Caring for your pool in the winter months
The winter time is a bittersweet time of year for pool owners. On one hand all of the BBQs and cookouts generally cease to exist. No more Marco Polo with the kiddos, no more playing catch off the diving board, and no more splash fights. On the other hand, once the autumn months are over and the water gets colder, nature gives you a break and makes your pool a little bit easier to maintain and a little bit easier on your bank account. The information in this article is based in my knowledge from a northern California climate point of view. The coldest temp we see in my area on any given year is around 27°. If you live in colder areas you may need to shut your pool down for the winter.
Once the leaves are down and the night time temps start dropping, your pool will become much easier to care for. You should still try to maintain a weekly schedule when it comes to caring for your pool, but in the winter you may only spend 10 to 15 minutes on it instead of 45 to 60. Or one to two HOURS like you may do in the fall. The first step you should take when you see the nighttime temps start hitting the mid 30s is to set your pump to run in the coldest part of the morning which is right before sun up. The cold water provides excellent protection against algae growth, so less circulation is needed per 24 hours.
I like to see at least 4 hours in the winter time with 2: 30am to 6: 30am being the time most preferred. If you have a pump for your pool sweep or any other accessories that slave off of the flow of the main pump, you will want to make sure you adjust the times that they run accordingly.
Not only can you expect to save money on electricity from lower pump hours per billing period, but you can expect to save money on chemicals as well. In fact it's beneficial to drop your chlorine levels to .5 ppm or lower to prevent algae and bacteria from building up an immunity to chlorine. This is very important... I have seen it many times. Someone keeps their pool at a chlorine level of 5.0 for years on end, the next thing you know there chlorine is about half as effective and the level needs to be raised up to 7.0+ just to achieve proper killing power and sanitation. If you have done your due diligence as a pool owner and removed all of the debris and dirt from the fall season, you should be able to drop your chlorine level safely without seeing any algae growth or negative effects. If your pool has a leak you may prefer to use chlorine tablets containing cyanuric acidto boost your conditioner levels in preparation for the summertime. If your condition or levels are already high, stick to liquid chlorine. Keep an eye on your alkalinity during the rainy season, as the dilution from the rainwater and unknown chemistry will often throw it off (usually low). However understand that if your area gets heavy rain you will just be chasing your tail. Do enough to keep around 80 ppm, but don't worry too much about it. When the rain slows down it will become more important.
The last bit of money you can save is in the form of time. Your skimming and vacuuming times will be drastically reduced because there simply aren't enough ways for debris to get into your pool unless you live next to a dirt field or you have ducks (which are the ultimate enemy of a clean, sanitary pool). You should still give your pool a good brushing. Be sure to always hit the steps as that is where dust and debris settle. Test brush other areas of the pool to see if dirt entered in the past week and is accumulating on the bottom/sides.
Hopefully some of these tips will inspire you to keep your pool looking great even when it's frigid and cold outside!
Visit my Google Business page (Ryan Does Pools) to contact me with any questions.Thanks for taking the time to read.
Ryan Hicks
Owner @ Ryan Does Pools
(916)224-0801
Servicing Pools in Fair Oaks, Citrus Heights, Carmichael and surrounding cities since 2000.
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