Intex Ultra Frame Owners

[raidencmc]

raidencmc - Where in SE PA are you? We are outside of Allentown and have the same wind problem. We're constantly chasing things around the yard that blew away and the solar cover has blown off a few times even though I try to make sure there are no air bubbles or areas that are lifted that the wind can get under. It's crazy! I take our Ultra Frame down for the winters as I haven't been brave enough to try to leave it up. We get a lot of snow drifts in our yard from all of the wind, so I get a bit worried about the weight of the snow blowing up against the liner. Of course last year we didn't get much snow, but who knows what this year has in store for us. This year I don't have a choice in taking it down since we are moving and it will go with us, but maybe it's something I will try next year after I get a feel for the drifting snow at the new place and if it will be an issue. Hopefully it won't be as bad since we will no longer be on top of a hill next to a field!

I live in Cochranville, which is south of Lancaster. Its always a fight with the wind. When we bought the house the door facing the field was spray foamed shut. I have since learned why. All my treas grow at an angle.

 

[wozzukes]

Ah, Cochranville. I've been through there many times! I had an old college boyfriend who lived outside of Oxford so I used to make that trip quite often back in the day. The back/side of our house also faces a field. That side of the house always gets plastered with corn husks after they take the corn down in the fall. I will miss our view at the new place, but certainly not the corn field!

 

[nate81]

I drained my pool and packed it away last year and I plan to do the same this year. My pool is relatively small so it's not a huge chore. It takes a half a day to put it away and about the same to set it back up. I don't trust leaving it out during storm season and winter. Last year Hurricane Sandy knocked some large branches down where the pool had been, so luckily it was away and avoided any damage. This year I'm not happy with the sand layer under my pool so I need an excuse to drain it anyway. I plan to put foam sheets under it next year, and pavers under the legs.

How did you pack it away? I've got a 16' ultra frame...i want to take it down and store it in my shed also. Do i need to worry about mice, lizards, bugs etc....dry rot? any tips?!

 

[wozzukes]

The way I pack mine up is to drain it and clean the liner and then let it sit in the sun for a day or two to dry out. I then sprinkle baby powder all over the inside of the liner to absorb any extra moisture that might be left and to keep the vinyl from sticking. Then I take down the frame and fold up the liner by folding the sides in to make a square and then folding it all up, sprinkling more baby powder as I go wherever vinyl will be touching vinyl. We keep ours on a shelf in our basement, but I know people store them in trash cans in sheds and whatnot to keep the rodents out. You could probably put some moth balls or something in with it to deter things from wanting to get too cozy with it. It's really not bad to take down. I think the hardest part is moving it to where you want to store it. That liner gets heavy!

 

[nate81]

They don't try rot? So I want to get all the moisture out totally?

 

[DigbyAllen]

I do what wozzukes does. Drain all the water. Use Shopvac when there's not enough for hoses but too much for towels. Then lots of towels to really dry it, with sun to help. Sprinkle baby powder liberally while folding carefully.

I also stored mine in the basement. I can't keep mice out of my shed and I don't want to take a chance of them damaging the pool. I leave the poles in the shed. This year I have a sand filter to store also. I'm not sure how I'll store that, but I assume I'll drain the water and leave the sand in, and store that in the basement too so I don't have to worry about freezing. It helps that I have a walk out basement so I don't have to carry heavy items down the stairs.

 

[SuzyAbbott]

Hey all. I'm I'm nj and left ours up last year and will do so again this year. I bought an oval cover bigger than the pool so it goes halfway down the outside. Drain below returns put in a closing kit and we filled the pool completely with pillows to ensure no issue with sides since they lean in after draining. Bungee gallon bottles all the way around toehold cover down and invest in an automatic cover pump to keep the weight off the sides. Was crystal clear when we covered it!!!

