New liner extends life of base pool

  • Published
  • By Joe B. Wiles
  • 71st Flying Training Wing
VANCE AIR FORCE BASE, Okla. --  A new liner in the Plains Pool should add many years of use for Team Vance swimmers. Those swimmers used the pool more than 12,000 times last summer alone. 

The Natare Corporation from Indiana installed the liner over a four-and-a-half month period for just under $80,000 according to Chris Kohutek, Construction Manager for Computer Sciences Corporation at Vance. 

"The liner is actually a membrane system consisting of a polyester geotextile felt backing with a PVC (polyvinyl chloride) liner on top. Some portions of the liner, mainly the top portion around the perimeter of the pool, which is a darker blue, are slip resistant. 

"The liner is a flexible material so it will look good, feel good, and be user-friendly," said Mr. Kohutek. The old liner was installed in May of 1993 and had a life expectancy of about 15 to 20 years, so it was pretty close on schedule to be replaced, he said. 

The installers began work Jan. 3 by removing the old liner. There was a brief delay during the installation when deterioration of the old concrete lip around the pool was discovered during the removal. 

Several options were considered. The least expensive was to remove some of the concrete and wrap the liner up and over the pool edge. After adjustments to the contract, the three-man crew cleaned the concrete surface, added a primer and then a coat of adhesive. The adhesive holds the polyester geotextile felt, a fleece-like material, in place to cushion the PVC liner and protect it from damage by the concrete. 

The liner material comes in six-foot-wide rolls and the Plains Pool is 100 feet long and 50 feet wide. The overlapping seams were "welded" together with a hot-air gun that requires special training to operate, said Mr. Kohutek. 

The installation was completed May 14, just in time for the Memorial Day opening of the pool. The wading pool was also relined under the same project. 

Vance swimmers logged almost 1,400 visits to the pool during the last eight days of May. The pool will be open daily through the second weekend in August and will then switch to weekends only until the third weekend in September. 

For one-time-use or a season pass, visit the Fitness Center, Bldg. 316, or call 213-7670.