To open or not to open ourselves

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Kelleyaynn

LifeTime Supporter
Mar 23, 2012
98
Wilmington, DE
Hi All,

We just bought a house with a pool, and we'll be moving in Memorial Day weekend :party: . We will not be able to open the pool before then. I've just started reading up on everything I need to know to care for our pool, and it seems like it shouldn't be too hard to open the pool ourselves. However, I'm concerned that by opening the pool rather late (we live in Wilmington, DE), we will find a mess that will be difficult to deal with. Would it be better for us to have a professional open the pool this time, especially since we are new pool owners, or is my concern unfounded? Any advice would be appreciated.
 
We were in the same boat....moved in early May, but didn't open until middle of June. We paid a pool guy 200-some odd dollars to open it, much to the condition that you are expecting.

In hindsight, sure, it's something that you can do, and it's something that I could have done, but I didn't find this website until I was in my second year of pool ownership.

Read up on Pool School, and you'll have the pool up and running in no time! It's easier to learn by doing, rather than trying to watch a fast-moving pool guy who is trying to teach you at the same time.

Have fun!
 
Welcome to tfp, Kelleyaynn :wave:

As gkruske said, we are here to help, and when I say we, there is so much combined expertise (not me) on this board that I would doubt anything you may encounter hasn't been seen before. Posting pics and back and forth on the forum is all it takes...plus all of the great stuff in poolschool.

You have an advantage in that you are not confused yet by the misinformation that some pool stores and some pool pros give to customers. Here we just want to help you learn basic pool chemistry and maintenance so that you have the tools/knowledge to diy. I love diy :!:
 
Hi Kelleyaynn.

I am very new to these forums, but have been an in ground pool owner in the midwest for about 15 years or so.

The biggest thing I can tell you is be patient. You want get the water crystal clear in a day. I used to panic and run back and forth to the pool store and buy fixer and clear-up stuff, and whatever, but the easiest thing to do is open the pool, vacuum out the bottom (probably several times), get some chemicals in the water, and then go have a glass of wine and give it a few days. Your sand filter is there to filter the water--it will clear it up in time. After a few days of letting the filter run then I'd bust out the test kit and see where a) my chlorine level was and b) what my pH was.

You may have to vacuum several times, but one thing NOT to do is be tempted to backwash your filter a lot (like every day). Gunk has to build up in the sand in order for it to be more effective in filtering out stuff.

Like I said, get it open, vacuum it a few times, and let the pump run for a few days and have a glass of wine or two. That's what I do anyway.

Good luck!

Mike
 
Nerdrium, you the man! Anyone who can tell me to open the pool, relax, and have a glass (or two) wine is my kind of advisor. That said, I appreciate everyone's advice, and plan to heed it. I feel much better about being able to handle this myself. My husband's more anxious (but then, he's never had a pool before, and is half listening to the people telling him what a nightmare/lots of work it is). I know better, having had one before.

Thanks all!

Kelley
 
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