When do those who live in the northeast open their pools?

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M

mastiffs08

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May 31, 2008
56
Southern Connecticut
I was just wondering when people in the northeast normally open their pools. This will be the first year that the pool will have to be opened. Last year it was installed the day after memorial day during the heat wave so that was nice. I want to open the pool but just don't know when. The water is still crystal clear (I peek under the cover every wk) and was closed using the Namco recommendations. I got the test kit (TF100) a couple of weeks ago and also the intex saltwater generator and I can't wait to use this stuff. Thanks
 
My open day will depend on the weather. I am in Northern NJ so my climate is pretty similar to yours but my pool is different. With a 28,000 I/G and no heater, I know I need roughly two weeks to warm up the water to as warm as it will get given the weather. We have had a pool since 1946 at the same location. I'm at about 50 right now. I just finished installing and test running pump, etc.this weekend--basically everything is ready to pull cover, flip switch and add chems. The latest I will pull is May 15 so the pool is ready for Memorial Day--water will still be 55 or below when I open May 15. If the weather warms up and the forecast is good(not the case this year so far) I will start-up as early as April 15. I just won't spend money on kWh and chems unless I can get appreciable warming of the water. 45 degree nights means the cover stays on. Hope this helps.
 
I'm in Morris County NJ and just opened mine last week - 20 x 40 IG. The water was 44 degrees when I took the cover off. I always open it the first or second week in April as my son's birthday is May 4th and when he was younger he always wanted a pool party. I probably won't be swimming for a while, as it makes little sense to run the heatpump for another couple of weeks. I do have a pair of 2' by 20' solar mats (80 sqft) that I have been running during the day and the water temp is up to 56 degrees right now.
 
Oh, I wanted to add something that I did last year that worked great. I actually did a pre-opening because it was consistently above 60 while the trees were still pooping :hammer:

I reached under the cover to unplug the returns, unplugged the skimmers, and got everything up and running with the cover still on. I added my startup dose of bleach and a week later opened up to a fairly clean pool. I ran only the 2 skimmers and not the main drain. But that was because it wasn't working at the time. I may just go with the skimmers again this year before I take the cover off because I'd rather vaccuum anything that may be on the bottom.
 
This is my first year to open our new pool and I pulled the safety cover of last weekend and fired up the pump the creepy crawly has run about 12 hours and the pool is looking good! I just could not help myself, the water is much nicer to look at than the cover but water is only 51 degrees so it might be a few days before I jump in!!!! :shock:
 

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I'm in Ohio and I went ahead and opened about two weeks ago. The water was 51 when opened and then spent the next week and half cleaning up the mess I made taking off the cover (note to self: get help next time to remove gigantic winter cover) :roll:

I started up our heat pump about 3 days ago and I just checked the current temp and its at 76!!!! :lol:
its suppose to be cool w/ rain the next couple days but, by the end of this week and next the forecast looks great....we will be swimming (kids are excited...okay, I'm excited)


chris
 
I know I'm not technically northeast, but I opened this weekend, and so did user CubbyBeave in NW Indiana.

We're planning on simultaneous polar bear dips..... :mrgreen:

I liked opening early this year, the winter cover wasn't especially disgustingly gross like prior years when I wait till mid-May to open. I was actually able to clean it and store it away for next year, usually I just toss them in the trash.
 
WOW Chrisa, that must be a great heat pump, I have been disappointed with ours, it returns the water to the pool about 3 or 4 degrees warmer, is yours better than this or is this normal?? it takes a very long time to get a noticeable change in temp. I am thinking about adding solar in hopes of quicker ( and cheaper ) heating times.
 
silcozot said:
WOW Chrisa, that must be a great heat pump, I have been disappointed with ours, it returns the water to the pool about 3 or 4 degrees warmer, is yours better than this or is this normal?? it takes a very long time to get a noticeable change in temp. I am thinking about adding solar in hopes of quicker ( and cheaper ) heating times.
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Silcozot, if the returning water is 3 or 4 degrees warmer, then it is running normal. I sometimes think mine's not running efficiently either when it really is. I always check to make sure water is running out the bottom and I put my hand over the top. The air blowing should be cool.

Also, if the air temperature is below 45 F, heat pumps don't heat at all.
 
We are planning to open our pool this weekend. :-D We probably wont turn on the heat pump just yet, but at least we can get the water balanced and deal with any issues that may come up. Silcozot is right, it sure is better to look out the window at a sparkling pool than a big ol' pool cover! :lol:
 
Here in Southeastern MA I have generally opened on Memorial Day. This year I am already working "under the cover" getting the water balanced. We renovated our pool in the fall, so I have more work to do this year. I will have the cover off and ready to start heating it up by the first of May this year. The problem with early openings around here is the Pine pollen and tree debris when the leaves are budding. Usually that is gone by the end of May. A solar cover helps keep some of the stuff out of the pool.
 
silcozot said:
WOW Chrisa, that must be a great heat pump, I have been disappointed with ours, it returns the water to the pool about 3 or 4 degrees warmer, is yours better than this or is this normal?? it takes a very long time to get a noticeable change in temp. I am thinking about adding solar in hopes of quicker ( and cheaper ) heating times.
Click to expand...

well I lost some warmth...the last two nights have been pretty cold low 40's and only 37 tonight (so no heat pump). So right now I'm at 72, its suppose to be warmer tomorrow and in the 80's starting Friday (so I should be able to make up the lost temp)...after that, hopefully no more super chilly nights (pool is covered w/ solar cover)
it gains much more quicker when its warmer out.

Chris
 
I'm in the Waterbury area and ~ 10 folks have had us open their pools so far (excluding those who have reason to open it in March/ early April - like folks who need the pool open to have their decks installed or some ~ major replumbing/ new equipment installed). Given that you are closer to the coast than we are, I'd say plan on opening the pool the first weekend in May - it's the second and third weeks that are 'optimal' here.

Good luck with the opening, if you need any help from us, we'll be here for you :-D
 

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