Any risk in running pump in 10 degree weather without a heater?

[AndyTN]

We are supposed to get a polar vortex end of next week with temps in Memphis forecast to get as low as 10 degrees a couple nights. I'm currently doing my annual AA treatment for iron stains so I've already "opened" my pool. If I have no heater, should I be concerned with such extremely low temperatures running the pumps at night? I know as long as the water keeps moving then it should not freeze but those temperatures are really freaking cold for our area.

 

[JJ_Tex]

I would make sure your pump is running the entire time the air temp is below freezing. This next week will be the coldest I have been with a pool (we are dropping in the teens and may not even get above freezing one day), but in a normal winter we do not close and regularly dip into the 20's with no issues as long as the pump is running.

 

[jbird0215]

I’m just up the road from you in the Nashville area and will be running the pump for 3 solid days it seems. I’ll also be tarping the equipment pad and putting an incandescent light underneath as an added precaution. I’ve read several threads that say don’t use the heater to keep the water above freezing.

 

[Newdude]

They said that all 50 states will see freezing. The map looked like they only included a few miles into FL on a technicality, but still. It will be proportionately cold for all of us based on what we are used to.

 

[sktn77a]

Run it 24/7 and cover the pool equipment with a tarp - you'll be fine.

 

[Leebo]

Please make sure to spend a few minutes while it’s warm’ish to learn how to winterize your pad. For sure you can run the equipment with weather that cold, just prepare for worst case. If power goes out due to ice or whatever your plumbing will be full of water and will freeze in time. Just be prepared to drain everything.....just in case. Don’t wait until it’s 10° to learn.

 

[JJ_Tex]

If power goes out due to ice or whatever your plumbing will be full of water and will freeze in time. Just be prepared to drain everything.....just in case. Don’t wait until it’s 10° to learn.

Great point. If I did not have power, I'm not sure I would know what to do. I assume I would want to drain down below the skimmer but I would need some sort of pump to do that, right? Would generator and submersible pump be my best bet?

 

[Leebo]

There’s multiple answers here, depending on your goals. The key however is to do everything when it’s warm. DON’T wait until it’s 10° or whatever to learn. You’ll enjoy it a lot more when you can feel your fingers.

If it were me I’d put all of my focus on equipment. I’d drain the pump, filter, and so forth ASAP. The purpose of draining the pool is mostly to protect the plumbing, and the ground should do that well enough for the short term.

 

[ajw22]

Good tips in Preparing Pool for Cooler Months - Further Reading

 

[markayash]

I bought a $140 generator a few years back. It sat for a few years never used until the hurricane came through in 2020 and we were without power for a few days.
It won't run a lot but would run my small sump pump if needed..It ran my frig for a couple days

Watch in the spring, they have specials sometimes. Its a no name brand but does the job
If you have room to store it they are good to have around.

I crank mine every few months and let it run for 30 minutes or so and keep gas stabilizer in.it

 

[HeyEng]

I think many of us will be dealing with abnormal temps this week. In our area, it looks like we could go 5 or more days below freezing with a few nights of single digit temps and much of the time being windy. We don't winterize, but just run the pump...normally.

For this snap, I am adding a Frost King heating cable, beefing up the insulation around our pool pad area (currently tarped), adding blankets to the equipment that doesn't get heat cable and adding a chicken coop warmer (already have a couple of incandescent lights). Is it all overkill? Probably, but I sure will sleep better at night! We also have a fairly large whole house generator and it's ready to rock and roll if necessary.

Also, here is a great thread on freezing and physics...all pool owners that deal w/ freezing temps should read this thread.

The Physics of Freezing and Freeze Protection

Recently, there have been a lot of questions from those living in moderate climates about using automatic freeze protection or running pumps to prevent freezing and what a pool owner should do when temperatures drop so I thought it might be useful to have a thread which dealt with the issue from...

www.troublefreepool.com

 

[Leebo]

I think many of us will be dealing with abnormal temps this week. In our area, it looks like we could go 5 or more days below freezing with a few nights of single digit temps and much of the time being windy. We don't winterize, but just run the pump...normally.

For this snap, I am adding a Frost King heating cable, beefing up the insulation around our pool pad area (currently tarped), adding blankets to the equipment that doesn't get heat cable and adding a chicken coop warmer (already have a couple of incandescent lights). Is it all overkill? Probably, but I sure will sleep better at night! We also have a fairly large whole house generator and it's ready to rock and roll if necessary.

Also, here is a great thread on freezing and physics...all pool owners that deal w/ freezing temps should read this thread.

The Physics of Freezing and Freeze Protection

Recently, there have been a lot of questions from those living in moderate climates about using automatic freeze protection or running pumps to prevent freezing and what a pool owner should do when temperatures drop so I thought it might be useful to have a thread which dealt with the issue from...

www.troublefreepool.com

One thing you may wanna think about is to automate some of those heating items. There’s a strong chance they’ll be ran at times when not really needed. A $15 WiFi smart plug can really come in handy here so you can turn thing on/off from inside rather than having to go outside.

