the top if you can't find exactly where they are, but if you do part 2 of this solution, you won't care about small leaks.

I also highly recommend spraying this on any sunburned areas of the ring. I live in the Mojave desert, so we have intense sun that turned the ring black on the top. This is where the 1/2" crack formed. Spraying the burnt area with the white rubber sealant prevents it from getting further damaged and seals any small leaks. You do need to mask a bit around it to leave a clean line if you care how it looks. Also shield the water with cardboard to prevent overspray getting in the water. The skimmer can handle any little bit that still gets on the surface. There is a brush on leak seal, but it doesn't come in white, so it would seal leaks, but wouldn't work to keep a patch cool for large holes.

PART 2: Fixing small leaks WITHOUT HAVING TO FIND AND FIX THE LEAKS!!!!!! (This is the one that I think will save many people a ton of work)

Don't waste time with soap, saran wrap, stethescopes, or even making your pool look white trash with PVC pipes and noodles propping up the ring, or even doing surgery to insert objects inside the ring to keep it boyant. Here is the only fix you will ever need:

1) 1 rubber stopper #3 size with 1 hole ($2 if you can find just one at a local hardware store, otherwise $10 for many at amazon)
GSC International RS-S-1H-2H-1LB Stoppers Rubber, Assorted Solid, 1, and 2 Hole, 1 lb., Pack of 38: Amazon.com: Industrial Scientific

2) any aquarium air pump and some tubing (~$10)
Amazon.com : Tetra 77851 Whisper Air Pump, 10-Gallon : Aquarium Air Pumps : Pet Supplies
Amazon.com : PENN PLAX Standard Airline Tubing Air Pump Accessories, 25-Feet : Aquarium Air Pump Accessories : Pet Supplies

3) a right angle drip tubing flag connector to connect the tubing to the rubber stopper ($2)
Amazon.com : Raindrip 122010A 10-Count 2 GPH Flag Drippers : Hose Drip Systems : Patio, Lawn Garden

Now just remove the plug from the ring and replace it with the rubber stopper. Then insert the flag dripper into the stopper and connect the tubing so that it hangs straight down and runs to the air pump. Just leave the pump running 24/7 and let it keep the ring perfectly inflated without fixing your leaks! It costs about $0.005 per day to operate, and the pump has such low pressure that it will never overinflate the ring. It will just fill it up until it is full and keep it there as long as it is plugged in. Some larger pumps may be too strong, in which case you may want to add a tee and drip valve to allow some to escape, but the small pump I had lying around worked perfectly without anything like that. There are also adjustable pumps that would allow you to dial in the firmness of your ring, but that is probably overkill. Also, you might want to replace most of the aquarium tubing with drip tubing to prevent it from rotting in the sun, but you will want to use a drip connector to transition back to the softer tubing for connection to the pump. I also loosely covered the air pump in some aluminum foil to keep it from getting damaged in the sun, since it is outside near the pool. I already have power running to my filter and chlorinator, so I plugged the air pump into the same cord.

I have had this in place for a few weeks now and it has kept the ring perfectly inflated. No more fluctuation with heat either (it used to be tight in the sun and droopy at night after cooling down). The best part is, I still have small leaks that I never fixed, and I just don't care anymore! I don't even care if I get more small leaks in the future, because I already know I won't have to spend one second of my time finding it or patching it. The pool also looks and functions exactly as it did when it was new (except for the white rubber coated part from part 1 above), since the ring is still tight with air, and not saggy with random objects stuffed inside, or flopped over a bunch of pool noodles propping it up.

I hope this helps other people to never spend another minute fixing leaks in their inflatable ring! Feel free to comment if anything is not clear or you have questions on how to make this work.

Do you have any pictures?

max_38614 · Apr 8, 2021 1 Texas Surface Vinyl Chlorine Liquid Chlorine

Please please send video or pics I'm a 65 yr old and have tried everything to find this leak lol...HELP!!
Grandkids coming for the summer

KathyNorthWildwood

Did this for my 18x48 Easy Set Intex Pool. We had already patched 4 small holes yet the ring continued to deflate and then the water would spill over. It works great! No more deflating and no more spill overs!

vsv11

Please please send video or pics I'm a 65 yr old and have tried everything to find this leak lol...HELP!!
Grandkids coming for the summer

I added a couple photos. It was pretty easy to do. A trip to the pet store and hardware store.

Nensea

Please please send video or pics I'm a 65 yr old and have tried everything to find this leak lol...HELP!!
Grandkids coming for the summer

I hear ya! You should see the patches on my tube! All in one spot for a hole the size of a pinhead! Air keeps squeezing out! Gorilla glue, intex patch kit, flex seal spray, flex seal...it's like someone is pranking me!!

