Pool maintanence during 10 day vacation

[gundan]

Hello,

I am heading out on vacation for about 10 days in august. I have the pool chemistry thing accounted for during this time. My question is about water loss. This summer has been pretty dry with not much rain here in New Jersey.

I was wondering, can I just shut off both the skimmers, and just let the pool/spa drain on to circulate the water during the time I am away, in case there is no rain? I thought that was a bit logical in case the water level drops below the skimmer line when I am away.

Any thoughts appreciated.

Thanks,
G

 

[bmoreswim]

Theoretically that will be fine. No skimming will occur obviously so debris will land and sink to the bottom - but no real harm.

However, if you fill your pool up to the top of the skimmer opening before you leave, evaporation in our region will not account for the several inches of water loss required before you begin sucking air. If you are losing that much water, you may have a leak. Recently in MD, I lose less than 1/4", probably 1/8" per day. It is generally pretty humid here and not really windy except during storms or for a day after a cool front. However, if we have a gullywasher, and you get 3-5" of rain from a few thunderstorms, your pool could overflow which could be worse. Do you have an overflow on your pool?

 

[gundan]

Unfortunately, it looks like I have a leak in my pool. I have called the pool guys over, hopefully they will come some time in the next week or so. I don't have an overflow contraption in my pool.

I just purchased this hope about 3 years ago and one of the big negatives in this house was the pool(which I did not want). Now the stuff that I was scared off is happening. The only saving grace is the children really love the pool and have a blast. Seeing them enjoy it makes it worth the while I guess.