Pool closing in Atlanta, GA

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reg967

reg967

Member
Jul 20, 2022
15
Atlanta
Pool Size
36000
Surface
Vinyl
What are some tips and best practices for the winter in Atlanta? My main goals are to save energy, and not stress my motors/equipment unnecessarily.

I have 36000 gal vinyl, Pentair Superflo and FNS Plus 36 sq. ft. DE filter, Polaris booster for cleaner, and a Hayward in-line chlorinator.

The previous owner said they kept the pool open year-round and would just watch the chemicals and skim the leaves. I did this last winter without any major issues, but I guess I'm more naïve. The pump would run 8 hours and the booster for 6 hours. I can change the timers but never have. I kept normal maintenance and have never used winterizing chemicals.

I would love to hear suggestions from other southern pool owners - Thanks!
 
True winterizing (closing) entails quite a bit more as noted in the link below. In the southern areas like us, leaving the pool open saves us the tedious tasks you see in that link below. Colder water doesn't use nearly as much chlorine, and you can literally leave the pool pump off most of the day, running it maybe an hour or two just to mix chemicals. @YippeeSkippy is in your neck of the woods so I'll let her speak to this as well.

www.troublefreepool.com

Closing an In Ground Pool

Winterizing a pool is essential for keeping your in-ground pool protected during cold-weather months. This Pool Repair guide will show you how to do it.
www.troublefreepool.com www.troublefreepool.com
 
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Thank you for info and referral. If I can get away with using the pump less that would be great. Do you have any recommendation for coving in the winter? I don't have any covers. Should I consider solar, leaf, mesh, winter covers? Thanks again!
 
reg967 said:
Do you have any recommendation for coving in the winter?
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That is also a personal preference. I don't cover mine and on occasion scoop leaves out. Whatever product you use, if anything, needs to allow access for you to add chlorine once in a while.

The only other thing I should mention is the occasional deep freeze conditions we encounter. The TX Feb '21 deep freeze is just one example. That was very unusual to say the least, but we do have our odd frost mornings. But for those unusual periods we ensure the water is moving to avoid freeze damage. That is one time you do want the pump on.
 
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Hello :) Do you *want* to close the pool?
I never close my pool here near Augusta. I run the pump on for a couple of hours just to keep things mixed up and filtered. I use Liquid Chlorine instead of my SWG knowing that it doesn't work in cold water. I do have a cover but like to open it up often to see the pool and not just a cover. I only test the water maybe every 3 weeks or so and on the odd occasion it needs chlorine I add it. In almost 11 years I've never had algae.

In the winter Skippy puts a big tarp over the equipment pad with a hanging work light underneath. So on those rare super freezing days we get we run the pump at night non-stop to keep the water moving. Those days are so few here I've never had a problem.

Maddie :flower:
 
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Maddie covers the topic pretty well.

I am in Charlotte, and have only been through 1 winter, but it was easy to just leave it open.

I did use a solar blanket to reduce debris. I roll it off to let the dogs swim, and run the pump at a higher speed to skim off the debris from the blanket and the dog hair. otherwise, the pump runs for about an hour every 6 hours at a low speed. I don't remove my SWG, and when the water is over 53F I run it if needed. I checked pH and FC every few days to a week because things rarely change at the lower temps.

I do have freeze protection on my system, so it runs when the air temps get below 35. Water never dropped below 40F - but I did watch for it to get there - prepared to do what Maddie suggested with a small space heater under a tented folding table. (that is a questionable approach though)
 
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thank you @Texas Splash, @YippeeSkippy, and @Tcadwall0!

I don't care much about having to or not having to close the pool - My priority is to find a solution that is affordable, uses the least amount of energy, and the least strain on my equipment.

I have a mechanical timer, so I suppose I can adjust it to run only 1-2 hours per day in the off season. I wish I had a VS motor and timer and a freeze protection system!

Can you recommend a brand of solar blanket?
 
Hello again! I have another question regarding off-season maintenance.

I don't have a VS motor so I will try to run 2 hours per day for off-season. During that time, should I also run my pool cleaner? I don't want to damage it or waste energy is it's not going to do much anyway.

Thanks again!
 
reg967 said:
During that time, should I also run my pool cleaner?
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You certainly can. Even though the water will be chilly and the pool be somewhat dormant, running a cleaner once in a while will help to keep it clean and save on chlorine consumption.
 
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I'm in the north Atlanta suburbs. I've never closed. When the leaves fall, I scoop them out for about 3 weeks and empty the skimmer baskets daily. After that the only thing in there are wolf spiders so i tend to not check them more than once a week. I don't run my robot again until spring. As long as you don't let the leaves break up on the bottom, there's not much of anything in the spring. One cycle of the robot will take care of it. As mentioned, chlorine use is minimal once water is cold enough that the swg doesn't work.
 
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