Nensea

View attachment 345423
Aquarium pump is under the upside down bucket. I found a tapered rubber plug at the hardware store. I drilled a hole in the plug and ran the tubing through the hole and then into the ring. The pump puts enough air into the ring to displace the leaking air. I put clear RTV around the tubing just in case but it was a tight fit and probably didn't need it. So far it appears to be working fine. My aquarium pump is for 10-30 gallon tanks. View attachment 345424

Can I ask: I ordered the number to flag drip thing and they sent me number four. So it's 4 gallons per hour is that gonna be too much air to put in there it? Can that cause it to pop? Should I add something in the airline to regulate it a little bit better or bleed air out just a bit? I'd like to get your thoughts on this please. Thank you! I've been trying for over two weeks to get this pool set up and this is perfect for it I just wanna make sure I'm doing it right!

Tina220

I hear ya! You should see the patches on my tube! All in one spot for a hole the size of a pinhead! Air keeps squeezing out! Gorilla glue, intex patch kit, flex seal spray, flex seal...it's like someone is pranking me!!

I'm having the same issue with my intex pool. Keeps deflating and had my first "overflow" a couple of days ago. Thank goodness it didn't totally empty and wipe out my neighbors back yard...lol but now in a quandary as to what to do. You would think the pool manufacturer could make these rings more durable like the pool material itself to not have these issues due to sun exposure and such to the top ring. Has anyone tried to either flex spray or use the flex liquid and paint or spray the entire ring? I would think this would work to seal the small holes and give it better protection but obviously want to ask to see if this is a viable option or will the flex stuff will harm or damage the pool ring further......let me know your thoughts. Thank you for any advise anyone can give.

am34

I hear ya! You should see the patches on my tube! All in one spot for a hole the size of a pinhead! Air keeps squeezing out! Gorilla glue, intex patch kit, flex seal spray, flex seal...it's like someone is pranking me!!

Please please send video or pics I'm a 65 yr old and have tried everything to find this leak lol...HELP!!
Grandkids coming for the summer

It's simple and freakin' ingenious. I was going out twice a day with my compressor to fill the top ring. Ordered everything from Amazon using the links. Have WAY too many things but for 35.00, I didn't feel like running around. Only problem, they didn't have the 10 gal pump. I'm going to pick that up at Petco in a bit.

Here's the easy step by step.

1-Open the air thing.
2-Insert the black plug - narrow side in.
3-Put the flag thing into hole in the black plug.
4-Attach the tube to the flag thing.
5-Attach other end of the tube to the pump.
6-Plug in and watch the magic.

My pool ring was out of air again when I did this hack - all done within 5 minutes. Inside of 30 minutes it was inflated and stayed inflated. Because I think the pump is too strong, I'm going to pick up the size recommended by the original poster.

I thought I was going to have to take hours to figure it out but really, it's a cinch!

Quartermaster

I have had a 16' round Intex above ground pool for a few years and have spent a lot of time and frustration keeping the inflatable ring inflated. This has caused multiple instances of thousands of gallons of water flooding my yard when the ring got too low on air. It also caused my skimmer to regularly suck air when the ring go too low and the mounting bracket didn't stay in place. I've tried many tips mentioned on this forum and elsewhere for finding and fixing leaks with some success, but recently I found what I consider to be the 2-part fix to end all fixing, and it was also cheaper and easier than everything else I have tried or read about. I am posting it here so it will be easy for others to find:
This is a 2 part idea to solve 2 time consuming issues with the ring, so let me list them separately. If you don't have large leaks or sunburned ring, skip to part 2.
PART1: Fix large leaks in the ring that don't stay patched in the sun.
I had a large (1/2" slit) leak in the ring that patched fine with the vinyl path kit until the sun came out, at which point the patch got gooey and leaked. I found that if you patch it in the evening when it is cool, and then spray the patched area with white rubber leak seal spray:
Rust-Oleum 267970 12-Ounce Leak Seal Flexible Rubber Sealant, White

Rust-Oleum 265494 12-Ounce Leak Seal Flexible Rubber Sealant, Black - Flex Seal - Amazon.com

it keeps the patch cool and prevents it from leaking. It also provides another layer of sealing in case there is a small leak in the patched area. This can also seal small leaks on the top if you can't find exactly where they are, but if you do part 2 of this solution, you won't care about small leaks.

I also highly recommend spraying this on any sunburned areas of the ring. I live in the Mojave desert, so we have intense sun that turned the ring black on the top. This is where the 1/2" crack formed. Spraying the burnt area with the white rubber sealant prevents it from getting further damaged and seals any small leaks. You do need to mask a bit around it to leave a clean line if you care how it looks. Also shield the water with cardboard to prevent overspray getting in the water. The skimmer can handle any little bit that still gets on the surface. There is a brush on leak seal, but it doesn't come in white, so it would seal leaks, but wouldn't work to keep a patch cool for large holes.

