First time closing my pool and was wondering what would be the best course of action. My CYA levels are 360 and was planning on draining my pool then refilling. Should I do this now or just wait until I go to open the pool for next season?
Here is our TFP page for closing: Pool School - Closing an In Ground Pool. Let us know if you still have question about those processes.
But everyone is going to ask first .... how did you confirm that CYA level? Even if using the dilution method that would be quite difficult to achieve.
The CYA dilution test can get kind of tricky when diluting/testing over 200, so I would err on the side of caution and retest once you do a healthy water exchange. Of course never completely drain a pool, but if you chose to exchange say 50% at a time, you can retest to see how the CYA has changed. I would ideally try to get the CYA under 80 if you are able based on city ordnances and such. Adjusting the CYA to a more manageable level will allow you to be certain of the FC/CYA balance as noted on the [FC/CYA][/FC/CYA] so that you can close properly and avoid algae over the winter.I followed the process in one of the articles to test CYA and dilute it. Then after it still not reaching the 100 marker on my Taylor 2600 test kit (which would have been 200 ppm CYA) I got a new sample and had to dilute it twice before I got to the 90 marker on my test tube.
The CYA dilution test can get kind of tricky when diluting/testing over 200, so I would err on the side of caution and retest once you do a healthy water exchange. Of course never completely drain a pool, but if you chose to exchange say 50% at a time, you can retest to see how the CYA has changed. I would ideally try to get the CYA under 80 if you are able based on city ordnances and such. Adjusting the CYA to a more manageable level will allow you to be certain of the FC/CYA balance as noted on the [FC/CYA][/FC/CYA] so that you can close properly and avoid algae over the winter.
Are you sure you want to close a pool in Clovis? It does not get that cold and you should be maintaining your FC and pH during the winter.
It's a legit concern. Many of us are in those milder climates that overall just get cold with an occasional hard freeze now & then. As long as you don't experience sub-freezing temps for days on end, simply keeping the water moving should suffice on those hard freeze nights/mornings. FC consumption will be next to nothing, so all you have to do is check the skimmer basket and scoop out any junk that may have fallen in.We do get a couple weeks of below 32 every so often. Does that still not matter in the grand scheme of things?