Reason for closing?

[m100psi]

When I was growing up, my dad's method for "closing" the pool was to cover it in the fall, ignore it for the winter and allow it to get completely green, then fix it in the spring. I guess it worked OK in that the pool survived and it was fine during the summer.

Our new pool was completed as summer ended and so far, I've been maintaining it like it was still summer. I just read the section of the TFP ebook about closing for the winter and wondered what the reasons are. If it's only to protect against freezing, is it not common to winterize a pool if the water temp doesn't get to freezing levels? If I understood the procedure correctly, it sounds like you only drain the pool to just below the skimmer level. What do you do about the water chemistry over the winter since the water is not circulating?

For those who keep their pools running all winter, do you cover them and maintain the chemicals, but not sweep during the winter?

Thanks,
Matt

 

[YippeeSkippy]

Much of this all depends on where you live and your goals. For me, my pool is pretty much covered but since I have an autocover I open it frequently even in the winter to allow the water to "breath". And to me an open pool is prettier to look at. Here at TFP we like to open up to pools as clean as possible and get 'em up and running fast.

Many moderate areas can either close or remain open. If they remain open the chlorine demands are usually quite minimal but should still be monitored and refreshed as needed. The lower sun won't burn off much, and cold water doesn't encourage algae growth. IF closed and drained down, with the pipes air blown out, they can either bring their FC up to SLAM level, cover and hope for the best come spring.....or occasionally pull open a corner and add using a sump pump to circulate since the equipment is all off line.

Some will add a bit of NON-copper containing algaecide to give them extra protection. Usually the ones way up north with long, long winters.

If the pool is open I would always try to keep leaves out as possible as they can really stain surfaces of the pool.

Maddie

 

[m100psi]

Hi Maddie,

Thanks for the info. It sounds like what makes sense for me in north CA is to throw a cover on it to avoid needing to sweep, and stay up with the chemicals on a less frequent basis. A friend with a pool around here says he also shifts his pump schedule to run during the coldest hours since we get a few days a year with lows around 32.

Matt

 

[wwerdna]

Here in Northern NJ we close and cover the pool for a couple of reasons. Firstly, our pool is surrounded by trees that start dropping their leaves in mid-September, right around the time that it gets cold enough that it's not worth trying to keep the pool at an enjoyable temperature. Covering the pool means that I don't have to scoop what seems like a couple of tons of leaves each fall. And since we get way below freezing (it's been in the 20s F every night for the past week or more) everything gets winterized, including blowing out the lines and dropping the level of the pool.