Is there a downside to keeping my pool up year round and not opening/closing?

[rawb]

We just finished building our pool a month or two ago and this summer will our first year using it. For the last couple months, I have been keeping the pool perfectly balanced even though I knew we wouldn't be using it for a while until it warmed up. My question is, can I just do this year round, even through the winter instead of going through the open/close procedures that I read about other's doing? We don't have a pool cover and don't really mind skimming/vacuuming any leaves that fall in. I also am borderline addicted to keeping the chemicals as perfect as possible. So assuming we don't get tired of doing those things, are there any other compelling reasons that I should close the pool down and open it up at certain times of the year rather than just keep it up year round?

Thanks,
Robert

 

[Jimrahbe]

Robert,

Almost no one where I live closes their pool in the winter. People that close their pools live in places where the ponds and rivers can freeze over in the winter.. The same thing could happen to their pool even with the pump running, so they really have no choice but to close and winterize their pools.

The only downside, if you want to call it that, is that you might have to run your pump 24/7 when it gets really cold for a few days in a row. Again, depending on the temperature you might have to cover or "tent" your equipment pad and put a light inside for a little extra heat..

Oh, and as you already know your IC40 will not work when below about 52 degrees, so you will have to manually dose with Liquid Chlorine...

Thanks,

Jim R.

 

[rawb]

Thanks Jim. As for the "downside" you mentioned, I'm already running my IntelliFlo 24/7 now at 1,300 RPM's so if I keep that up, it wouldn't really be any different than what I'm doing. As for what you mentioned about the tent and light around the equipment pad, I hadn't thought about that. I'm in SC so not as brutal as some places in the winter, but is the risk of the pump freezing on those cold nights or something else? Would that still be necessary if I run the pump 24/7 at a low RPM?

 

[Jimrahbe]

Robert,

I doubt you would have any problems, but just throwing out some options..

Just like rivers freeze, I suppose if it got cold enough, for long enough, your pump could also freeze.. the tent idea is just a safety factor..


Thanks,

Jim R.

 

[amesaway]

I was wondering the same thing, so I'm glad you asked this question! I live near Jim so I suppose it'll be okay to keep things open year round (as long as I'm careful when a freeze does come through).

 

[peirek]

I was wondering the same thing, so I'm glad you asked this question! I live near Jim so I suppose it'll be okay to keep things open year round (as long as I'm careful when a freeze does come through).

Your freeze guard should protect you in the winter in DFW. Just be wary to verify especially the first near freezing night.