 

[gtnos]

Thought I would update this thread. I semi-closed our pool today, meaning its drained down below outlet and hayward skimmer, been vacuumed and covered. I will continue to run pump 3 hrs per day and add chlorine to pool daily until water is below 60, and then ill pull the pump, disconnect hoses, put everything in shed. I finished up the cover support, a total of 9 bows all the way across with a center support. I also scrapped using the bleach jugs to hold down cover. Instead, I found these really cool mini bungees in the camping section at Walmart:

[attachment=2:2q3r9iqw]image[9].jpeg[/attachment:2q3r9iqw]

[attachment=1:2q3r9iqw]image[10].jpeg[/attachment:2q3r9iqw]

you get 20 in a jar for 5 bucks so I bought 3 jars of them

I used them to bungee the cover to the white band that goes around the pool:

[attachment=0:2q3r9iqw]image[2].jpeg[/attachment:2q3r9iqw]

 

[gtnos]

anyway, here is finished cover support and winter cover installed:

[attachment=2:3rj6gmgo]image[1].jpeg[/attachment:3rj6gmgo]

[attachment=1:3rj6gmgo]image[5].jpeg[/attachment:3rj6gmgo]

the mini bungees worked great for getting it tight, even around the skimmer:

[attachment=0:3rj6gmgo]image[7].jpeg[/attachment:3rj6gmgo]

 

[wozzukes]

That's an interesting setup. I will be interested to see how those bungees hold up, or more specifically, the white band. We can get some really strong winds here in the fall and winter months (especially if we end up with hurricanes or blizzards), so I think I would worry about those bungee cords stretching or tearing right through the white band from the wind getting under the cover. I've been watching a lot of these closing threads because I'm contemplating leaving ours up next year. We're moving in January/February (building a house and the date keeps getting pushed back!) and before we set up again I want to make a really nice more permanent type site for ours and then try to leave it up, so you will have to post back in the spring of how everything held up!

 

[gtnos]

That's an interesting setup. I will be interested to see how those bungees hold up, or more specifically, the white band. We can get some really strong winds here in the fall and winter months (especially if we end up with hurricanes or blizzards), so I think I would worry about those bungee cords stretching or tearing right through the white band from the wind getting under the cover. I've been watching a lot of these closing threads because I'm contemplating leaving ours up next year. We're moving in January/February (building a house and the date keeps getting pushed back!) and before we set up again I want to make a really nice more permanent type site for ours and then try to leave it up, so you will have to post back in the spring of how everything held up!

i have already broken two of those bungee cords by bungeeing them too tight to the band, that band is pretty dang tough. the cords will break long before the band will as they are the weakest link, which is why i used 3 jars of them (about 60) to secure the cover. im thinking "strength in numbers". also, i have not yet tightened the cable that goes around the cover. when i do, it should tighten up the sides enough that wind should not get up under it. We are definately no stranger to winds here in Oklahoma, we are a "plains state" so wind is a factor nearly every day.

we dont often get much ice and snow here, but on occasion we do. if we do, i will be interested to see myself how the bows hold up. we get an ice storm like we did back in '07, and im sure the whole shu-bang will be in the pool....

if it does fail, my next one will be wooden. ill post my spring re-opening in '14....

 

[linen]

This year I have a sand filter to store also. I'm not sure how I'll store that, but I assume I'll drain the water and leave the sand in, and store that in the basement too so I don't have to worry about freezing. It helps that I have a walk out basement so I don't have to carry heavy items down the stairs.

I wouldn't move the sand filter since the laterals can get damaged. I just leave mine (in MN here) on the equipment pad and pull the drain plug, let it drain and leave the multiport valve on "winterize" which basically just keeps the valve cracked open.

 

[raidencmc]

At my house I used a "heavy duty" tarp similar to the one you are using. I think above I mention the wind at my house. I took nylon rope and 18 inch stakes and pounded them well into the ground. I can't remember how many maybe 8-10. During hurricane Sandy between 50 and 100 miles from land fall. The first day we felt affects from the storm a few popped out of the ground. I went back out and pounded them back into different locations and again they came out. At this point the storm was intense. I did my best to get out again and put a cinder block through one of the lines and pounded in the ground again. The next morning all the stakes were in the ground on the windy side and all the eyelits were torn out. At this point the pool had begun filling up and I accepted the fact that maybe I was getting a new pool and my neighbor was going get what was left. It survived fine because the water had filled it up. In the spring I drained, removed, the leafs, scrubbed and filled. This year I am doing my best to keep intex cover on until all the leaves have fallen drain to my returns and remove the pump and plastic parts. Then just going to drain it, clean it in the spring, and fill. Just seems like if I do it now I will be doing it again so just do it all at once.


