If your pool keeps dropping, the first question is whether it's leaking at all. UAE heat, low humidity and wind drive high evaporation, especially in summer — so a falling water level isn't proof of a leak. The 24-hour bucket test tells you in a day, for free.
The bucket test
- Fill a bucket with pool water to about 10 cm from the top and set it on the first or second pool step, so it sits at the same temperature as the pool.
- Mark the water level inside the bucket, and the pool level on the outside of the bucket.
- Turn off auto-fill, and run the pump as normal.
- After 24 hours, compare both drops.
If the pool dropped noticeably more than the bucket, it's leaking. Repeat it with the pump off: if the pool loses more with the pump running, the leak is likely in the pressure-side pipework; if it's the same either way, look at the shell and fittings.
Where villa pools usually leak
- Skimmers. The joint between the skimmer body and the concrete is the classic leak point.
- Light niches and conduits. Water can follow the light cable conduit out of the pool.
- Inlets and main drains. Fittings set into the shell, sealed at installation, crack and shrink over time.
- Pipework. Return and suction lines under the deck or garden — often revealed by a wet patch nearby.
- Shell cracks and tile beds. Less common, but they show up as tiles popping off or cracked grout below the waterline.
- Balance tanks. On overflow and infinity pools, a leaking balance tank can drain the pool without any visible sign.
How the leak is found
Professional pool leak detection combines dye testing at every fitting and crack, pressure testing of each pipe line, and sometimes electronic or acoustic listening. It pinpoints the leak so the repair targets one place — see our swimming pool waterproofing service.
How it's repaired
- Fittings: resealed or replaced, often underwater.
- Pipes: exposed at the confirmed point and repaired.
- Cracks: routed and filled or injected.
- Failed shell: drained, tiles removed, a pool membrane applied and fill-tested, then retiled.
If you're retiling the pool anyway, that is the cheapest time to waterproof the shell properly.
Don't ignore it
A leaking pool wastes water and money, but the bigger risk is what the water does on its way out — washing out soil under the deck, wetting a basement or plant room, and corroding steel in the shell. Find it early, fix it once.