Remove all the water and clean the pool thoroughly to prevent dirt, algae and deposits from the old liner getting onto the surface. 

First remove the floor film. Then remove the wall film – ideally in segments. To do this, cut the film horizontally directly below the handrail and vertically every 1.5 metres. Leave the handrail on the steel wall for as long as possible (at least in parts) so as not to compromise stability.

Check the structure for rust, cracks or other damage that needs to be repaired before renovation. If rust is present, sand it down using suitable tools and seal these areas with zinc spray. In the case of cracks or missing parts, or if the position of the built-in parts has changed, seal the opening with galvanised sheet metal. This is then riveted to the existing steel wall from behind. If necessary, the resulting recess can be concealed with another layer of sheet metal or a fleece insert.

Oval pools in particular have a retaining wall in the straight area behind the steel wall. If the sheet metal is very unstable, it may be advisable to attach it to the wall and seal the screws with zinc spray.

The floor should consist of a concrete floor slab. If this is uneven, it may be visible through the pool liner. In this case, you can roughly sand down the concrete slab with a grinding machine to remove any bumps. A liner with a 3D structure and a thickness of 2 mm offers significant advantages here and largely eliminates unevenness.

If the slab is not present, it must now be cast in advance (including reinforcing bars). This will reduce the water depth of the pool. If there is insulation under the steel wall pool, it can be removed to such an extent that the floor ring of the pool still sits on the polystyrene. In this case, you will lose less water depth.

Depending on the shape of your steel wall pool, there are several options for installing steps and a seating or reclining area. Ultimately, this depends on your personal taste and preferences. You can find some planning examples in our download area above. These must be adapted to your individual circumstances. Stairs made of concrete formwork blocks offer considerable advantages, as they do not need to be secured against unwanted floating. Nevertheless, especially in a round pool, where the stairs should take up as little space as possible, stairs made of polystyrene formwork blocks or even pure polystyrene are helpful, as the inside of the stairs can be more easily adapted to the radius of the pool. With a little more effort, this could also be achieved with formwork blocks or bricks, which would then be preferable to the polystyrene version.

We have put together three options for you in points 5 - 7.

Option 1) Example of a round pool with steps made from polystyrene formwork blocks

Use commercially available polystyrene formwork blocks with a radius of 1.5 metres (or larger). Assemble your desired staircase from these blocks and connect the blocks to each other using the cable ties provided. Close the openings at the top and bottom of the formwork blocks with Styrodur panels at least 2 cm thick and screw them to the formwork blocks using polystyrene dowels. Then place the entire staircase unit in your pool so that the stairs are aligned in such a way that the water flow is directed towards the stairs. Also consider the path of the sun so that pool users can enjoy the seating area as much as possible.
To position the steps correctly, it may be necessary to create a slope on the lower outer side of the formwork blocks to accommodate the lower ring of the steel wall pool. This can be done ideally by cutting with a hot wire or knife.

Drill holes in the base plate and fill them with reinforcing bars to secure the steps against movement. You should also secure the steps from the outside, for example with wooden beams, to prevent them from moving during concreting. Fill any gaps between the formwork blocks and the pool wall with suitable construction foam. Then slowly fill the formwork blocks with concrete that is not too liquid and smooth the surface. 
Once the concrete has hardened, cut off the excess Styrodur panels with a hot wire or knife.

The step height is usually 25 cm. The step depth should be approx. 20 cm. Ultimately, however, the dimensions can be chosen individually.

Our tip: To minimise the amount of space lost to the stairs, you can set the lower step height to up to 50 cm, thus saving the space of an entire step. This initial height is actually only more difficult to negotiate when the pool is empty during cleaning.

If there is a sliding enclosure, make sure that the door opens to allow direct access to the steps or, alternatively, to the bench.

Make sure that the steps are securely fastened to prevent them from floating up unintentionally! The fastening must also be effective in the unlikely event that water gets behind the liner.

