Closing your pool for the season
When to close the pool and what products to use
October is the perfect time to close your pool. The following tips will not only save you time and money, they’ll also reduce the quantity of polluting chemicals you’ll need to use and extend the lifespan of your pool.
One day before closing::
Run the vacuum.
Backwash the filter.
Balance the pH.
Do a final chlorine treatment, but add more than the usual dose. If you have a saltwater system, increase the treatment intensity.
Good to know
Since the water is clean and cold at this time of year, increasing the chlorine dosage should be enough to disinfect it properly.
What products should you use to close the pool?
You can usually use your routine maintenance products to winterize your pool, but at a higher dosage. Chlorine and a pH stabilizer, for example, are just some of the products you’ll use to close your pool at season’s end.
Cleaning the liner and cover and lowering the water level
To remove a visible ring around the pool liner, rub it with a damp cloth. Avoid using cleaning products, as they can alter the chemical balance of the water.
If you have a solar cover, remove it, spread it out on the ground, and hose it off gently. Once the cover is dry, fold it up and store it out of the rain and sun.
Using the Drain setting on the filter, drop the water level to about 1 ft. (30 cm.) below the return lines. Don’t forget to remove the return fittings; to do this, simply unscrew the nuts.
Emptying the lines
Emptying the lines of an aboveground pool is easy. Simply disconnect them and let gravity do the rest.
But since the pipes of an inground pool are buried, you may want to use a shop vac or leaf blower to blow them out. Here’s how:
Connect the shop vac or leaf blower to the first return line you disconnected.
Wrap some duct tape around the fitting to seal it temporarily.
Make sure the unit is set to Blow mode and turn it on. The air pressure will blow the water out the other end of the return line.
Maintain the pressure until every drop of water is out of the line.
Drain all the lines the same way.
Even if the line from the pump to the skimmer is empty, take the following precautions:
Pour about ¼ gallon (about a litre) of antifreeze into the skimmer.
Push a piece of foam rope (the kind normally sold as weather stripping) down into the line. If it freezes, the ice will compress the foam rather than expand inside the pipe.
Plug the opening.
Good to know
Inground pools are susceptible to water infiltration. Screw plug caps on the return lines to keep water out. For a tighter seal, use Teflon tape around the threads. This step is important: fall rains and a thaw could raise the water level above the return lines and even up to the skimmer.
If your pool has a bottom drain, the pipe from the main drain to the skimmer will remain full of water up to the same level as in the pool. Protect this line against freezing by following the steps above:
- Pour in some antifreeze (about ¾ gallon [3.4 litres] in this case).
- Push in some foam rope.
- Close the valve at the skimmer.
Protecting the skimmer
Water in the pool can rise and freeze over the winter, so it’s important to keep it out of the skimmer. You can get styrofoam pool skimmer blocks (or reusable plastic protector) at your local pool store. First insert a rectangular block into the bottom of the skimmer, then push in a second one trimmed to fit the top section.
Pro tip: Push one or two pins (or wooden skewers) through the blocks to hold them together.
Storing the pool pump and winterizing the filter
Once all the lines have been disconnected and the power cord has been unplugged:
Remove the water from the pump and clean the basket if necessary.
Store the pump in a frost-free location.
Empty the filter bottle, then set the handle to Winterize.
Once all the water is out, don’t replace the plug.
Putting on the cover and other winter precautions
Pool covers left out in the open can be damaged by UV rays.
Since they are expensive (especially for inground pools), it’s worth going the extra mile to make them last as long as possible!
Keep the winter cover on until it’s time to reopen the pool in the spring.
For an inground pool, lay the cover flat and secure it using lawn stakes.
For an aboveground pool, use a winch and cable system to secure the cover around the pool.
Save the animals...from themselves
Animals can sometimes venture onto your pool cover in the fall and end up trapped to the point of exhaustion.
Pro tip: Place a board diagonally across the pool so they have a way to climb out. Remove it once temperatures start to drop below freezing.
Remove dead leaves
Be sure to remove fallen leaves in late fall. Otherwise, they will decompose and it will be harder to get your water back in shape for swim season. You can also stretch a leaf net cover across the pool during the period when trees are losing their leaves.
Pro tip: To keep the net and leaves from getting wet, place a ball between the net and the pool cover.
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