We are going to have to be gone for all of September. I expect day time temps to be in the 80s and nights around mid to low 60s. There will be nobody available to check on the pool.
My plan was to sort of winterize the pool and put the solar cover on, but leave the water level up and run the pump on its timer for 6 hours. There's a trichlor chlorinator which would sanitize the water.
Then we had the posts fro NWMNMOM about mechanical malfunctions and I've been having nightmares about the pump failing, which will mean my entire scheme will fail. So tonight my husband asks, "If we don't run the pump, the pool will turn green, right? How long will it take you to fix that?" I estimated 4 - 7 days, max. And he suggested we just shut it down and leave.
THE HORROR!
But now that I've had a nice glass of Alsatian or two I'm beginning to wonder if that might be a reasonable approach. It would avoid all the pump issues and I can't even begin to tell you the what-if's that have been running through my mind. What if the timer tabs get loose? The pump either will run for 30 days straight and we'll have an enormous bill, or the pump won't come on at all. What if something plugs up the skimmer and the pump loses prime? What if some pipe connection comes lose and drains the pool below the skimmer? The pump will keep running and burn out. ARGH!
I really work on keeping the water clean and clear and I love doing this, I truly do, and it makes me sick to think of purposely letting it go green. But, on the other hand, I know how to fix green water. I do not know how to fix a burnt out pump.
Which way would you go?
My plan was to sort of winterize the pool and put the solar cover on, but leave the water level up and run the pump on its timer for 6 hours. There's a trichlor chlorinator which would sanitize the water.
Then we had the posts fro NWMNMOM about mechanical malfunctions and I've been having nightmares about the pump failing, which will mean my entire scheme will fail. So tonight my husband asks, "If we don't run the pump, the pool will turn green, right? How long will it take you to fix that?" I estimated 4 - 7 days, max. And he suggested we just shut it down and leave.
THE HORROR!
But now that I've had a nice glass of Alsatian or two I'm beginning to wonder if that might be a reasonable approach. It would avoid all the pump issues and I can't even begin to tell you the what-if's that have been running through my mind. What if the timer tabs get loose? The pump either will run for 30 days straight and we'll have an enormous bill, or the pump won't come on at all. What if something plugs up the skimmer and the pump loses prime? What if some pipe connection comes lose and drains the pool below the skimmer? The pump will keep running and burn out. ARGH!
I really work on keeping the water clean and clear and I love doing this, I truly do, and it makes me sick to think of purposely letting it go green. But, on the other hand, I know how to fix green water. I do not know how to fix a burnt out pump.
Which way would you go?