Create a template using plastic sheeting or cardboard, on which you can mark the radius of your steel wall pool. Make the template directly in the empty pool and take into account the overhang of the handrail or floor rail. The curve depends on the pool wall. Therefore, place the template in the desired position to ensure the correct radius. Draw the complete floor plan of your staircase, including the seating area, on the template. Choose your individual stair width, e.g. 50 cm, and draw the curve of the inside based on the outside you have already marked. Then transfer the exact outlines of your template to the first layer of your Styrodur board. Use Styrodur panels with the highest possible strength and thickness and store them appropriately to avoid subsequent shrinkage between the layers. Then use suitable adhesives to glue the next layer of Styrodur on top until you have reached the desired stair height. 
The step height is usually 25 cm. The step depth should be approx. 20 cm. Ultimately, however, the dimensions can be chosen individually. Our tip: To lose as little space as possible to the stairs, you can set the lower step height to up to 50 cm, thus saving the space of an entire step. This initial height is actually only more difficult to overcome in an empty pool during cleaning.  

Position and secure the stair unit in your pool so that the stairs are aligned as closely as possible with the direction of the water flow. Also consider the path of the sun so that pool users can enjoy the seating area to the fullest. 
To position the stairs correctly, it may be necessary to cut a slope into the lower outer side of the formwork blocks to accommodate the lower ring of the steel wall pool. This can be done ideally with a hot wire or knife.

If there is a sliding enclosure, make sure that the door opens to allow direct access to the steps or, alternatively, to the bench.

Make sure that the Styrodur steps are securely fastened to prevent them from floating away! The fastenings must also be effective in the unlikely event that water gets behind the liner.

Ideally, use concrete formwork blocks that are 20 cm wide, 25 cm high and 50 cm long to build the steps.

Choose the location of the steps in your pool so that they are aligned in such a way that the water flow is directed towards the steps. Also consider the path of the sun so that pool users can enjoy the seating area as much as possible. If there is a sliding enclosure, make sure that opening the door allows direct access to the steps or, alternatively, to the bench. For space reasons, it may be necessary to use a seat itself as a step.
 

Place the concrete formwork blocks on top of each other one after the other with alternating overlaps, drill holes in the base plate and fill them with reinforcing bars to secure the stairs against movement. Fill any gaps between the formwork blocks and the pool wall with construction foam or formwork boards. Also insert horizontal reinforcing bars into the formwork blocks. Then fill the formwork blocks and cavities layer by layer with lean concrete. Finally, smooth the surface and fill the cavities between the formwork blocks. With perfect preparation and the use of our 2 mm thick TOUCH or VOGUE foils, you can dispense with the use of foil sheets and attach the foil exclusively with Alkorglue.

Our tip: To minimise the amount of space lost to the stairs, you can set the height of the bottom step to up to 50 cm, thereby saving the space of an entire step. This initial height is actually only more difficult to negotiate when the pool is empty during cleaning.

You can download examples from our download area.

Option 1) Ideally, use a sheet of foil with a 1 cm long open fold at the top. When making this fold, insert a piece of foil as a placeholder during bending and remove it immediately. Remove the handrail piece by piece and attach this sheet of foil to the steel wall so that it is placed in the open fold. The foil sheet can be easily attached with a hammer. Then rivet the sheet to the steel wall from the front.

Option 2) As described above – however, the steel wall is not completely sunk into the floor, so the rivets of the fastening would be visible on the outside. In this case, use MS polymer instead of rivets to additionally secure the foil sheets. We recommend using screw clamps until the adhesive has completely hardened.

Option 3) Does your handrail not allow for both the foil thickness and the double foil sheet thickness to be accommodated? In this case, mark the lower end of the handrail on the pool wall and attach a 5 cm high sheet metal strip at least 5 mm below the mark. Inject MS polymer behind the sheet metal strips and attach them to the steel wall with rivets.

Now mask off the foil sheet and protect it from dirt. The area above the sheet is now coated with RENOLIT ALKORGLUE heat-activated adhesive. Then remove the adhesive tape and clean with MEK solvent.

