I just closed my swimming pool for the season. For some readers this may seem early, however I live in eastern Ontario, Canada and the season ends pretty quickly Closing Swimming Poolsaround the beginning of Sept. The weather is still nice, but really it is not fun swimming when the air temperature is starting to cool off. Some people seem to enjoy swimming when the air is cold and the water is warm and heated by a pool heater. Closing Swimming Pools, it is time to do it. However we do not enjoy this and besides it is a huge waste of energy. If you live in the southern US or even in Southern Ontario, you can get another month of swimming in.

Closing Swimming Pools – Do It Yourself

Consumers can save a lot of money if they maintain their own swimming pools and open & close the pool each season. However it is important to do it right. If you don’t a lot of damage can be done to your pool over the winter months. If you are going to do it, close your pool properly. Even if this means hiring a pool company the first year to watch and learn how they do it will save you money in the long run. Make notes if you need to and follow instructions from the pool company.

Closing the pool is a sad day, since it means winter is coming with cold and snow. We still have a few months before that happens and we must enjoy the fall as much as we can. I am digressing here so back to the main point about closing your pool.

In our next post, we will explain in detail how to close a pool. However there are a few points we want to emphasize here to ensure that your pool is not damaged during the winter. If the temperature never gets below freezing then you really do not have to be as concerned. With temperatures well below freezing in Canada during the winter, we have to take extra care in closing the pool.

Here is our list.

  • Lower the water level below the return lines
  • Blow the lines to get all of the water out of the lines
  • Plug the lines so water cannot get back in and freeze
  • Drain all water out of the skimmer, the pump and the filter
  • Place Styrofoam in the skimmer to absorb the expansion of the ice
  • Cover the pool to protect the liner from UV rays(your liner will last for many years longer if it is protected from the suns rays when it is closed for the year)
  • Place chlorine and algacide  in the water to prevent build up of algae
  • Shut the power off

More Details

This is a basic list, however if you plan to do all of this yourself to save money there is a more detailed list. After all this is what this web side is all about, check for our next post for a detailed list of steps to follow in closing your pool! Some readers would rather hire a professional company to close and open their pools. This saves them a great deal of work and they also know that the pool is closed properly.

Many readers will keep their pools open until mid October. They use a gas or electric heater to keep the pool water hot enough to swim in. Some people find swimming in cold weather very exhilarating. We are not part of that group. We end up closing our pool earlier than some of our neighbors, but that is just fine with us. My family would not use it anyway. After September 1 the water is just too cool for us along with the weather. I guess we are fair weather swimmers.

Comments are welcome and appreciated as long as they benefit our readers. Spam comments will be deleted. For more seasonal related projects around the home, click here.

Save