SwimlineHYDROTOOLS Protective Pool Ladder Mat for Above Ground Pools – Safety & Stability for Stairs, Steps & Ladders – Premium Durable Material, 9" x 36"

Works as expected - good weight, good quality, keeps the ladder in place, and protects the pool liner.

I am ordering my unit as a replacement. This will be my pools 3rd year of operation. I have the 18’x48” easyset. Plastic round pool, no metal frame. I have the cartridge B/saltwater pump. The skimmer is a bit worn but not unserviceable. Several of the tiny plastic nubs are gone from the shell. The nubs hold the inner blue cylinder in the skinner frame. This skimmer does an awesome job of clearing debris, blowing dust, and bugs from the surface of the water.I have several improvements for operation. I built a deck and ordered a set of drop in stairs to attach to the deck. I ordered a set of Hydro Tools Swimline 87952 Vinyl Protective Swimming Pool Ladder Mats to place under the ladder. (not through Amazon). Notice I discuss these mats in the next paragraph. Mine are 87952 but on Amazon you have to order 87953. The only difference in 52 and 53 is the length. The length can be fixed with a pair of scissors. You cannot get 87952 on Amazon.One of the problems the Skimmer unit has is the tendency to float crooked. It also tends to crush the air tube runner around the top of the sidewall, which causes the skimmer to come out of the water. The air tube running around the top of the pool is not made of stiff enough plastic when you are trying to use it as a support mechanism. Two steps I have taken to solve these problems. I took one of the vinyl ladder mats out from under the ladder and laid it over the side of the pool. Then, I placed the “hook”, which holds the skimmer in place, over the vinyl protector. The results were amazing. The hook no longer crushes the air tube. It stays where you place it even with a bunch of highly active kids sloshing water out of the pool. The vinyl mat forms itself perfectly over the air tube. You can order Hydro Tools Protective Pool Ladder Mat 87953; look for the 3 sizes listed midway down. Select the 9” x 36” to get the right material. It’s the smooth black vinyl on the back and ribbed blue on the top(looks like it comes in a roll not a flat mat). You can trim the mat with a pair of scissors. Trim it down to about 30” or less and it will fit beautifully. Do not order the smaller sizes; they are a different mat made of different material. You could also try other materials like a thin vinyl car mat cut to fit. Maybe something like a thick floor mat; any soft flexible vinyl type material, ¼” thick material cut to fit.The next thing I did was center the skimmer over the hose outlet. I attached the hose. Notice the hose makes a bad U shape and it forces the top of the skimmer to tilt toward the side of the pool. The plastic hose is too stiff to bend easily. I took some plastic bailing string, about 20” and tied it around the hose near the top of the outlet. Then go around the hose close to the skimmer and back to the outlet end of the hose. Get a string long enough to make a couple loops. Pull the string around the outlet hose and SQUEEZE the two ends of the hose together. Tie it off. You end up with a sharp U shaped hose. Like a P trap in a drain. You might try a very large rubber band. This causes the skimmer to level itself in the pool. This along with the vinyl mat will perfect your setup and give you a problem free summer, in regards to your skimmer.I did not figure these improvements out until the second year. I believe these improvements will extend the life of my skimmer by holding it in place and reducing the amount of repositioning I kept repeating the first year.By the way, on the ladder mat 87953, there are a lot of negative comments about these mats. I have not any problems with these mats. They work beautifully under my stairs. (Blue Wave Easy Pool Step for Above Ground Swimming Pools).I also have the solar cover (Crystal Clear Solar Cover 15 ft. Round 16 Mil from solarcovers.com). I love this cover. It raises the pool temp on average 10 degrees above the outside temperature. Practically feels like a hot tub in mid summer. I live in texas and can swim most years until late October.I also ordered Vio Products 11000 Wireless Indoor/Outdoor Floating Thermometer. Piece of junk, the floating part works well enough, but forget about the wireless read out. Won’t connect or stay connected beyond 5 feet away.

Exactly as represented. Delivered quickly. I just wish it could stay in placeWhy did you pick this product vs others?:size was perfect for under the pool ladder

Correct size. Looks very sturdy and I like the thickness of the material. Should do a great job with our pool ladder!

Worked well under the ladder, but not very large

I originally bought the 9” x 36” mat for under the pool ladder on my above ground pool. With the kids jumping in making waves and when they create a whirlpool, the mat easily slips out from under the ladder. If no one notices, then the ladder will start to create a divot in the sand under the liner and eventually will cut the liner.That’s exactly what happened. I ordered the 24” x 36” mat and a leak kit. Found the tear in the liner under the ladder, repaired it and then installed this mat.Yes it’s much bigger than the footprint of the ladder but if you have kids making big waves and up and down the ladder all day, then I highly recommend this 24” x 36” size mat. It’s very well made and is exactly what I should have bought in the first place.

I noticed my ladder was causing discoloration from rubbing on the pool liner. This mat works perfectly to protect the liner. I laid it out for a day to flatten it out before putting it in the pool under the ladder. I was worried it would move around but my kids put it to the test and it stayed in place below the ladder as advertised. Love this and believe it should add additional time to the pool liner!

Does not cling to pool bottom, moves a lot.