I too have the same bungees and have used them in the past for various things, but not under tremendous pressure. I think they did not last very long in the elements. The first issue I had was the metal hooks would bend. I could imagine that could be a puncture hazard. Over winter the rubber inside would dry out and break. I am not sure how they or anything would affect the pool connected to that strap. But I would use real strong nylon rope instead of the bungee's. I use them to tie off trees and they do very well for a season or two then I toss them.

 

[gtnos]

I wouldn't move the sand filter since the laterals can get damaged. I just leave mine (in MN here) on the equipment pad and pull the drain plug, let it drain and leave the multiport valve on "winterize" which basically just keeps the valve cracked open.

my multiport doesnt have a "winterize" position. :? I was planning on removing the multiport valve and storing it in my shed and covering up the sandfilter, maybe even using some thick plastic sheeting along with the ring that came with it that you use when you fill it with sand to keep sand from going down the pipe, and clamping it all down with the bandclamp that holds the multiport valve in place.

raidencmc - thanks for the heads up on the bungees, I too am wondering how long they will last. I used needlenose pliers to bend all the hooks really small so they wont bend open so easily. if they start to fail, I will replace them with better bungees or rope.

 

[linen]

I was planning on removing the multiport valve and storing it in my shed and covering up the sandfilter

That will work fine. Cover it well so that no critters can nest.

 

[gtnos]

I was planning on removing the multiport valve and storing it in my shed and covering up the sandfilter

That will work fine. Cover it well so that no critters can nest.

thank you good sir. on another note.... i really want to put my pump in the shed for the winter... however.. the cord is plugged into the inside of my shed (as you can see in pics it is about 10 feet away) and I have since buried the cable and landscaped over it. I thought about unhooking the cord from inside the intex pump, but when I took out the four screws that held the top cover on the pump to the electronics, it is a bit more complicated than i thought. do you know of any outdoor water proof connectors that I can wire in to the cord outside the pump? I thought maybe I would just cut the cord, it has 3 wires in it, then I could store pump in shed,and come springtime I would get sometype of water proof plug connector to connect the pump cord back up.

or should I just go with plan B which is to buy a plastic tote from walmart that will fit over the pump and weight it down with a block to keep it from blowing off?

 

[linen]

If you cut it, I have seen clamshell type containers such as this:

It will likely void any warranty value you have. I am assuming you realize that burying the intex cord is not code.

 

[gtnos]

If you cut it, I have seen clamshell type containers such as this:

It will likely void any warranty value you have. I am assuming you realize that burying the intex cord is not code.

that will work! thanks! im not too concerned about the code. its plugged into a GCFI outlet so if anything happens such as a short to ground, it will just trip the outlet. plus, I fail to see the difference in a cord strung across the ground vs buried 6-8 inches deep. I got tired of moving it when i mowed, plus it gives my pool a cleaner look with no cords running across the ground. I would actually think the cord is safer when buried.

 

[raidencmc]

that will work! thanks! im not too concerned about the code. its plugged into a GCFI outlet so if anything happens such as a short to ground, it will just trip the outlet. plus, I fail to see the difference in a cord strung across the ground vs buried 6-8 inches deep. I got tired of moving it when i mowed, plus it gives my pool a cleaner look with no cords running across the ground. I would actually think the cord is safer when buried.

I buried conduit 3 feet deep so that at some point I could add an outdoor outlet later in life. I think direct burial wiring is thicker on the outside. Not the actual wiring but the jacket itself. As well I got tired of stopping the mower unplugging and re-plugging in. As far as the chord what about something like this http://www.homedepot.com/p/Pass-Seymour ... kX7p9Jwoms But not this exact one. I am sure if you go to an electrical store you could find water proof ones. http://www.homedepot.com/p/t/100646797#.UkX8ZNJwoms or something like this and no chord cutting at all.

 

[HDRockerCgirl]

Sounds like a great plan! I was thinking of trying to use a bunch of 4' x 8' pillows under the cover that came with my pool. But after reading here, I'm worried about the wind catching it. I lost a canvas gazebo cover due to the wind. So, I have a lot to ponder!