Winterizing Intex 18'x52" Ultra Frame pool in the Northeast

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Emodafferi

New member
Jul 31, 2020
3
Pleasantville, New York
Hey all! Hoping for some crowd-sourcing ideas/help. I have the above pool and realize that the proper way is to completely drain and take down this pool as the weather in NY definitely goes below 41 degrees in the winter. My issue is this - I spent a SIGNIFICANT amount of time and sweat equity (tears, curses, etc.) leveling the ground with sand. If I take down the pool completely, how do I protect my work from being destroyed with the winter snow, rain, wind, etc.?

Short of that, because I'm a solo parent with limited "free" time and realize that this is not a forever pool anyway... if I go against the recommendations of Intex and winterize it without taking it down, (fully recognizing I'm taking the chance of ruining the liner), do you have any recommendations or tips/tricks to give myself the best opportunity for it to make it through the winter? Any advice would be greatly appreciated. Thanks so much!
 
Welcome! :wave: Actually, you do not need to tear it down. May pools in your area remain up year-round. They follow general winterizing procedures with great success. Consider referring to the link below and let us know if you have other questions.

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 www.troublefreepool.com
 
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Hi, from CT
We're in the same predicament, in wanting to keep the pool up year round. Our neighbors have had theirs now going on 6 years, so I know is is possible. I just bought a BlueWave 12 - Year Winter Pool Cover tho it is over sized as I could not find anything that is rectangular and a 42 inch tire inner tube (stronger than those pillows they sell). I placed 2x10 boards (vertical) surrounding ours due to needing to dig out a level space and having to hold back some of the yard. I am going to put eye hooks into the wood and bungies to hold the cover down (2 per eyelet). Other than that I guess it is just adding the correct chemicals for the winter and following the general guidelines for winterizing.
 
Winterize the plumbing to protect it from freezing water damage. Cover the pool and hope for the best.

Your risks large depend how hard of a winter we get and how much snow pack. The last few winters have been easy.
 
I'm brand new to this forum, but have had an 18x48 Intex pool for a few years. Following general winterizing instructions for above ground pools (at least for me) has worked. I should note though that we have been graced with a couple of mild winters as of late. But was it 3 years ago? We had a cold one and I'm pretty sure there was like a foot and a half of ice on mine. YMMV, so like you said, you know you're assuming some risk, and I can only relate my experience here in Pennsylvania.

@CT-Steven I've heard from someone who tried an innertube before that he had to scrub off a bunch of black rubber goo from his pool that was quite hard to get off in the spring.
Emodafferi said:
Hey all! Hoping for some crowd-sourcing ideas/help. I have the above pool and realize that the proper way is to completely drain and take down this pool as the weather in NY definitely goes below 41 degrees in the winter. My issue is this - I spent a SIGNIFICANT amount of time and sweat equity (tears, curses, etc.) leveling the ground with sand. If I take down the pool completely, how do I protect my work from being destroyed with the winter snow, rain, wind, etc.?

Short of that, because I'm a solo parent with limited "free" time and realize that this is not a forever pool anyway... if I go against the recommendations of Intex and winterize it without taking it down, (fully recognizing I'm taking the chance of ruining the liner), do you have any recommendations or tips/tricks to give myself the best opportunity for it to make it through the winter? Any advice would be greatly appreciated. Thanks so much!
Click to expand...
 
I have the same pool as you (new this year). I am in Illinois and I plan to keep mine up through the winter. From what I have read, there are risks taking it down as well as keeping it up, so it seems there are no guarantees whichever way you go. I am not experienced, but my plan is to shock it, lower the water, take off all the plumbing parts, put in a pillow and winterpill and cover it. I will also wrap it all the way around with pool wrap. It seems that closing it late and opening it early increases the chances the water will be clear. Fingers crossed :)
 
I have the same pool (in NC) and was thinking of winterizing instead of taking down but I am concerned about the sides. As you know, With as your drain water to get it below the skimmer and input holes, the sides are going to move in because they are normally supported by the water. Anyone have experience with winterizing this way. Any tips for us beginners?88B69241-4849-4190-B9D6-6CE144D1E0BE.jpeg
 
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That's why I'm going to place the stoppers that came with the pool into the returns, and drain it a just a few inches below the skimmer I added.
 
Even if I drain just an inch or so below the skimmer I will be at roughly the same water height. Just worried about the long sides (24’) bowing in too much. Thoughts!
 
My previous intex pool sat almost empty for 3 years before I inherited it, but it's round, so I can't speak to your exact situation, except to think that there is still water pressure pushing outward onto the sides, and nothing pushes inward, right?
 
I am not draining. Will chemically treat, remove the intake and returns and plugging them. The pump, filter, and SWG will be drained, cleaned, and brought inside. I will center the Pool Tree System and cover. Will use (2) bungies at each eyelet that drop down to eye hooks (2 anchor locations per eyelet) that are mounted to the 2x10 surrounding wood barrier. This is my first go round... Will be closing within the next 2 weeks...
 
Just did mine today. I'll have to upload a pic tomorrow, because I had to feed two grandkids when I got done, then it was dark by then.

The pool pillow pal worked great , put the cover on, then winched it down. Then, we wrapped it with the pool wrap, then put the leaf net over that. I'll take the leaf net off when the trees finish crapping all over the pool.

I think next year, I'm going to try an idea I saw on YouTube, and just put a little toy inflatable ball in the skimmer basket instead of draining it. one of those mini soccer/volley balls from the dollar store with like half the air let out.
 
bover907 said:
Just did mine today. I'll have to upload a pic tomorrow, because I had to feed two grandkids when I got done, then it was dark by then.

The pool pillow pal worked great , put the cover on, then winched it down. Then, we wrapped it with the pool wrap, then put the leaf net over that. I'll take the leaf net off when the trees finish crapping all over the pool.

I think next year, I'm going to try an idea I saw on YouTube, and just put a little toy inflatable ball in the skimmer basket instead of draining it. one of those mini soccer/volley balls from the dollar store with like half the air let out.
Click to expand...
A jug of winter windshield washer fluid or a jug of rv antifreeze will work well too.
 

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