Easy Set pool
Also called: inflatable-ring pool, ring pool, soft-side pool.
An Easy Set pool is an above-ground pool whose wall is a soft liner lifted by an inflatable ring as the pool fills. Intex says one is ready for water in about ten minutes on level ground, and its manual sets the recommended fill line at the bottom of the inflated ring.
Why it matters
It is the fastest of the four above-ground types and the right answer for a first pool, a rental, or a yard you may want back. It is seasonal: Intex's Easy Set manual says you must drain, disassemble and properly store the pool when the temperature drops below 41°F (5°C), because ice can cause sudden liner failure or pool collapse. The failure mode is unlevel ground. Intex is blunt that setting up on unleveled ground makes the sidewall bulge and can collapse the pool, and the fix is to drain it and start over. Never dive, jump or slide into one.
In numbers
Intex's free level test: fill the pool with no more than one inch of water and look at whether it runs to one side. If it does, drain, re-level and start again.