For steel wall pools, we recommend using our 2 mm thick TOUCH and VOGUE pool films. These films achieve the best appearance – in addition, the thickness and surface of the film conceal many uneven areas in the substrate – and minimise the formation of waves and creases. If you decide to use our premium liners (TOUCH and VOGUE), you can dispense with the use of fleece on the walls and stick the liner directly onto the substrate like wallpaper. Use Alkorspray Glue or our Alkorglue contact adhesive for this.
We continue to use fleece on the floor to provide protection against bacteria and microorganisms.

If possible, start attaching the wall foil in the area where the steel wall is separated from the aluminium profile. This means that the overlap of the vertical weld seam is located in the area of the existing elevation. Due to the duplication in the upper area, it may be necessary to partially open the foil or even the handrail at a later stage. The film is then stapled and welded to the film sheets as usual. The film may protrude above the upper edge of the pool during installation and is cut off at the upper edge once the welding work is complete.

In the case of variant 3 of the membrane sheet installation, the membrane is first welded to the sheets and then fixed to the RENOLIT ALKORGLUE heat-activated adhesive with hot air. 

In the lower area, the liner is laid so that only slight creases are visible on the floor. These creases are removed with segment cuts before laying the floor liner and, if necessary, welded together. The pool liner is attached to the pool floor with rivets or heat-activated adhesive. The rest of the floor and steps are lined as usual. If the liner is laid with joints, choose the layout of the floor liners so that as little waste as possible is produced. In our example of the oval pool, we therefore started at the front edge of the built-in steps and continued working at the same angle.

Tastes vary, which is why RENOLIT offers a huge selection of different coloured pool liners. There are also various options for the colour design of the steps themselves.

All from a single mould, or contrasting colours for the steps? Here are some examples. Covering the steps with foil creates an effect in the water as if a stone slab had been placed on the step.

In our opinion, it is difficult to attach the foil to this exposed area using adhesive alone. We recommend using foil sheets. Use foil sheets with a fold-over edge. Similar to the pool head, but as a 90° angle sheet with a closed fold-over edge on one side. This fold is placed towards the underside of the platform (to minimise the risk of rust) and placed around the platform by cutting segments in the sheet. Rivet or screw the sheet onto the plastic and cover it like a stair step. Alternatively, this can also be made and covered from a whole sheet of foil, as in our example. This means it can be replaced again and again.

It is important that you check in advance whether the existing handrail can accommodate the new film, including the mounting rail. Ideally, you should test this beforehand or replace the handrail with a suitable one. You can see various examples in our pictures:

Left:

This aluminium handrail has only a very small mounting area and also has barbs that make it almost impossible to attach the new film thickness.

Middle:

This plastic handrail has a very flexible opening width and can also be used without any problems with 2 mm film and film sheet with a fold-over edge.

Right:

Depending on the film thickness, a narrow holder is still suitable for fabric-reinforced film, but not for the additional holder for film sheets. These must then be attached under the handrail as described above, and only the film should be fed further into the handrail itself.

During installation, it may be necessary to slightly warm plastic handrails in particular before installation or to use lubricants for better application.

In addition, it is always possible that the handrails may no longer fit as precisely as they did in their original condition. In this case, it is also conceivable to divide the handrail into smaller segments on site in order to accommodate changes in circumference.

Install skimmers, jets and other built-in components, ensuring that they are carefully sealed and that the seals are positioned correctly.

Please note that the built-in components of steel wall pools usually cannot be installed from the inside, but must be made accessible from the outside. It may be advisable to replace these with standard built-in components that will be accessible from the inside in the future.

You've done it! Now fill the pool with fresh water and enjoy your newly renovated swimming paradise.

To care for your RENOLIT ALKORPLAN pool liner, simply use a soft sponge to wipe the waterline regularly and test your water values manually on a regular basis. You can find our care instructions here.

RENOLIT ALKORPLAN wishes you lots of fun with your beautiful steel wall pool!

Our tip: Butt welding with an automatic machine – save time!

The Leister Unidrive 505 can be purchased at a special price through RENOLIT ALKORPLAN. Please contact us for more information:  schwimmbad@renolit.com (for pool companies only).