Lost 3" of Water Overnight...

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I have not had a chance to check with the food coloring yet, it has been raining pretty steadily for the past couple of hours. The water is now below the opening on the returns. If I check the lights with the food coloring and they are not the cause, I assume the water will continue to drop. Once it is past that point, it has to be the main drain and/or a place under the debris in the deep end right? If it gets to that point, what would I do next? How much water is too much water to lose?
 
You do not want the water to drain all the way out of the pool. Depending on the water table in your area, ground water could cause the liner to "float" or pull out of the channel that holds it in place. It may also cause the liner to shift and wrinkle, making it more likely to tear. Prolonged exposure without water will dry out the liner to the point where it will shrink or become brittle.

If water drains all the way past the lights then the problem could be the main drain or a hole in the liner. I'm thinking a hole would have to be pretty big to lose as much water as you have lost in one day, so you should be able to see it when all the debris is removed. If you have a pool rake you can use that to scoop up as much debris as you can from the bottom of the pool and see if you find a hole.

So if the water drains below the lights, go ahead and fill the pool back up and see if you can get someone to check out the main drain asap.
 
Would I be able to check the main drain on my own by swimming down there and using the food coloring test? I guess if it drops below the lights I could swim down there then and check with the food coloring and see if it is going to the main drain before getting up the debris? Would that work?
 
How cold is the water? You don't want to get hypothermia trying to fix the pool. If it is safe for you to dive down there you would want to take the cover off the main drain so you can see if the dye is going into the pipe or into the body of the drain. Similar to what it shows here.
 
The water temp is about 62. I was in the water yesterday vacuuming in the shallow end for about an hour, so I feel I would be okay for a couple of minutes, but would definitely be cautious about it. If it is going into the body of the drain as in the video what would be the fix there? If it is going in the pipe?

Right now the water level is about 1/2" or so below the returns and has about 2" or 3" or so before it reaches the top of the lights (a little more than I originally thought).
 
The water is about 2 inches below the returns, still not to the top of the light yet. If the main drain was sucking in water, should I be able to see it moving the dirt around that area? There is a significant amount of dirt/leaves in the deep end so I feel I would see some circulation and movement down there. Is that a correct assumption? Thanks!

I would rather this happen now than in the middle of the swim season!!
 
If the water is going into the pipe then you will need to have someone check the plumbing to see if there is a break underground. If it is going into the body of the drain I think you can use some pool repair putty to fill in any gaps or cracks. You could also get a plug for the drain and install it.

The water is not draining fast and dirt is heavier than dye so you would not necessarily see the dirt move.

Does the leak seem to be slowing down any?
 
I cannot really tell. I have not been out much to look at it since it has been raining pretty much non-stop since this afternoon. I will check in the morning before church and post where it is at then. Last night I lost about 3 or 4 inches so that will let me know how it is progressing.
 
I lost about 5 or 6 inches last night. I guess the lights are further under the water than I thought. The water has just now started to go over the top of the lights. I am going out now to put some colored water around the lights.

EDIT: I just went and squirted some colored water (Crystal Light mixed with water since I didn't have any food coloring) around the light fixtures. I could not tell that any was being sucked in behind the lights. I really hope that is where it is leaking though because I really don't want to have to get in this cold water to stop it from leaking!! At least now the deep end is not so deep anymore, so that will make it that much easier.

What size plug is typical for the main drain pipe? I was thinking about going ahead and getting one today just in case I have to check down there and that it is I will be ready. The plumbing in my skimmer is 2", so would it be the same? Also, what type of sealant would I need to get to seal the body of the drain if that is the case? Thanks!!
 

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Odds are if the skimmers are plumbed with 2" pipe then your main drain would be as well. Pool epoxy putty would probably be best to seal any cracks in the drain. Sorry, I do not have a brand to recommend for the putty.
 
Well let's hope and pray it is the lights, as I believe that would be the easiest thing to fix.

Is it normal for the water that was left in the skimmer after the water dropped below the opening to have drained out?
 
The water is now right at half way down the lights. Once it gets below the lights pretty much all of the water in the shallow end will be gone. There is about 6" or so left there now.

Is it okay if it gets that low? I would have already gone down and checked the main drain, but it has been 37-40 degrees here today and yesturday with rain...not the most ideal weather to check beneath the water!
 
With a vinyl pool you don't normally want the water in the shallow end getting lower than six inches to a foot. Below that the liner can shrink and/or shift. Shrinking will tend to destroy a liner that is more than perhaps two years old, as it will not stretch back properly and will tend to tear as the pool is refilled. Young liners can handle the shrinking, but may shift. Shifting can be fixed but tends to be a major pain.

Have you been keeping track of the rate at which you are losing water? If you are getting close to the depth of the leak the rate at which you are losing water will slow down. If the rate has remained more or less constant, or increased, then the leak is probably well below the current water depth.
 
No, I have not been tracking. I have been keeping a close watch on it and looking at it often, but not actually measuring. I just checked and since 8AM this morning I have lost about 9 or 10 inches. I have lost a total of 24 inches since 12AM Sat. morning. That averages out to be about .5" an hour.

I measured the water and there is 11" left now in the shallow end. Once it is below the light it seems it will have 5 or 6 inches from what I could tell.

What should be my next step from here?
 
That depends on how much risk you want to take, how old your liner is, how much work you want to do, and how much money you want to spend to get this solved.

The expensive but most reliable approach is to start adding water as quickly as possible so the water doesn't go down any further and hire a leak detection/repair company.

In the less expensive DIY camp, you can run some risk to the liner, more if it is old, less if it is new, by letting the water go down to the bottom of the lights in case that identifies the leak location. If the water continues going down below the lights and the liner isn't fairly new it is time to refill as quickly as possible while you investigate other approaches.

The minimal effort approach is to give up on fixing it before the water all leaks out, let it drain down to the depth of the leak, use that depth to help find the leak, fix the leak, and then see if you can get it refilled without losing the liner. If your liner is already six or ten years old, this could be a very expensive approach. If your liner is brand new, this is probably the best way to go.

Finding and fixing leaks is challenging at the best of times. The rate of your leak is fairly high, right on the boundary where you can hope to save it without a total drain, but only if you do lots of work right now. Slower leaks give you more time to investigate solutions. Faster leaks mean you are draining regardless.
 
What is the likelihood of the actual pool "popping up" out of the ground? I don't want to spend a lot on a repair that I feel I can do myself. The only prohibitor is the coldness of the water, and to think it was 80+ just a few days ago!! I will let it sit over night and pray it is the lights and will stop there. Thank you so much for all of the help thus far. I am truly grateful!! :handshake:
 
A vinyl liner pool doesn't pop out of the ground. What happens when there is a hole in the very bottom of the liner is that the ground water level and water level in the pool equalize. If there isn't a hole, and you do a complete drain, then the liner can float up to the ground water level, but can be gotten back into place later (possibly requiring noticeable effort).
 

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