Newbie, help! Cover blew off

[kickinthethroat]

Hello all!

So we just bought a house with a 30 ft above ground pool, and are having some issues as of today. About as month ago, we put the winter chemicals in, and cover on. We are in Illinois, and today the cover blew off in the 40mph wind we are currently having. I'm thinking of not putting it back on, since there aren't many trees around it, and we get very strong winds around here on a regular basis.

With that being said, when the cover blew off, all the water and the saturated leaves that were on top of it went into the pool, sitting on the bottom. Can I just leave these in for the winter? Will they stain anything?

I am also using an aquador, the good news is that it is holding all the water out of the skimmer just fine. However, with no air pillow and cover, will there be any issues when the water freezes?

I'd appreciate any help anyone can give! Thanks so much!

 

[jblizzle]

Welcome to TFP!!!

There is certainly the possibility that the leaves will stain. Just use a leaf rake and scoop them out. Then decide if you want to continue to scoop them out over the winter of put the cover back on and better secure it down. How did you have the cover secured?

 

[kickinthethroat]

Thanks for the reply!

We had the cord that came with the cover ratcheted tight. I also had a nylon robe zig-zagged over part of the cover that tended to billow up. The nylon rope didn't really stop the billowing (it stretched under the force), and yesterday during the very strong winds it popped off.

I talked to the local pool store about wind clips (or cover clips?) that snap on to the rail, and they said those don't really stop the wind. They were the ones that recommended I use the nylon rope.

Its going to take awhile to scoop out the leaves, but I guess I'll try to get some of them out before it freezes.

I think if I had no cover on, I would've gotten minimal leaves in the pool over a few months...but with all the leaves on top of the cover going into the pool at once... its going to take some work to get them all out.

 

[jblizzle]

There was recently a thread that dicussed using empty bleach bottles and then partly filling them with water and hanging them from the cover all the way around to help hold the cover down ... just another thought to consider {I am kind of clue-less as I have never had an above-ground pool ... so a different set of issues }

 

[SebringDon]

There was also a mention recently of getting that plastic wrap they use when moving furniture and taking a wrap or two around the edge of the pool to help hold the cover in place.

 

[kickinthethroat]

I've been trying no cover so far, its nice not having to worry about it blowing off, but I have other questions. There are a few leaves in the middle and they seem to be starting to stain the liner. I tried scoping them out, but the leaf net I got doesn't work well, I'm looking for a new one. Is the stain permanent? I read that they will go away with more free chlorine? Which beings me to my next point... I did a test today and my free chlorine level seems to be very low. I assume this is from the sun? Or the few leaves in it? How can I add more chlorine (shock?) with the filter unhooked? Thanks!

 

[jblizzle]

Do you just have a flat leaf net? If so, what you want is a leaf rake ... they have a bag that collects the leaves.

The stains may most fade, although I am not sure raising the FC a little bit of the winter will help. You could likely raise the Fc up toward the shock level for the amount of CYA in the pool. Just slowly pour the required bleach around the pool and then brush VERY well to mix it throughout the water.

 

[kickinthethroat]

Thanks! I haven't used the bleach method, just the store bought winterizing chemicals so far. Yes I do have a leaf take, but it doesn't get under the leaves on the bottom like it should. I may try to add some chlorine and scrub like you said, but if it won't help the stains not sure if it would be worth it? The water is still clear, it may be too cold for anything to grow so far? Do I need to increase fc?

 

[jblizzle]

Well I would not use any solid chlorine as that it's just going to add either CH or CYA. So use bleach if you decide to raise the FC. If the water is cold, then nothing is going to start growing.

But the higher FC might help with the stains, although you should keep the leaves out as best you can.

Posted from my Droid with Tapatalk ... sorry if my response is short

 

[Swampwoman]

In my experience, those leaf stains will fade with bleach at shock level, then a season of sun, but at the same time, I'd get em out now if you're having the warm working weather we're having here in Michigan. Otherwise your pool may turn into tannin tea if you want an alternative to the leaf net rake, there is a cheap contraption called the leaf gulper that uses a garden hose attached to stir up the leaves and force them upward into a net. It's pretty simple yet effective ime. Of course, today it's above freezing here, so I'm assuming you're likewise in a position to use the hose

My pool is an inground, so I have no tips on the cover. However, in your shoes I'd likely add a good few ppm of bleach and mix it up well rather than letting it fester with low chlorine and leaves You will want to read up on pool school anyway, and get comfortable with the pool Calc for next season, so time spent now will not e wasted. Have a read through pool school to be comfortable with the BBB method of testing, balancing and bleach.

Cheers!

 

[kickinthethroat]

Thanks for all the info! Now can someone help me convince my wife that the BBB method is the way to go? She is dead set against putting bleach in the pool

 

[jblizzle]

So go buy liquid chlorine from the pool store and show her the active ingredient is the same, but a high strength than bleach.

My wife thought I was crazy too.

Realize the 1 cup used in the laundry is a MUCH higher level of chlorine than you will get in the pool.

Posted from my Droid with Tapatalk ... sorry if my response is short

 

[Smykowski]

Realize the 1 cup used in the laundry is a MUCH higher level of chlorine than you will get in the pool

After telling her the above, drive the point home... fill a 5 gal bucket with water. Put a tablespoon of bleach in it. Tell her that concentration is higher than you'll have in your pool.

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