Closing your pool properly makes next years’ start up easy and avoids expensive clean up and repairs. If you can’t use your pool during the winter months, you should protect your investments and shut down the pool completely.
Follow This Easy Guide:
1. Bring a water sample to English & Lepage or your nearest pool dealer to find out what is needed to balance your water and insure there are no irregularities.
2. Adjust the alkalinity to 80 – 150 ppm.
3. Adjust the p.H to 7.2 – 7.6
4. Adjust calcium hardness to 150 – 280 ppm.
5. Add a sequestrian (Stain & Scale) agent to guard against metal stains and bathtub-ring during the winter.
6. Physically clean the pool. Brush the pool sides and vacuum the bottom. Clean out the skimmer basket and the pump’s hair trap. Store both the baskets.
7. Shock treatment (HiberShock) is necessary to oxidize any dissolved organic material that physical cleaning and filtration could not remove. Run the pump and filter for a few hours to insure thorough distribution. For extra protection a floating chlorinator can be used.
8. Because the fall temperatures are unpredictable, it is recommended that an algaecide (Banish) be used to protect the pool from algae growth. When the filtration system is not operating, algae can take over very quickly.
9. Partially drain the pool to about 3 - 4” below the bottom of the skimmer. Drain / blowout all lines and plug all outlets. Unscrew and remove directional ball from centre and each outlet and plug with a winterizing plug.
10. Install cover over your pool and secure it with water bags around the full perimeter to prevent debris and wind from going under the cover. The bags also prevent the cover from the wind damage.
***Some people prefer not to completely shut down their pool. In this case the filtration system is kept running, in some cases only a few hours a day. In the event of the temperature dropping below freezing, the filtration system should be kept on full time to prevent the pipes from freezing.***
WINTERIZING YOUR FILTER
1. Drain the filter by opening all plugs also the two plugs on the pump – turn handle to winterize to aid drainage. Store plugs in a safe place such as the hair and lint basket.
2. Remove the pressure gauges and store inside.
3. Leave all gate valves three quarters open (except in basement installations).
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