I’ve got some pipes for a bathroom that’s ran in a crawl space at the house that depending on the temps tends to freeze at least once a year. I’ve plugged in a heat lamp like you were talking about into a WiFi plug and automated it to turn on and off automatically depending on temperature using Siri Shortcuts. May wanna think about something like this if you’ve got a spare plug around......save a few bucks on power plus no worries about forgetting to turn it on.

 

[JJ_Tex]

So check my logic on this please. In the Dallas area people rely on freeze protection, including me. We have a 3 day stretch where it looks like we will dip down into the teens and get a few degrees above freezing each day. We were in the 70's earlier in the week and chances are we will be back there shortly, so I would really rather not spend superbowl sunday learning how to winterize for a 3-day stretch of weather.

I'm really only worried about a contingency plan in the absolute worst case we lose power in the middle of the night when it is in the teens. If that were to happen, this would be my course of action:
- Turn off the breakers
- Drain the filter via the bottom plug, leave the top pressure valve open as well
- Drain the pump via the bottom plug
- Tarp the equipment

Besides freezing my butt off in the middle of the night doing all of this, anyone see any glaring issues with this contingency plan?

 

[HeyEng]

One thing you may wanna think about is to automate some of those heating items. There’s a strong chance they’ll be ran at times when not really needed. A $15 WiFi smart plug can really come in handy here so you can turn thing on/off from inside rather than having to go outside.

I’ve got some pipes for a bathroom that’s ran in a crawl space at the house that depending on the temps tends to freeze at least once a year. I’ve plugged in a heat lamp like you were talking about into a WiFi plug and automated it to turn on and off automatically depending on temperature using Siri Shortcuts. May wanna think about something like this if you’ve got a spare plug around......save a few bucks on power plus no worries about forgetting to turn it on.

Good info, for sure! While they aren't on a timer, I don't run the lights (and won't run the added components) until it gets significantly cold in the pad enclosure. I monitor the temp (and being a weather nerd, I can also tell you all the current conditions including the temp of the garage, the attic, the utility room, the well head, the fridge, the freezer and the pool pad ) My game plan is to "fire up" the extra goodies once the temp gets to about 28 degrees in the pool pad enclosure and then it will stay on until the snap is over. The pool pump is on automation and is set at the lowest temp which I think is 33 or 34.

I do like the idea of the wifi plugs and while we have SEVERAL in the house, I don't have one that is weather resistant, but might look into it.

 

[HeyEng]

So check my logic on this please. In the Dallas area people rely on freeze protection, including me. We have a 3 day stretch where it looks like we will dip down into the teens and get a few degrees above freezing each day. We were in the 70's earlier in the week and chances are we will be back there shortly, so I would really rather not spend superbowl sunday learning how to winterize for a 3-day stretch of weather.

I'm really only worried about a contingency plan in the absolute worst case we lose power in the middle of the night when it is in the teens. If that were to happen, this would be my course of action:
- Turn off the breakers
- Drain the filter via the bottom plug, leave the top pressure valve open as well
- Drain the pump via the bottom plug
- Tarp the equipment

Besides freezing my butt off in the middle of the night doing all of this, anyone see any glaring issues with this contingency plan?

Sounds like a good plan, but I would also add in draining the heater and open any directional valves so *if* there is freezing, there is a place for the displacement.

 

[Leebo]

So check my logic on this please. In the Dallas area people rely on freeze protection, including me. We have a 3 day stretch where it looks like we will dip down into the teens and get a few degrees above freezing each day. We were in the 70's earlier in the week and chances are we will be back there shortly, so I would really rather not spend superbowl sunday learning how to winterize for a 3-day stretch of weather.

I'm really only worried about a contingency plan in the absolute worst case we lose power in the middle of the night when it is in the teens. If that were to happen, this would be my course of action:
- Turn off the breakers
- Drain the filter via the bottom plug, leave the top pressure valve open as well
- Drain the pump via the bottom plug
- Tarp the equipment

Besides freezing my butt off in the middle of the night doing all of this, anyone see any glaring issues with this contingency plan?

As long as you know how to remove those plugs and where they are.....you’re good. Enjoy the game! My main concern would be for those newer users who don’t really know where these valves/plugs are. I’d also add drain the heater in worst case.....if you’ve got one.

 

[CrystalRiver]

Just opening the drain valve and the MPV on a sand filter may not be enough, especially if you wait until it's already quite cold to start. The sand can retain enough water that it still freezes and cracks. I had to replace the whole lateral assembly because a few laterals and the upright were broken, in spite of being drained well in advance. Now I drain, then dump antifreeze in and drain that, to dilute and displace as much water as possible.

 

[Newdude]

Besides freezing my butt off in the middle of the night doing all of this, anyone see any glaring issues with this contingency plan?

Open/empty any pipes above ground as well. They don’t have to be bone dry, just not completely full at the low spots. The higher pipes will probably drain themselves when you open all the drain plugs.

if pipes crack above ground they are easy to get to at least, but you know dang well it won’t break in an easy to splice spot.

 

[markayash]

My pad is a good 12" above water level so I drain filter, pump, and open all the valves so water in the pipes can go below ground level. But I am Georgia so we rarely have teens for days in a row.
I did put my skimmer gizzmos in.

 

[mknauss]

Mid 70's here --

Just thinking about you all ----------