My first winterizing questions.

[otherguy]

I have an Intex Ultra 18x52 and watched a video on winterizing where the guy closed off the valves, unhooked the hoses but left the water completely full and then covered it. He said the first year he drained the pool below the intakes and the cover sank with the weight of the snow/rain, so for the last 3 years he left the water full to help support the cover.

Has anyone tried this? I was going to drain below the intakes but was also worried about the cover sagging with the weight of snow and doing more harm than just leaving it full like I saw in the video.

Just would like to know what others have done that has worked well, as we don't want to take it down for the winter.
Thank you

 

[otherguy]

After doing more research I saw someone (on this forum) in a colder climate in mine that didn't cover the pool at all, just drained it below the ports. Got me to thinking, what is the point of a cover?

 

[Texas Splash]

For an AGP, the primary need to use a cover is keeping leaves out. Once the leaves fall, t almost doesn't matter what happens once the freezes hit. If you have an aftermarket skimmer, stuff it with pool noodles to be safe, but that's about it. Covers have their place, but can also be a royal pain with sagging, high winds, and the potential pulling on the walls.

 

[Mdragger88]

Just closing the valves is a recipe for them freezing & cracking. If you aren’t going to drain below the returns/inlets they need to be plugged from the inside & all the valves & hoses on the outside removed. The pool comes with little black cap things to do this with. If u don’t have them anymore you can order them. You unscrew the inside fitting, put the cap on, then screw the fitting back on to hold it in place - then proceed to remove the outside valves & hoses, drain the filter etc.

 

[otherguy]

Just closing the valves is a recipe for them freezing & cracking. If you aren’t going to drain below the returns/inlets they need to be plugged from the inside & all the valves & hoses on the outside removed. The pool comes with little black cap things to do this with. If u don’t have them anymore you can order them. You unscrew the inside fitting, put the cap on, then screw the fitting back on to hold it in place - then proceed to remove the outside valves & hoses, drain the filter etc.

I went and looked and did find those in the box, thanks. We have very few trees here, so we may just plug up the holes like you suggest and leave it at that and see how it goes. Just forget the cover this first year and see what happens.

I did buy one of those winterizing chemical ball things, guess I still could use that? It says to poke small holes in the bottom of it to release chemical slowly over the winter, guess it can only do that for the portions it's not frozen.

 

[Mdragger88]

What are the ingredients? Don’t put things in your pool if you don’t know what they are or the effects they will have on your chemistry.

Recommended Pool Chemicals

Which should I buy? TFP's recommended pool chemicals are cheap, easy, and won't unbalance your pool water.

www.troublefreepool.com

Non-Recommended Pool Chemicals

These pool chemicals should not be added to your pool. Save your money and frustration and avoid these chemicals!

www.troublefreepool.com

Closing (Winterizing) Your Above Ground Pool

Closing an above ground pool at season’s end should be a fast and worry-free process. Learn the basics of above ground pool winterization in easy steps.

www.troublefreepool.com

 

[wireform]

You don"t need anything. As long as the water is 60° or below your good assuming you brought the water up to slam level before draining it down for the winter. If you leave the pool uncovered test the FC once in awhile after letting the sample warm to room temperature an add some FC with a submersible pump running a bit to mix it in.

 

[otherguy]

Just closing the valves is a recipe for them freezing & cracking. If you aren’t going to drain below the returns/inlets they need to be plugged from the inside & all the valves & hoses on the outside removed. The pool comes with little black cap things to do this with. If u don’t have them anymore you can order them. You unscrew the inside fitting, put the cap on, then screw the fitting back on to hold it in place - then proceed to remove the outside valves & hoses, drain the filter etc.

I know the instructions tell you to take the pool down every year, so what are the plugs for that they would give them to you?

Also, if I use the plugs should I still drain to below the intakes or just leave the water at it's normal level?

 

[wireform]

I assume your question is not the intake but rather the return. You can plug it and disconnect the pipe and let drain out. No need to take pool down. The plugs are there incase you'd have to work on the return lines and the water level is above so not to lose water unnecessarily. Make sure the plugs are pretty well tight otherwise pool will drain down to the return level.

 

[otherguy]

I assume your question is not the intake but rather the return. You can plug it and disconnect the pipe and let drain out. No need to take pool down. The plugs are there incase you'd have to work on the return lines and the water level is above so not to lose water unnecessarily. Make sure the plugs are pretty well tight otherwise pool will drain down to the return level.

Last question (I promise), if I don't drain the pool below the intakes, does the water freezing have any bad effects on the intake covers themselves? or is it just better to drain below the intakes and take off the intakes and return for the winter?

 

[Mdragger88]

I haven’t had any issues- lets ask @jseyfert3 it gets real cold there

 

[otherguy]

I haven’t had any issues- lets ask @jseyfert3 it gets real cold there

you haven't had any issues by leaving the water level high, is that correct?

 

[jseyfert3]

Last question (I promise), if I don't drain the pool below the intakes, does the water freezing have any bad effects on the intake covers themselves? or is it just better to drain below the intakes and take off the intakes and return for the winter?

I drained below the intakes last year. This year I’m planning to just leave the intakes plugged (they are plugged now, don’t use anymore with my skimmer) and drain the water down to the return height only.

Note you can’t use the intake plugs with the intake covers installed. You have to remove the covers and the intakes themselves, the hard plastic piece that inserts into the short rubber hose piece that’s part of the liner, then you insert the plug in place of this. I can’t remember the exact details of how the process was to install these, you certainly need to loosen the hose clamp on the outside of the pool to get the insert out, but I didn’t have to drain my pool to do this. Someone on another thread said to loosen the clamp and then twist and remove the insert while holding the hose to make sure it doesn’t pop off.

Once the plug is installed remove and drain the hose (and all other hoses). Be sure to store all valves inside, residual water stuck inside the valve could crack it. I’d remove the return fittings too for the same reason. I brought my pump and sand filter inside last year, but I’m not bringing my filter in this year. I’ll put the valve in winter position, remove the drain valve, pressure gauge, all hoses then cover the filter to keep snow and ice off the valve. This is what permanent pools do for their sand filters. I’ll bring in my pump though as it’s light and easy to move. If you have a cartridge filter probably best to bring that inside.

 

[Mdragger88]

you haven't had any issues by leaving the water level high, is that correct?

I have a return that’s a foot from the bottom of my pool - I can’t drain that low. I use a screw in plug on the outside & leave the “jet” fitting attached on the inside (cuz I’m not getting in there to remove it when the water is 60 degrees ).
it doesn’t stay incredibly cold here but last year it was 0 degrees for a while & my pool froze, we also had alot of snow. I had no issues.

 

[phonedave]

For an AGP, the primary need to use a cover is keeping leaves out. Once the leaves fall, t almost doesn't matter what happens once the freezes hit. If you have an aftermarket skimmer, stuff it with pool noodles to be safe, but that's about it. Covers have their place, but can also be a royal pain with sagging, high winds, and the potential pulling on the walls.

It also keeps light out. I often have 0.5 - 1.0 ppm of FC still in the pool when I open in the spring. Without a cover I suspect that would have been burned off by sunlight over the winter (not to mention eaten up by leaves, etc)