I'm getting ready to close my pool and it has a spillover spa attached to it. The spa has the same kind of jets as the pool and I believe the main drain is in the spa since when I drain the water the spa empties first before the pool starts to drain. It also has just the one skimmer. My question is how so I blow out the lines to make sure the spa lines are emptied also, and do I have to do anything with the main drain after emptying the spa and should I refill the spa to below the tiles? This is the first time closing it, I usually run it through the winter but last year we had a "snowmageddon" in Oklahoma and it almost stopped running due to the ice. We got lucky but I don't want to chance it this year So I wanna close it, just never done it before. Thanks for any help.
Closing gunnite pool with spillover spa
- Thread starter armyrctr0
- Start date
Hey Recruiter !!!
Snowvid-19 sucked for a lot of folks. Got any pics of the pad ? And the details of which pipes go where. The plumbing gurus will need to see what your options are for isolating specific lines.
I imagine you’ll need to lower the pool below the skimmer and then blow/cap/gizzmo the pipes. Duck plugs or the more robust bungee plugs are blow through and self sealing so you don’t need to lower the water below the returns. They’d allow you to leave the spa mostly full to protect the plaster.
Snowvid-19 sucked for a lot of folks. Got any pics of the pad ? And the details of which pipes go where. The plumbing gurus will need to see what your options are for isolating specific lines.
I imagine you’ll need to lower the pool below the skimmer and then blow/cap/gizzmo the pipes. Duck plugs or the more robust bungee plugs are blow through and self sealing so you don’t need to lower the water below the returns. They’d allow you to leave the spa mostly full to protect the plaster.
Thanks. I'm at work but will get pics of the pad when I get home. Appreciate the help
Here is the pad set-up with everything. I honestly don't know which configuration to put the valves in for just spa,etc. I just leave it like that and water comes out from the pool and spa jets so if I can get an explanation on these it would also help. We've had this house 3 years and never really ran the spa. Also, there are two holes in the bottom of the spa which I imagine is the main drain. Do I plug those up also somehow?
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Also, there's a suction hole opposite side of the return lines in the pool. Do I blow that out from the pump or the skimmer?
Ok so pretty simple setup. Unless someone else just instinctively knows because the folks here are amazing, There will be some trial and error.
The 2 pipes on the left side return to the pool/spa, presumably one to each. I’m 50/50 if the larger pipe is to handle the returns (jets) that are further away, or for the more jets in the hot tub. Right now it’s set to pull 50/50 from both. Turn so the ‘off’ tab covers one pipe, and that leg is off. It will take 10 seconds to see which is which and then label them.
The 3 pipes to the right are your suction side. Presumably the 2 that are together are the wall suction and skimmer, And the spa is the one by itself so it can be isolated. Again, a few seconds of trial and error. Turn the 2 pipe valve and watch the skimmer stop. That’s your skimmer leg and the other is the wall drain. Then verify that the single one pulls from the spa when open Which it currently is) and stops when closed.
For blowing out I’d remove the unions from the filter and slide it out of the way (after draining and opening). Then you’ll have plenty of room to blow left through the heater to the return jets, and to the right through the pump to the drains. At each side you’ll have to move the valve to get both legs. On the wall drain and spa drain, once bubbles come out you need to turn the valve ‘off’ and trap air in those pipes.
Gizzmo the skimmer(s) and cut up a pool noodle and fill the skimmer for further ice protection.
Then reinstall the filter and pull all your drain plugs (pump, filter, heater)
The 2 pipes on the left side return to the pool/spa, presumably one to each. I’m 50/50 if the larger pipe is to handle the returns (jets) that are further away, or for the more jets in the hot tub. Right now it’s set to pull 50/50 from both. Turn so the ‘off’ tab covers one pipe, and that leg is off. It will take 10 seconds to see which is which and then label them.
The 3 pipes to the right are your suction side. Presumably the 2 that are together are the wall suction and skimmer, And the spa is the one by itself so it can be isolated. Again, a few seconds of trial and error. Turn the 2 pipe valve and watch the skimmer stop. That’s your skimmer leg and the other is the wall drain. Then verify that the single one pulls from the spa when open Which it currently is) and stops when closed.
For blowing out I’d remove the unions from the filter and slide it out of the way (after draining and opening). Then you’ll have plenty of room to blow left through the heater to the return jets, and to the right through the pump to the drains. At each side you’ll have to move the valve to get both legs. On the wall drain and spa drain, once bubbles come out you need to turn the valve ‘off’ and trap air in those pipes.
Gizzmo the skimmer(s) and cut up a pool noodle and fill the skimmer for further ice protection.
Then reinstall the filter and pull all your drain plugs (pump, filter, heater)
- Jul 21, 2013
- 53,274
- Pool Size
- 35000
- Surface
- Plaster
- Chlorine
- Salt Water Generator
- SWG Type
- Pentair Intellichlor IC-60
Pump has 2 drain plugs, filter has one drain plug, heater has one drain plug.
Find the heater drain plug on page 39 of https://s3.amazonaws.com/AWSProd/sites/raypakcom/documents/241236.pdf
Find the heater drain plug on page 39 of https://s3.amazonaws.com/AWSProd/sites/raypakcom/documents/241236.pdf
Don't forget you'll need bungee plugs or duck plugs if you only drop the water below the skimmer and leave the returns below the water level. These need to be in place before you blow out the lines but you have to know well in advance what valve go where.
Thanks. I saw a video where a guy blew air through his system and instead of using bungee plugs, he capped each line while it was blowing after about 30 seconds. It looks like the same concept of the bungee plugs. What are your thoughts
- May 3, 2014
- 58,693
- Pool Size
- 6000
- Surface
- Fiberglass
- Chlorine
- Salt Water Generator
- SWG Type
- Pentair Intellichlor IC-40
- Jul 21, 2013
- 53,274
- Pool Size
- 35000
- Surface
- Plaster
- Chlorine
- Salt Water Generator
- SWG Type
- Pentair Intellichlor IC-60
Bungee plugs are convenient when one person is doing the winterization.
Rubber plugs really need 2 people. One to work the blower while the other plugs a line.
And for $12 each they last many years. The convenience alone makes them worthwhile.