worried about brief polar vortex freeze this week

[Liz70]

Hi everyone!

We are planning to open our 21' above ground pool today. The weather here in Ottawa has been nice (about 60-70F) the past 9 days and we are starting to grow algae and the pool is getting green so I feel it should be done sooner than later.

The problem is, we are supposed to get 4 nights in a row beginning Thursday where the temps drop to -1c and -2c (about 28F) with day temps only about 40F.

Should we wait or if I run the pump 24/7 will it be ok? The current pool water temp is 12c (54F). I really want to get some chemicals in there and filtered. Thanks for any help you can give.

 

[Donldson]

Keep the pump running and you'll be fine. You'll be experiencing the equivalent of Southern Winter, the water won't freeze as a whole and running the pump prevents any small pockets of water in the plumbing or filter system from getting cold enough to solidify.

 

[Liz70]

Thanks Donldson. I would just be worried in case we had a power outage. But I suppose it would have to be a LONG power outage for the pipes etc to really freeze at those temps.

 

[wayner]

Hi everyone!

We are planning to open our 21' above ground pool today. The weather here in Ottawa has been nice (about 60-70F) the past 9 days and we are starting to grow algae and the pool is getting green so I feel it should be done sooner than later.

The problem is, we are supposed to get 4 nights in a row beginning Thursday where the temps drop to -1c and -2c (about 28F) with day temps only about 40F.

Should we wait or if I run the pump 24/7 will it be ok? The current pool water temp is 12c (54F). I really want to get some chemicals in there and filtered. Thanks for any help you can give.

I wouldn't be in haste to open the pool. So what if it gets algae? You just shock it and it clears up in a couple of days. Lots of peole don't open their pools until June, at that is in Southern Ontario where it is a few degrees warmer on average.

 

[PoolGate]

You don't need to open the pool to treat the algae. Just throw in a gallon or so of bleach (chlorine) and mix it with your brush. Wait to turn on equipment until the freeze is over.

 

[wayner]

Assuming that the second law of thermodynamics still holds, do you even have to mix it around?

 

[ajw22]

Read what conditions it takes to actually cause freezing. It takes more then a short dip in temperature.

The Physics of Freezing and Freeze Protection

Recently, there have been a lot of questions from those living in moderate climates about using automatic freeze protection or running pumps to prevent freezing and what a pool owner should do when temperatures drop so I thought it might be useful to have a thread which dealt with the issue from...

www.troublefreepool.com

Also you may find Preparing Pool for Cooler Months - Further Reading helpful.