Pillow & partial draining of Intex

[karenkolby]

I plan to leave this up for the winter and close it per Pool School. Pine straw is eating it up, so I plan to hopefully close it this weekend.

Once I drain the pool below the holes, the pool will only be about 1/2 to 2/3 full of water.
I plan to use the cover that came with the pool. I plan to put an additional tarp on top of the cover so that I can remove leaves, any possible snow (we don't get that much), etc that may accumulate over the winter. I plan to keep the tarp secure by attaching some straps to Clorox containers (partially filled with water). I also plan to disconnect the pump and bring it inside. (Pool has PVC piping).

Questions ....
Do I need a pillow or some type of inflatable in the middle? Will this even work with so little water in the pool? secure it with some empty Clorox containers partially full of water.

Am I suppose to drain the water out of the sand filter in any way?

MANY THANKS in advance!!
Karen

 

[karenkolby]

Pls forgive some of my typos ... Questions should simply read ...
Do I need a pillow or some type of inflatable in the middle? Will this even work with so little water in the pool?

Am I suppose to drain the water out of the sand filter in any way?

THANKS!!

 

[Bama Rambler]

Do you have a thru the wall skimmer?

In Raleigh, I'd probably just plug the holes, remove the hoses if it's not hard plumbed, and not drain it down.

I wouldn't worry about using a pillow either way. I have don'e it both ways and it's just as easy not to use the pillows. the pillows actually make it a little harder to siphon all the water off the cover.

Yes, there should be a drain plug on the bottom of the filter and you should open that. You should remove the pump drain plugs also, if you're not planning on taking it inside.

 

[karenkolby]

Bama Rambler - Thanks for the reply! I do NOT have a thru the wall skimmer (just the 2 "holes" that were already in the Intex liner) and it IS hard-plumbed with PVC. So ... if I just plug the holes, don't I have to worry about it overflowing? What's the purpose of plugging the holes?

FYI - I'm not "questioning" what you said. Simply trying to understand (this is my 1st year).

Re the siphoning ... Uh .. pls help me with this. Are you saying water will collect on the cover over the winter & I'll somehow have to get it off?

 

[Bama Rambler]

Plugging the holes is so that you can drain the plumbing without having to drain so far. You can just drain below the ports since it's hard plumbed and blow out the lines.