Unique spring opening plan

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Johnny B

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Mar 19, 2009
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Charlotte, NC
I have some issues this spring that are going to keep me from opening my pool in a normal fashion because it will be impossible for me to attend to it like I normally do. I am hoping some of you guys can comment on if you think my plan is okay, if you don't think so then I will just have to come up with another plan.

In my situation, I usually open the pool in March, going by the water temperature getting close to just under 60°F. I have found that if I wait until April it is just too late it is probably little easier to just do it in March than April or later.
The water is not warm enough to swim in until mid-or late May actually more like early June. All this is based on several years of experience with my mesh winter cover.

What I want to do this year, is not open the pool until mid-or late May. I think it will be okay for the following reasons:
- I have a solid cover that I am going to drape over the mesh cover to keep all the sunlight out.
- I test & treat the pool during the winter with the mesh cover on by lifting the cover & just brushing very well. I will have no problem doing the same thing in March, April, May. Although I do realize with a rising water temperature I will have to be testing and treating more frequently. But I do believe it will work.

So the pump will not be running, and there will be a solid cover keeping out both debris and sunlight, and I will be testing & dosing weekly or even more often if necessary.

Do you think it will work or have you guys found this not to be the case once the water temperature gets 60° for more?
Thank you
 
I think it will be 50/50.

The motto often told here is, close late, open early. Which most of the time results in clear
water the day of opening. If the water temp gets over 55 without adequate chlorine & circulation, you
know what will happen.
 
Johnny B said:
I have some issues this spring that are going to keep me from opening my pool in a normal fashion because it will be impossible for me to attend to it like I normally do. I am hoping some of you guys can comment on if you think my plan is okay, if you don't think so then I will just have to come up with another plan.

In my situation, I usually open the pool in March, going by the water temperature getting close to just under 60°F. I have found that if I wait until April it is just too late it is probably little easier to just do it in March than April or later.
The water is not warm enough to swim in until mid-or late May actually more like early June. All this is based on several years of experience with my mesh winter cover.

What I want to do this year, is not open the pool until mid-or late May. I think it will be okay for the following reasons:
- I have a solid cover that I am going to drape over the mesh cover to keep all the sunlight out.
- I test & treat the pool during the winter with the mesh cover on by lifting the cover & just brushing very well. I will have no problem doing the same thing in March, April, May. Although I do realize with a rising water temperature I will have to be testing and treating more frequently. But I do believe it will work.

So the pump will not be running, and there will be a solid cover keeping out both debris and sunlight, and I will be testing & dosing weekly or even more often if necessary.

Do you think it will work or have you guys found this not to be the case once the water temperature gets 60° for more?
Thank you
Click to expand...
As you already acknowledged, once the water temp is in the 60's the pool will need a lot of your physical attention (brushing/mixing, testing etc.). A solid cover will help to block out sunlight (most algae need sunlight for photosynthesis reproduction) so that's a plus, but proper water circulation will be important.

If you can't have the pump and filter hooked up until June, I would consider getting a sump-pump, dropping it in the deep end and running a hose to the shallow end. Use that to help with your brushing to circulate the water. Throw the sump-pump on a timer and have it run during off-peak hours if available.

I think it is also critical to keep vigil on testing. Your FC demand should stay on the low side, so watch for any sudden spikes in demand.

Good luck, please follow up and let us know how this worked for you, to help others who may read this thread.
 
I’ve been covering my mesh cover with a solid tarp for many years with great results. I close in early Oct and open in early May, and the water is always clear at opening (I don’t test or add anything to the water while closed). Water temp at closing and opening is usually in the high 60s.

One spring we discovered a liner issue that prevented us from opening in early May as usual. I just covered it back up and waited until it could be fixed. The pool contractor couldn’t fix it until early June. When we removed the cover again so it could be fixed, the water was still clear (at this point water temp was 80!).

Before when we only had the mesh cover, I had to wait until late Nov/early Dec to close and open by the first of March. Even then the water was green at opening a few times. Since adding the solid tarp over the mesh cover, it’s NEVER been green at opening.
 
Thanks guys. I'm going to give it a try and use the sump pump as suggested. It would indeed have been better if I kept the solid cover on all winter long but I am just now placing it. Although our air temperature is unusually warm I suspect the water temperature is not too far away from 38°F as it was on February 5. What is likely to make this NOT work out is indeed there is a little bit of debris in the pool already; but we shall see.
Next winter I am going to put the solid cover on top of the mesh cover right off the bat or maybe wait for the water to get good and cold before doing so ( but delaying placing the solid cover probably would allow a little bit more debris to get in there which will influence things the following spring.
.
Look forward to any further comments. Thank you.
 
Thanks for posting.
I have a couple other projects going on for one but now that I think about it, as the guy in Virginia mentioned, it may allow me to close earlier and open later. This year will not be the best test because I'm getting on this in February instead of October but I am going to wing it, you guys taught me how to shock.
Today's water temperature is much warmer than I hoped for, 50°F. If we get a cold snap I will open up two of the edges to hopefully get the water colder by allowing cold air to enter the pool a little easier.
Look forward to any further comments. Thank you.
 
Update: my plan was very successful. I was careful to test at least weekly and treat with chemicals accordingly once the water temperature got above 60°F. What I learned is, by using both solid and mesh covers:
1- in the future I will be closing the pool when swimming is done rather than "when the water temperature is below 60°F", this will be about 1-1.5 months earlier
2- in the future I will be opening in May rather than in March, saving me about 2 months of an open pool; furthermore April and May are absolutely horrible months of an open pool in my climate (pollen, wind etc ) and the water is too cold to swim.
 
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