How to close a pool without blowing out the pipes??? PLEASE HELP

[Ecjaustin]

Just bought my house in August and was just getting the hang of taking care of the pool. Now it is time to close. Here is some info on the pool:

- 30,000 gallon
- Salt Water
- DE Filter
- 2 Skimmers
- Safety Cover


I live in Virginia Beach. I do not think I need to blow the lines out. I've looked at videos and to be honest, I have no idea how to do it and don't want to destroy my system.

The pool stores and local guys want $300 to close the pool, which I honestly don't have the money for right now.

What are my options?

I am looking for the easiest most clear cut way to get this thing shut down for the winter.

Thanks in advance for any help!!!

 

[samt]

If you don't get a hard freeze then you don't need to blow the lines. If it gets below freezing 1 or 2 nights during your winter, you could run your pump at those times. You could make sure the water is balanced, bring it up to shock level and put the cover on. You could check the FC throughout the winter a few times and add a little chlorine if needed.

 

[Ecjaustin]

So, all I need to do is:

1.Balance
2. Bring up to shock
3. Clean
4. Cover
5. Run pump when it gets below freezing

Do I need to lower the water below the skimmers, use gizmos...etc? Please forgive my ignorance, I am brand new to this...

THANKS!

 

[JVTrain]

Think of it as not closing. Your pool is simply going to be... dormant or low maintenance mode. I would imagine that it never freezes for very long there? Perhaps just overnight a few times during the winter?

Covering the pool greatly reduces chlorine loss to sunlight. This also cools the pool as there is no sunlight to warm it. Cooler temps also lower chlorine demand. You do still need to maintain sanitation. You'll likely only have to check the FC and pH once a week once the water cools down to 60s. You'll need to manually dose with bleach/liquid chlorine. If you have an SWG it will not work at low temps. No need to lower water level at all. Just have the pump run overnight if there's a chance of freezing. And to be honest, even if it hits 20-30 degrees, even then it would take a while to freeze an above ground pipe. There's very little chance of you freezing an inground pipe since you never likely get a residual frost in the ground.

 

[samt]

So, all I need to do is:

1.Balance
2. Bring up to shock
3. Clean
4. Cover
5. Run pump when it gets below freezing

Do I need to lower the water below the skimmers, use gizmos...etc? Please forgive my ignorance, I am brand new to this...

THANKS!

That's it.

You do not need to lower the water or use the gizmos since your not dealing with freeze protection.

People use the gizmos to keep ice expansion from cracking there plastic skimmer boxes.

People lower water to aid in blowing out returns and to prevent overflow of pool with the accumulation of rain snow melt.
Some people don't lower there water at all in cold climates.

You have it easy!