Hi from Savannah GA needing advice

[sandaparker1022]

Hello everyone!!
I am writing to introduce myself to the forum and look for some advice! I have an in ground concrete ~250000 gal pool which has been in place since we bought our house in March of this year. We have salt water system that was working fine when we bought the house and had the winter cover on it.. well go to open it in April/May yeah not so much.. well bought a new salt cell slammed it all good. Then our storms came through and I've been battling it ever since.. long story is I am wanting to just drain it and start again in the spring. We have tons of debris which I am unable to get out due to Matthew right now, we need to replace the drain covers (its an older pool) and now I am afraid that the algae bloom has just taken ahold of everything. Any advice please? I have never drained a pool. My water utility has already said its fine to drain it to the sewer/runoff we have here and its been so dry since Matthew I figured now would be a good time. Thanks everyone
Grateful
Army wife

 

[tucsontico]

Draining a pool is usually not a big deal. I am not an expert but I have drained and refilled my pool at least once! However, here are a few things to consider:

1) Is your pool deep enough to be below the natural water table depth? If so, it is possible that draining the pool could cause the force of the ground water pressure to move your pool! This is a rare thing but something to consider. The way to deal with this is to not completely drain your pool (only 75% of the water) before refilling.

2) What is the cost and source of your water? If you're in a drought area, draining and refilling 25000 gallons could cause a BIG problem with a private well. Additionally, the price of a refill could get real expensive if the cost of public water is high. (Most metro areas have a tiered pricing system. So the more you use the more you pay per gallon.)

3) Unless your pool water is extremely high in chlorine (above 15 ppm), draining it into the sewer/runoff should not be a problem.

Good Luck!