It never gets close to freezing where I live in South Florida. I have a Bestway steel frame/vinyl pool about 5000 gallons. At some point, it will be too cold to swim comfortably. Rather than spend money and time keeping the water nice, could I just drain it, lay down the supports where it sits so it's all flat and then cover the whole thing? It cost about $15 to fill it up so not nearly as much as the chemicals to maintain the water over the "winter". Thoughts? We are brand new to having the pool and, the other piece is, I can tell we didn't do the best job setting it up so this would give us another chance to do it right when things warm up.
Pool up or down in Florida "winter"?
- Thread starter sophiepeach
- Start date
I would leave it up. When the water gets below 60 you will not even use a gallon of chlorine a week to keep it clear. The taking it down could mess up the liner and cause it to get stained and maybe forming creases that may crack over time.
It is a bit unlevel. There's one corner that is a bit lower than the rest. Probably 2 inches. We got the pool for free as part of a promotion but had to set it up quickly to feature it on social media as part of the agreement so we didn't have time to do it right. Would the water get below 60 degrees if the air temp is not usually that cold each day?
- Jun 1, 2018
- 13,698
- Pool Size
- 26000
- Surface
- Vinyl
- Chlorine
- Salt Water Generator
- SWG Type
- Hayward Aqua Rite (T-15)
you should either leave it up (you could close it like this 
www.troublefreepool.com
or leave it open)
Or completely take it down, dry it & store it.
Just laying it on the ground & covering it up has the issues Kim mentioned as well as the potential for causing rust with all the poles & a home for vermin.
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
Or completely take it down, dry it & store it.
Just laying it on the ground & covering it up has the issues Kim mentioned as well as the potential for causing rust with all the poles & a home for vermin.
Anything over 1" out of level is dangerous for an above ground pool....especially those. No reason you couldn't drain it, properly level and then refill it.
Thanks for all of the replies! So, if my water temp is not getting below 60 degrees consistently in our "winter", I would need to either take it down and store it properly or keep it open and maintained the same way I would when we are using it?
Yes m'am! You got it!
The store it properly is the hardest part as we both know all about Florida critters and insects! It has to be dry, dry, dry and put somewhere the critters and insects cannot get to it. Some people put talcum powder to help it not stick together like plastic likes to do.
The store it properly is the hardest part as we both know all about Florida critters and insects! It has to be dry, dry, dry and put somewhere the critters and insects cannot get to it. Some people put talcum powder to help it not stick together like plastic likes to do.