Winter closing - winterize skimmer hole and water levels

[miguelrg]

Hi everyone!

Sorry this is a topic that has been brought up again and again, and after reading through many posts and forums I still haven't found a convincing explanation that also fits what I've seen pool professionals do. This year is the first I've decided to close the pool myself so I am kind of worried that I'm missing something. Here is the process I've followed:

1. Lower pool water level below returns: I've read various opinions on this. In principle it seems that you don't need to do this, you can just blow air and while doing that insert the plugs. I was a bit scared of doing that so I decided to play it safe and lower below level of lowest return.
2. Blow water out of all lines. I used a 3.5HP wet-vac for this and it seemed to work just fine. I had a compressor ready but it wasn't required in the end.
3. Remove drain plugs from pump, filter and water heater.
4. Plug winter rubber plugs into returns (my pool has 3)
5. Plug winter rubber plugs into the 2 skimmer holes (one goes to pump, the other one goes to pool main drain)
6. Place winter mesh cover.

My doubts are mainly with step 5. While doing this I realized the pool water level is not lower than the bottom of the skimmer. This means that without the plug the water will come up and fill up the bottom of the skimmer.

Question 1: Is there a chance water can leak out of the drain pipe through the rubber plug and fill up skimmer bottom? The plugs seem in good shape (I cannot see any cracks) but in this case there is water pressure from the pipe upwards and I'm not sure if the plugs are designed for this.
Question 2: Rain water/snow can still fill up the skimmer with water (see picture of skimmer hole with the plugs after some rains we had in the last few days). I have read that this is not good and people use gizmos or RV antifreeze, but I'm pretty sure the folks who closed the pool previous years didn't do anything special about this. Is there real danger of water freezing inside skimmer hole and damaging it? How do I prevent this from happening?
Bonus question: Is it really necessary to lower the water level below the returns, or is it fairly easy to insert the plugs while blowing air and still get a good seal? I was scared this wasn't going to work well with my wet-vac.

Thanks so much!

 

[MostlyCanuck]

Sounds like your 2nd hole in skimmer is the equalizer line to the main drains. It will keep on filling skimmer back up, indeed!
Before you blow your suction to skimmer, plug that hole first to isolate the equalizer/drain line. In colder climates, before plugging it, you'd stuff foam rope in the main drain line, too. Where you live, not sure you need to - up to your comfort level I guess.
Once the line to the main drains is isolated, you can blow out the suction (add antifreeze if you like) and plug it (gizmo or regular plug).
Now your skimmer is dry. The gizmo and antifreeze are added so that if water freezes/expands within the skimmer, it doesn't crack the skimmer walls.

 

[miguelrg]

Thanks! What you describe is what I did (I did not use foam rope or antifreeze as the pool company didn't seem to use any of those).

"Now your skimmer is dry"

This is what concerns me: as soon as I get rain/snow, the skimmer starts filling up (like I showed in the picture). Will that crack the skimmer walls as you mention? Do I need to use the gizmo instead of a rubber plug for this? I'm pretty sure the pool folks didn't use

 

[Newdude]

Do I need to use the gizmo instead of a rubber plug for this?

You can also cut up a pool noodle and stuff the skimmer and mouth, or use a half full milk jug / 2 liter soda bottle. The bottles or gizmo will allow the eventual ice to expand without harm. The pool noodle will take up 90% of the skimmer in the first place and the little bit of water that gets in there can't do any harm.

 

[skimmerswimmer]

I use a cyclone blower to clear my lines. I have 3 valves feeding my pump, one for the 2 skimmers (sharing a line), one for the main drain, and one for a separate vacuum line/port. I bring the water below the returns, remove the pump, put the multiport on recirculate and blow out the return lines from the pump area, which also clears the pipes to the heater. I then blow out the vacuum line and close the valve. I then plug the closest skimmer, go to the furthest skimmer and blow out the line toward the pump area. This clears the entire line. I put gizmos into both skimmers. Finally I blow out the main drain until I get a massive volcano effect in the deep end, then close the main drain valve and plug the pipe which usually feeds the pump. I break down and clean the filter and put the filter and pump in my garage. I drain both headers on the heater, shut off the gas valve and cover it for the winter. After making sure the robot cleans the entire pool, I string two floaters across the water and put some 3" tabs in each to keep some chlorine in over the winter. Then the diving board comes off and the cover goes on. I put the diving board in the shed. Sometimes during the winter when it's not frozen, I will drop the robot in and clear out any leaves/worms that make it under the cover. I usually let the water rise up to the bottom of the skimmer mouth so the snow load doesn't pull the cover down too low. I think the Loop-Loc Meyco covers can droop about 18" before they get damaged.

 

[miguelrg]

Thanks everyone for the responses. In the end I stuffed a noddle at the bottom of the skimmer, next to the rubber plugs. That hopefully will help with ice forming/expansion. With the rubber plugs I don't think any water should get into the lines. I guess I'll find out in the spring.