Pool care in winter

During the cold winter months pool water tends to stay clear with very little help. Generally algae does not appear and I hardly ever see a pool turn green. Any algae growth that does occur is extremely slow.

Of course winterizing is ideal, but many of our pools are not winterized. To these we add an occasional dose of chlorine and run the pump at least once a week. Vacuuming requirements are negligible – once every 3 or 4 weeks is plenty under normal circumstances.

Winterized pools? We cover them and forget them until April or May, which is so much easier.

At the end of the day it is the pool owner who makes the decision and either way we are happy; our pools are always clear and blue.

101 thoughts on “Pool care in winter

  1. Reading this post regarding pool maintenance I noticed a comment from a reader in Florida stating the do two the weather, a whole lot of maintenance is not required. Changing filters, keeping the correct ph balance seems to be real important. Also as a tip, I had a Jandy Vac the was in need of repair and could not find parts for it. I found all the parts I needed from a company in Calilforia called poolparts

  2. Taking care of your swimming pool all year round is very important. Just like a car or even a summer home you need to make sure to winterize it to keep anything from happening to it during a cold long winter. By taking the steps to winterize your pool could save you time and money come spring.

  3. I agree time spent now will make spring start up easier. Have a a good cover and following recomended steps to balance water chemistry is key. We meet all your pool needs at low Prices! Familypoolfun

    Free winterizing chemicals with purchase of a inground safety cover.

  4. Great Article. Customers who properly winterize are happier customers in the spring. Keeping chemicals adjusted during the winter months just puts you ahead of the game in the spring.

  5. Nice post. This post is different from what I read on most blog. And it have so many valuable things to learn.Thank you for your sharing!

  6. My pool is 25000 gallons and we winterize in october/november before closing – add chemicals etc.. Do i need to add chemicals during December, january or february?

  7. Here in Phoenix it never quite gets cold enough to shut down completely. But you can reduce pump time and the need for chemicals is greatly reduced. However, unless your pool is covered you will still need to do some maintenance to remove any debris and dirt

  8. Good article and smartly written – the only thing I would add is to use a bonded copper algaecide to give you an extra level of protection.
    We do this process in all our closings and we have clear pools when they are opened in April!

  9. Wind powered pool heaters? YES! Patent pending technology combines inexpensive equipment with high energy production. Many sizes available or combine several units to power a common heater. Installs easy and installs inline with existing equipment… if wind isn’t blowing, your existing system operates as normal.

  10. Whats winterizing? Oh yea, I operate in Floirda! I was gonna say, should I go back to school. LOL. Either way works, I would difinitly keep it covered in the winter time if i lived anywhere else but florida. This also keeps all the debris from the storms and such out of the pool and keeps in about 97 percent of air temp for evaporation and etc. I would still check it once per mo. while covered to make sure it doesnt need a tab of chlorene!

  11. hi,
    My above ground pool has been winterized. We used an equalizer pillow and winter cover. We live in connecticut and have experienced a brutal winter. Had very thick ice on top of the pool cover. The last few days we have been able to run the pump to get the melted ice off the cover. The problem is that the volume of water in the pool itself seems to have gone down over the winter. Could the walls have expanded that much to make it appear as though we lost water?

  12. We live in Nevada and we continue to maintain our pools in the winter, but it’s very low maintenance. I hate that I can’t use half my yard for half the year, but during summer the pool is great!

  13. Out here in California, people swim year round for the most part, so we don’t worry too much about the winter time. I will say that it is all about keeping the water balanced, the pool clean, and your equipment up to date. I can only imagine how much business you cold environment pool service guys get come Spring when everyone is ready to swim, and their pool equipment wasn’t properly maintained. That is a lesson you only have to learn once.

  14. I believe that “winterizing” your pool is always a good idea to protect your pool from freezing water. Covering it will keep it clean and it will be easier to open it later on.

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