Leaving a 15 foot intex up during winter in NY

[richierich]

Hi - I have a 15' intex metal frame pool. It was so hard to put up and take down last year. It took me 3 days to fully drain the water. You know, that flaw design that has the drain about 2 inches from the bottom. This year I decided to drain the pool below the hoses (leaving about 1/2 the pool full) and just chance it. I've known a few others that have had success. Any tips on how to make sure the water doesn't freeze and expand and burst the liner? I'm just going to put a couple of floats in the pool and cover it so the rain doesn't pool on top of the cover

Also - When I started the pool up I added 100 lbs of salt. Since I am draining half the pool, when I reopen it do I add 50 lbs of salt? Thanks

 

[JohnT]

The water won't burst the liner because it's open on top, but it will freeze. You will struggle to find a way to cover the pool that will hold up to snow and rain, especially with the water low in the pool. If you don't have a lot of trees nearby, I'd leave it uncovered. If leaves are a problem, I'd cover it until the leaves are down and then uncover.

 

[Charlie_R]

You will need to test your salt level before adding any in the spring, so you don't add too much or too little.

 

[richierich]

The water won't burst the liner because it's open on top, but it will freeze. You will struggle to find a way to cover the pool that will hold up to snow and rain, especially with the water low in the pool. If you don't have a lot of trees nearby, I'd leave it uncovered. If leaves are a problem, I'd cover it until the leaves are down and then uncover.

I don't have lots of trees nearby. But won't a lot of dirt and debris get in the pool if its left uncovered? Also, is it true or not that algae CANT grow in a saltwater pool?

 

[woodyp]

NOT TRUE!~~~~~~~~~

 

[richierich]

NOT TRUE!~~~~~~~~~

Thanks..... So what can go wrong if I leave the pool up and we have a few snow storms and freezing weather? I can't spend another 3 days taking it down. I guess I'm hoping for the best. I think I once read in this forum somewhere that someone covered their pool in the winter and opened it in spring and it was still clear. I may just leave the cover on and put floats in so the cover isn't flat.

 

[JohnT]

NOT TRUE!~~~~~~~~~

Thanks..... So what can go wrong if I leave the pool up and we have a few snow storms and freezing weather? I can't spend another 3 days taking it down. I guess I'm hoping for the best. I think I once read in this forum somewhere that someone covered their pool in the winter and opened it in spring and it was still clear. I may just leave the cover on and put floats in so the cover isn't flat.

The problem you'll have is that to keep the cover on in the wind requires it to be securely anchored around the edges, which makes the cover tight. Unless the cover drains 100% when it rains or snows, the weight of the water or snow puts a big load on the cover anchors and the top of the pool wall.

 

[DigbyAllen]

I took my 15' Intex down last September and I plan to do so again this year. My yard slopes down to some woods so water runoff is not a problem. I opened all drains and threw in three garden hoses to suction out the water. It took about 3-4 hours, and then for the last inch or two I used my Shopvac, and eventually towels to completely dry the liner. I sprinkled baby powder liberally as I (carefully) folded the liner, which I stored in my basement. This year I have an Intex sand filter, so I'll have to drain that as well, and store it in my basement where I don't have to worry about freezing. The poles and everything else go in the shed in the backyard.

I didn't think setup was such a pain. It took me about half a day, mostly by myself, and allows me to correct any problems with the previous year setup. Next year I will put foam boards under the pool and pavers or other stones under the legs. Also I put too much baking soda in the water at the beginning of the season so my TA was always higher than I'd like, but I eventually realized this isn't really something I need to worry about for my pool. I just add bleach daily and make sure my FC level is in the correct range. But next year with fresh water I won't be so quick to immediately try to get my TA into range.

I'm hoping to get another 3-4 weeks out of the pool. Water temp was 82 today. Problem with the small pool is the temp can easily change 5 deg. per day once it gets cool at night. I'm not quite ready to give up on summer and I'll wear a shorty wetsuit when it gets cooler. However, the flip side with the small pool is if the air warms up, the water temp can rise just as quickly. Hoping for a nice warm Indian summer.

 

[richierich]

This past winter in Long Island, NY I left my 14' intex metal frame up. Drained below the return lines and no problems. Even with the terrible terrible winter this year it was fine.

 

[Charlie_R]

I left mine up this past winter, as well. No problems. I measured 8" of ice in it during the coldest week we had. Maybe not so odd, it was thinner at the edges.

I tied some small rope across the pool in a skip post pattern to support the mesh cover of the water. No pillows.

Pool came through it just fine. Now if I can just get it to warm to swimming temp........