PART 2: Fixing small leaks WITHOUT HAVING TO FIND AND FIX THE LEAKS!!!!!! (This is the one that I think will save many people a ton of work)

Don't waste time with soap, saran wrap, stethescopes, or even making your pool look white trash with PVC pipes and noodles propping up the ring, or even doing surgery to insert objects inside the ring to keep it boyant. Here is the only fix you will ever need:

1) 1 rubber stopper #3 size with 1 hole ($2 if you can find just one at a local hardware store, otherwise $10 for many at amazon)
GSC International RS-S-1H-2H-1LB Stoppers Rubber, Assorted Solid, 1, and 2 Hole, 1 lb., Pack of 38: Amazon.com: Industrial Scientific

2) any aquarium air pump and some tubing (~$10)
Amazon.com : Tetra 77851 Whisper Air Pump, 10-Gallon : Aquarium Air Pumps : Pet Supplies
Amazon.com : PENN PLAX Standard Airline Tubing Air Pump Accessories, 25-Feet : Aquarium Air Pump Accessories : Pet Supplies

3) a right angle drip tubing flag connector to connect the tubing to the rubber stopper ($2)
Amazon.com : Raindrip 122010A 10-Count 2 GPH Flag Drippers : Hose Drip Systems : Patio, Lawn Garden

Now just remove the plug from the ring and replace it with the rubber stopper. Then insert the flag dripper into the stopper and connect the tubing so that it hangs straight down and runs to the air pump. Just leave the pump running 24/7 and let it keep the ring perfectly inflated without fixing your leaks! It costs about $0.005 per day to operate, and the pump has such low pressure that it will never overinflate the ring. It will just fill it up until it is full and keep it there as long as it is plugged in. Some larger pumps may be too strong, in which case you may want to add a tee and drip valve to allow some to escape, but the small pump I had lying around worked perfectly without anything like that. There are also adjustable pumps that would allow you to dial in the firmness of your ring, but that is probably overkill. Also, you might want to replace most of the aquarium tubing with drip tubing to prevent it from rotting in the sun, but you will want to use a drip connector to transition back to the softer tubing for connection to the pump. I also loosely covered the air pump in some aluminum foil to keep it from getting damaged in the sun, since it is outside near the pool. I already have power running to my filter and chlorinator, so I plugged the air pump into the same cord.

I have had this in place for a few weeks now and it has kept the ring perfectly inflated. No more fluctuation with heat either (it used to be tight in the sun and droopy at night after cooling down). The best part is, I still have small leaks that I never fixed, and I just don't care anymore! I don't even care if I get more small leaks in the future, because I already know I won't have to spend one second of my time finding it or patching it. The pool also looks and functions exactly as it did when it was new (except for the white rubber coated part from part 1 above), since the ring is still tight with air, and not saggy with random objects stuffed inside, or flopped over a bunch of pool noodles propping it up.

I hope this helps other people to never spend another minute fixing leaks in their inflatable ring! Feel free to comment if anything is not clear or you have questions on how to make this work.

Reederoo - Even though your post is from May 2016 it is timeless as brand new Intex Easy Set pools in 2021 still have this design/quality flaw. My new 15' by 48 inch pool started loosing air after about the second week and over a three day period it dumped six inches of water twice! The first instance we blamed a dramatic temperature change as a line of thunderstorms moved over our area and the temp dropped 20 degrees in a 15 minute period of time but the second time it happened on a still humid night with no storms. I blew the ring up and within 12 hours it was soft, and a tropical storm was on the way. I lowered the pool water to be safe and looked for leaks to no avail. another twelve hours later the storm was gone and so was more water from the pool.

I Googled solutions three times before finding your miracle post solution here on troublefreepool.com and I jumped to Part 2. Brilliant. I quickly made a shopping list trying to source all materials locally. I couldn't find the drip tubing flag and not sure its purpose, so I skipped it.

Quick side trip to the pet store for the $12.00 Aquarium air pump, and $3.00 for the tubing and a check valve. I also bought a flow valve in case I found the amount of air the 10 gallon rated Aquarium pump was pumping was too much air - so far haven't used it. The check valve is in case the power supply to the Aquarium pump is interrupted or the hose is disconnected from pump so that the air wont leak out of the top ring. Next stop to the hardware store. My local ACE didn't have rubber stoppers with single holes but they had corks. Fifty-five cents each later, I was on my way home to set it all up. I bought two corks just in case. I carefully drilled a hole in the cork slightly smaller than the diameter of the air-line, and then carefully inserted the fish-tank airline tube, and plugged in the Aquarium pump to the same outlet my filter is using. I powered up the air compressor and filled the top ring, then sealed it with the cork, and then let it stay a few hours. Felt just as firm as when I had pumped it up six hours earlier. It would have been getting soft to the touch by now under normal circumstances.

Only then did I start filling the pool yet again with water. Finished just as it was getting dark. Went out first thing in the morning found it still just as firm and the pool hadn't suffered any overnight water loss, over the next couple days I went out and tested the firmness throughout the temperature ranges of the average day/night cycle, and the top ring remained firm! So you get a gold star for this brilliant solution.

Anyone considering this solution scratching their heads, I confirm it is a solution that is quick, easy and MUCH cheaper than the water I have already replaced several times this season. Thank you so much Reederoo for sharing the details of this clever solution! Life is truly good.

reallypfc · Jul 25, 2021

I stumbled across this post - Worked like a charm !!

How to Locate Hole in My Intex Easy Set Pool Ring Leak

Finally a fast, easy, cheap, permanent solution for intex inflatable ring leaks!

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