Keeping pool open in Raleigh, NC

[Karl103]

Hi everyone,

Great advice on here for new pool owner. I'm keeping my pool uncovered and running through the winter. So far half way through Fall and doing well keeping leaves out, clean, etc.

Few questions:

1.) Pool water temp now at 50 degrees F. I turned my SWG off today. Current chemistry - FC 3.0, ph 7.8, TA 70, CH 230, CYA 80, Salt 3200. I have read about using liquid chlorine through the Fall/Winter to maintain some chlorine level. What level is recommended for the winter. Since algae not growing, is it necessary to keep level same as in summer ?

2.) I have a generator in case of power outage. Have freeze protect on my pump set at 34 degrees. It will run at a low flow for this temperature. Anything else I need to worry about regarding low temps/freezing ? I have a few months to prepare if I need to do something else.

3.) The Maytronics manual for my dolphin robot cleaner says it can operate at water temps as low as 43 degrees F. I know it can be sluggish. What do you all do to keep the pool floor clean when the temp goes too low for robot - just plain old vacuuming (not looking forward to reaching my hands into ice cold water to hook up the manual vacuum)

Thanks for advice in advance. I'm looking forward to keeping pool open !!

 

[mknauss]

Follow the non-SWCG [FC/CYA][/FC/CYA].

Great that the generator can run the equipment. That all should be fine then.

I would not use the robot in low temperatures. Net out the big stuff and manual vac if you want to make it look clean.

 

[goody222]

Hi Marty - I can understand taking a robot out of the pool, but how about a Polaris 280 cleaner (pool open all winter, auto freeze protect). The manual just says to remove prior to winterizing the pool, nothing about a lower temp limit. I'll contact them just to make sure. Thanks!!

Karl - Chesapeake, VA here, not too far from you. Do you have a heater? Not sure if that needs to be isolated and drained. I have solar heating and I isolate and drain it, then I use a shop vac to suck out the residual water left. I also have a hard piped in pump drain to lower level (reeling in that 200' blue rubber drain hose got old real fast) and I blow that down and use a sump pump to lower level if necessary. Do you have a water feature? I'm not sure exactly what to do about my waterfall - just posted a question about that. This is my first full year with a pool and before I found this site the pool store told me to just leave all chemicals alone all winter - but I had algae once temps warmed up in the spring. So I'm going to maintain FC in band this year.

I'm not sure about leaving the pool open all winter next year - dealing with all the leaves/debris getting in it might not be worth it (and I don't even have a single tree in my yard!). I put a giant leaf net on mid October and here it is late Nov and the neighbors trees still haven't lost all their leaves yet. I'll see how much time I spend on it this winter

 

[foozed]

Similar situation here in Raleigh NC - it is our first winter with the pool and I am keeping it open (because it's a very expensive water feature and I'd like to enjoy it year round!)

The chlorine generator stops itself from generating in cold temps so I don't know if I need to code it off or just allow it to stay powered on, but in a non generating state.

My chlorine hasnt dropped below ideal levels yet but I plan to add some if it does.

I left my bot in.. and the water is 37 degrees.. I will save him today.

 

[OTPirate]

hey foozed! I am in Raleigh (well, Creedmoor) also and leave my pool open during the winter. I turn my SWG off when it's too cold to generate and then just use bleach during that time. If it's going to be real cold, I just run my pump more often.

 

[paddle]

Hi Foozed,

I'm in Chapel Hill and this is our first winter with the pool. We decided to leave it open as well. We disconnected the chlorine generator at around 58 degrees and I test the ph and chlorine every 3-4 days. I still test alkalinity and CH every 1-2 weeks. CYA is tested monthly. We added a zodiac MX8 elite suction side cleaner for winter and let it run 3 hours each day. My water went up to 43 degrees today!

This photo was taken a few minutes ago.

 

[goody222]

hey Paddle, Nice looking pool. I'm in Southern VA and leaving ours open for the winter after our first full year of use. I follow a similar chemistry - I test pH and FC once a week and the others once a month. They change very very little with pool temps in the 40s. There are a LOT of trees in your picture - does your cleaner really get them all out? I don't even have trees on my property but still get a ton of neighbors leaves - our cleaner is overwhelmed. Plus constantly having to reach in, retrieve the cleaner and swap out bags is a real pain. We have a leaf net but the wind will blow leaves past the seems. Another issue is a very noticeable increase in our electric bill. Thinking of closing it next year.

 

[sccm_sysadmin]

I'm in Greensboro and close my pool each year. After a few seasons' experience it goes quickly. It's also one less thing I have to think about or deal with for 6 months, and it saves money on our electric bill as well.

 

[tkrotchko]

My plaster was just finished in my refurb October 1, and I wanted to keep the pool open a full 2 months to let the plaster cure. My plaster is pretty well cured, although as you'd expect, the pH keeps rising a bit. But my overall chemistry is pretty much dead on.

In looking through the weather for the next two weeks, the Maryland/DC area is predicted to be mild through late January, and by the beginning of March, the threat of super-cold weather is gone. So that leaves me with 6 weeks of cold winter.

The water is pretty much perfect chemistry-wise, I have a pump running 24 hours a day at low speed (800-1200 RPM) along with a generator to keep it running in case of power failures, a retractable cover to keep leaves out, and a propane heater if we get crazy cold weather.

And my thought process is now.... why bother paying someone to close the pool, just let the pump keep the water moving, bump on the heater if the temps get crazy cold. Plus, they pump out half the water I just paid to put in there, which leaves my plaster exposed. I really want to keep that plaster underwater with pH, TA, and CH correct for a year.

So I'm all set to call up the pool company and tell them I don't need them to close on January 10th. Can anyone spot a flaw in my plan?