Backyard Blogging.

The short answer is not yet. The long answer is that it depends. In this article, we break down when you should close your pool so you can decide what works best for you.

Let’s answer the question, “When should you close your pool?”

We always encourage our customers to close late and open early. In the long run, this saves you money and time in the spring when you open your pool. It also means you can enjoy your pool longer.

Closing late and opening early means closing your pool sometime in October or November and opening back up in March or April. We recommend waiting until your pool water temperature is consistently below 65 degrees for several days. TIP: don’t wait until a freeze to do it, though.

While many of our customers close their pools each winter, some leave them open. They aren’t necessarily using them in the coldest parts of winter, but they still enjoy the view. Other customers extend their seasons with pool heaters.

If you are thinking about closing your pool, here are a few things to consider.

What is the Temperature?

People across the United States will close their pools at different times. Someone in northern California may wait until November, while someone in Idaho may close in September.  Other people in other states may never close their pools.

In our part of the country, most people close their pools sometime in late September, October, or November. If you don’t have a pool heater, you will probably opt to close earlier.

If you wait to close your pool, you must keep your pump running and your water moving. This keeps it from freezing. If you lose electricity and the temperature drops below freezing, your water will freeze in your pump and filter.

When you close your pool, you don’t have to worry about freezing because you’ve winterized it and drained the water from the system (but not out of your pool).

How Many Trees Do You Have?

If your trees are overhead and dumping leaves in your pool, you might also want to close earlier. You can clean up the leaves, but if a lot of them are falling, it can be a real hassle.

However, we have many tools at our Ultra Modern stores to help you with leaf clean up.

If leaves are already in your pool, you’ll want to remove them and clean the pool before closing. Why? They will stain your pool.

Do You Want to Keep Maintaining It?

If, by late September or so, you are tired of maintaining your pool and aren’t concerned about the view, you might want to consider closing it until spring.

Is Your Pool Ready to Close?

Before you put the cover on, run through this quick checklist:

• Water temperature has stayed below 65°F for several days.
• You’re done swimming for the season and have turned off the heater.
• The water looks clean and clear, with no visible algae.
• You’ve removed leaves and fall debris from the pool and deck.
• You have time to test and balance the water, then let it circulate before closing.
• Your cover hardware, plugs, tools, and winterizing supplies are ready.
• You can finish closing the pool before freezing weather arrives.

Don’t close over a problem. Winter chemicals won’t clear up cloudy or green water under the cover. Get the water in good shape first, and you’ll have a much easier time opening your pool next spring.

Time to Winterize to Close Your Pool

When it comes time to close and winterize your pool, you can do it yourself, or you can have our expert service techs take care of it for you.

If you’re doing it yourself, here are some tips:

• Thoroughly clean and brush your pool.
• Vacuum the bottom.
• Bring us a water sample for your free water test.
• Shock and sanitize your swimming pool.
• Let the chemicals filter for 24 hours.
• If you drain some water, don’t go below the skimmer.
• Remove the plugs and water from your pump and filter system, as well as your heater.
• Blow out your pool’s plumbing lines and plug them in. Add a skimmer plug.
• Put away any removable ladders, handrails, steps, diving boards, and toys from the pool.
• Cover your pool.

Sound like a lot to close your pool? We can do it for you. Contact our service department today!