Pool Liner Shrink Factor

Do you automatically adjust the “shrink factor” on your pool liners during the colder months so that I get a full cut liner with less stretch? If not, can I request a “winter cut”?

When we make a pool liner, we create a drawing that shows the dimensions of your swimming pool.  In the design process, we reduce certain dimensions to provide for just enough stretch so that the liner will fit without wrinkles, but also without stretching the vinyl too much.

Those of us who make the best liners and who are most confident in our ability to make great fitting liners use minimal shrink factors.  This is why good measurements are so critical and why you should always pay a pool professional to measure your swimming pool.  We do not adjust the length and width so that your liner will have the same perimeter as your pool.  Most of the time we only adjust the depth dimensions by a few inches to provide the proper amount of stretch.  We will also occasionally adjust the slope dimensions as needed.

This is how we make “full cut” liners that fit so well.  We do this year round.  In the old days, some manufacturers would make a “full cut” pool liner only in the cooler months.  In the summertime, they would shrink the dimensions more than normal, maybe even shrinking the length and width.  They knew that the hot summer sun would loosen up the vinyl, kind of like warm butter, and help it stretch into place.

Today, we make a “full cut” liner year-round, even on the hottest summer days.  No adjustments are necessary based on the season.

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