Closing Raypak Heater.

[evanwellens]

According to the manual and the Rayak official videos all I need to do is shut off the gas , remove and allow to drain the plugs on both sides of my heater. Online though people say you should remove the pressure water valve ?

Also is it best to leave the drain plugs in or out ? The heater is left outside and I could imagine possible snow drifts ( I'm in the North east USA ) getting some snow inside the unit possibly. At the same time Would the cold cause something to crack if left sealed up... Seeking words of wisdom.. I believe my last heater died an early death due to not being properly winterized, so I am doing it myself with this new unit.

Thanks in advance for any advice !!!

ps. If anyone knows where to get the tech manual I'd appreciate it. Google'd it and found broken links.

 

[Catanzaro]

I would definitely shut off the gas. I do not have any drain plugs on my heater (heat pump), but I have seen pool closing where the drain plugs on gas heaters were not removed, especially after the lines have been cleared. Ever since this topic came about, I actually have sent many messages to people with pools and none of them, at least in NJ have this done during pool closings. Most, if not all of them pay for the closing. If very cold regions, I would take out.

It is probably best to follow the manufacturer recommendations regarding the drain plugs and leave them out. I do not believe snow drifts will cause any problems.

Most heaters die of early death due to poor chemistry, especially PH. The TRP valve on a pool heater, again is your call if you want to remove it. I can not imagine the valve causing any issues, especially if the drain plugs are out. Assuming the online people you are referring to are members of the forum. Thanks!

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Evanwellens:

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[borjis]

I have a new RayPak because of foolishly not draining my very old (but working) Laars Lite2 last season.

We don't get sustained freezing weather every winter, but last one did (this one forecast to as well)
so my new routine starting this year will be to remove both drain plugs and put them aside, as
well as draining the filter and pump all on thanksgiving weekend. Oh and a milk jug in the skimmer.
I did do that and likely avoided cracking it.

I'll put everything back in together in late Feb. We never get freezing after that time.

With no water in the heat exchanger there is zero chance of freeze expansion damage.

The heater installer did say to just remove both and put them in the pump basket which
seems kinda weird but not unheard of.

I did pickup a 3/4 hp sump pump to drain down the pool for draining excess rain
so the equipment being offline won't be an issue.

All my equipment is in a shed attached to the house but if it was all exposed in the yard
I would probably cover everything with tarps and bungie cords to keep them on all winter.

 

[Catanzaro]

Borjis:

Thanks for your input and helping out.

The heater installer did say to just remove both and put them in the pump basket which seems kinda weird but not unheard of.

From what I can gather, the underlying reason behind this is two fold. One is for the PB to have everything ready to open the pool if the homeowner is not home. They would rather prefer the homeowner is not home. In addition, a lot of people just forget where they keep pool items or loose everything.

Personally, I store all my stuff inside black 26 gallon bins with yellow lids (Costco). The bins are marked for opening and closing the pool. I have another bin for the Cyclone and all attachments. Then there is another bin that stores miscellaneous pool items, like extra brushes, vacuum heads, fountains, skimmer socks, etc. Even in the basement, I have a shelf (3 tier) that keeps extra liquid chlorine, borax, baking soda, acid, etc. (All pool chemicals). Everything is organized as the winter rolls by and I could forget where everything is.

 

[Pauls234]

I have a Raypak that has now gone through 2 Chicago winters left outside.

After disconnecting the plumbing and turning off the gas, I remove the two plugs on the heater - one on the inflow/outflow side and then the other just opposite behind a round plastic piece which you pop out with a flat head - and that is it.

It really seems like there should be more to it, but that is all there is. This year I plan to put a piece of plywood over the top just to keep out some of the snow drifts, but have not done so in the past.

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Here is the manual for mine, winterizing instruction is on page 2:

https://www.poolsupplyunlimited.com/Products/Manuals/86509_20157169537.pdf