If you live in a location where the water is not cold enough that the water would not freeze, you do not need to “close the pool”; instead, just set a minimal schedule for maintenance. As long as the leaves are scooped, the bottom is vacuumed, and there is enough chlorine in the pool, the water will most likely remain clear. Make a splash in worry-free enjoyment with our dedicated Pool Service St Petersburg FL committed to preserving the beauty and functionality of your aquatic haven.
But, how about winter pool maintenance in places that have cold climates? States that deal with rain, ice, snow, and varying temperatures incur significantly greater wear and tear for outdoor swimming pools. This article will talk about winter pool maintenance tips for common problems you should be checking for in your swimming pool during the winter season.
Winter Pool Maintenance: Things You Should Regularly Check
If you have done a decent job winterizing the pool, you must be able to walk away totally until the warmer climate comes in the springtime, at which point you open your pool. However, certain events could happen to the pool during the winter period that could cause damage to the pool – regardless of whether you have appropriately winterized it. It would be good advice to occasionally monitor your pool over the wintertime in order to track things such as the water level. If your pool had a pre-existing issue or developed a problem after it was closed, your pool can be losing water, and its cover might be concealing it from you. Therefore, you should always check on the following:
Level of the pool water
It is a must to check the water level of the pool regularly. Depending on the kind of pool cover you are using, it would not be easy to see if the water level has dropped once there is a covering. If draining of the pool happens without you knowing it during the wintertime, this would almost probably end in a serious collapse of the pool system, regardless of whether you have a fiberglass pool, a vinyl liner, or a concrete pool. If you use a cover such as a tarp, the water level of your pool should remain consistent over the winter. If you have a permeable cover such as a safety cover, the pool’s water level would usually rise during the winter as snow and rain find their way to the pool.
Aside from checking for leaking water, it is just as crucial to monitor for increasing water levels. Rain, snow, and ice could contribute to more water in the pool, and when the water level will rise too high, this might cause some issues. An overfilled pool would cause water to seep out as its water level goes over the designated waterproof level. This water alone can cause harm gradually over time, although a much greater issue is when there is water overfilling the pool and then suffering a deep freeze in the weather. An overfilled pool paired with a quick re-freeze is a formula for disaster.
Among the most pertinent aspects of winter pool maintenance would be to take advantage of warmer weather periods when you may use a compact submersible pump to decrease the water level in your pool to regular winterized ranges and avoid it from overflowing. Reducing the level of water below the entrance of the skimmer will be a good finishing point in draining down the overflowing pool – you would not like to remove too much because many pools require a high-water level to be stabilized in the ground. Just make sure to pump the water far from the pool area sufficiently.
Pool cover
Throughout the winter season, you should inspect the condition of your pool cover. Tarp and waterbag cover, in particular, should be inspected often to ensure that failed water bags are replaced before the cover drops into the pool. Waterbags are infamous for readily breaking or developing holes due to small animals such as squirrels strolling on top of them. Keep a modest supply of waterbags available at all times during the winter to refill them as needed. Fill a waterbag halfway to two-thirds full with water to allow it to expand when the water inside freezes.
Another winter issue using a tarp and waterbag system is larger twigs, sticks, or limbs that fall onto the cover. These pointed objects could easily tear holes into paper-thin tarp pool coverings, so clean up garbage in and outside of your pool as soon as you discover it.
If your pool has a safety cover, you may wish to use the brush and maintenance pole to remove snow from the cover occasionally. Although safety covers are robust and built to withstand snow loading, it is possible to stretch the steel components and create tears in both straps and cover portions. This is particularly critical when you use a sturdy safety cover instead of a mesh safety cover that allows snow to melt in the pool.
Heater
Because the pool heater is often a pricey device on your equipment pad, it makes sense to do everything possible to protect it from harm. Regrettably, pool heaters are prone to pest infestations during the winter season. Pool heaters before were pilot-driven and lacked any electrical components. However, modern pool heaters use an electrical control circuit. If you use a digital pool heater, be sure that the electrical breaker which supplies the heater is turned off.
Chemicals that should be added
Generally, if you winterize your pool properly, which includes increasing the chlorine level, you should not need to add additional chemicals during wintertime. If your pool often turns green in the spring, you may benefit by putting some chemicals to help maintain the green water away. While adding liquid chlorine to your pool is beneficial, without the pump and filter operating, the chlorine will not spread evenly and will gather on the bottom of the pool, bleaching the color from your liner. Rather than adding chlorine, utilize pool enzymes to assist in digesting some of the organic waste in the water. While adding a trace amount of pool enzymes is unlikely to cause discoloration or bleaching of the liner, it will undoubtedly assist in maintaining the water of the pool as clear as possible until spring. Dispensing a pool enzyme product twice or three times over the winter season is an excellent idea, even more so if you are using a mesh safety cover that is known for letting the water turn green before spring.
