18' X 48" Intex Ultra Pool: Who can advise on leaving up year round, cold climate?

[Jabo]

18' X 48" Intex Ultra Pool: Who can advise on leaving up year round, cold climate?

Hello, we are new pool owners May, 2014. I have seen some posts about winterizing this type of seasonal pool to leave up all winter, but most are a couple years old. We had a very rough winter last year, many 30 below wind chill days. Do you think we can successfully winterize this pool to leave up during our sometimes very harsh winters in NW Illinois? Has anyone in our area or colder done this and if so, how and how long has your pool lasted? Thanks so much.

 

[laceygirl]

Re: 18' X 48" Intex Ultra Pool: Who can advise on leaving up year round, cold climat

Hi there, I've seen youtube videos of Russians leaving their pools up all winter... Covered in a foot of snow..... It should be ok... Intex recommends that you don't but many have.... I don't get snow where I am, but we have really cold winters too.....

 

[danpik]

Re: 18' X 48" Intex Ultra Pool: Who can advise on leaving up year round, cold climat

I know of one nearby me that they left up all winter and we had one of the worst winters temp wise thet we saw for the last 40 years or so. Once the pool freezes, it does not matter much how cold it gets.

 

[Jabo]

Re: 18' X 48" Intex Ultra Pool: Who can advise on leaving up year round, cold climat

Thanks, Laceygirl and Danpik. I believe we will be OK, too, would still like to hear from someone who does it and how you do it. We plan to buy a winter cover, use a winterizing kit, and some sort of inner tube in the center under the cover, and of course, remove all hoses and filters and bring inside. If anyone out there is keeping their Intex pool up all winter, please let us know how you have done it. Thanks, again.

 

[laceygirl]

Re: 18' X 48" Intex Ultra Pool: Who can advise on leaving up year round, cold climat

To winterize your pool.... Wait till the water temperature drops to 60 degrees.....Algae cannot grow at that temp..... Drain your water level to below your suctions and returns.... Remove the filter and pump and store them away.... Bring your FC up to about 12-15 ppm, and cover your pool....

Read pool school, its the best reference you can have to take control of your pool...... You need to get yourself a good test kit.... This is the one the site recommends.... http://tftestkits.net/splash-page.html

Here is the link to how to Winterize your pool in more detail.... http://www.troublefreepool.com/content/145-closing-winterizing-your-above-group-pool

 

[csk158]

Re: 18' X 48" Intex Ultra Pool: Who can advise on leaving up year round, cold climat

I leave mine up and have for the last 3 years. I have a 16x32 ultra frame. I take off the valves, hoses and pump and put them in the basement. I live in south west Michigan and last winter was miserable with the cold and snow.

 

[jeffchap]

Re: 18' X 48" Intex Ultra Pool: Who can advise on leaving up year round, cold climat

I think the concern is that the vinyl will get brittle when it freezes. But believe me, your support beams will rust through long before you liner gives out with one of these pools. I've left my Ultra frame up over the winter before, and while we don't get winters like you do, we still have plenty of days below freezing. I've never had a problem.

 

[Charlie_R]

Re: 18' X 48" Intex Ultra Pool: Who can advise on leaving up year round, cold climat

I left mine up last winter. Had 8" of ice in it, and survived. Drained below all the suction and return fittings, drained the pipes and put the pump etc in the basement.

 

[PridgNYC]

Re: 18' X 48" Intex Ultra Pool: Who can advise on leaving up year round, cold climat

I left mine up this past winter in the catskills, and opened with no problems. Followed the instructions in pool school, used 4 inner tubes for flotation under a mesh cover. Pretty much had a foot of snow from about January to late March this year, pool didn't thaw until late April, opened it a few weeks later in late May, still under 65 degrees and crystal clear. Been running for about a month now and temps are up to nearly 80 in the pool and almost no maintenance so far.

 

[mrodgers]

Re: 18' X 48" Intex Ultra Pool: Who can advise on leaving up year round, cold climat

I'm just slightly different. Northwestern PA. We saw -30° temps this past winter. I've gone through 2 winters now.

I'm different in.that I don't cover. Hurricane Sandy shredded my cover the first winter before winter even hit. I have to pick and choose what to spend money on and there are much more important things than a winter pool cover. I don't have any trees around so I haven't been that worried.

First winter I had a hose siphon going to drain 8 inches below the skimmer port. Well, forgot about it and drained it down to maybe a foot and a half, LOL. No worries, not only didd the hurricane shread the cover, it also filled the pool back up to the skimmer hole very quickly. Water froze and the snow filled the pool to the top of the frame anyways. When it started to melt, it just trickled out the skimmer port as it melted.

Last winter I didn't bother with draining with a hose below the skimmer hole. I just disconnected the pump and drained through the skimmer port hose until it was down to the skimmer hole. Removed the rest of the hoses and all the fittings and left it like that.

I don't know how much ice is in the pool over winter. I'm guessing it is frozen about 8 inches thick.

Note, when it does start to thaw, the ice will start to thin out on the edges and gets almost razor sharp. You know how kids like to play with things, don't let the kids reach in to play with the ice. I worry they would spin the ice rubbing it up against the liner and slicing the liner. I made sure my kids knew not to mess with the ice in the pool when spring was suppose to come (negative temps in March when previous years we've painted the house wearing t-shirt and shorts in 70° in March.)