Seasonal Pool Adjustments

[Jurate1]

Hello all this will be our first winter with a pool in Arizona. The day time temps are still in the high 80's but lows are in 50's We will leave the pool operational all year. Water temp now at 74 degrees. Currently running 8 hours(6 30 am-2:30 pm) I do not have a freeze sensor on the pump.. I am assuming chlorine usage will decrease with colder temps.. Questions:

Is run time based on the "high temperature"? So if 60 degree's high=6 hour run time
Should I start running the pump during the night vs the day once low temps get in the 30-40's since I do not have "freeze" sensor..
When would I add chlorine if I run pump for less hours and at night?
Thanks in advance...

 

[Newdude]

I am assuming chlorine usage will decrease with colder temps

Yup. Really it’s the lower sun angle and shorter days that consume a lot less FC daily, but they make it cooler too. Chlorine demand will fall off a cliff once it gets cold. Daily adds will become weekly adds, and then monthly adds. Maybe only one monthly add for you with a short winter, but still.

Is run time based on the "high temperature"? So if 60 degree's high=6 hour run time

Run time is based on how much filtering / skimming you need. Come winter there is much less crud falling than there is in the spring and fall, So your run time can go way down also. Pretty much at that point, you only need 30 mins a day to mix your water. Add at the same time and kill 2 birds with one stone when that time comes.

Should I start running the pump during the night vs the day once low temps get in the 30-40's since I do not have "freeze" sensor

Sure wouldn’t hurt. Keep an eye on the weather forecast. If your low is 32, it will only be for a few hours and won’t harm a thing. Maybe choose 35 just to be totally safe. Run the pump anytime below that. The 40 degree pool (?) would take 2 days at 32 to get there also. Half a day isn’t enough, much less to freeze the pipes enough for damage to occur. But still. Always better safe than sorry so pick a # slightly above freezing and run below that.

 

[Jurate1]

Thank you NewDude for your helpful input.

 

[texasAUtiger]

As a side note… this is my first season with a pool and mine has consistently used 2-3 ppm of LC per day throughout the summer. However, in the last week—-with water temps still at 74—for the first time I have gotten zero or near zero FC loss in consecutive days. I was wondering when it would happen and was curious what the rate of decline would be and now it’s happening as described above, enough though we’ve had sunny days and temps in the upper 80s.

I‘m still testing daily to see if the trend holds. But it is interesting to see my FC start to turn the corner as Fall sets in.

 

[Jurate1]

Thank you!