Opening a pool at the beginning of each season can be a very time-consuming task. It takes a lot of preparation and work to get it done right. If you have been opening up your pool for many years, you know how long this can take. For those who recently got a new pool or purchased a home with one, this may be new to you. If you are currently thinking about opening a pool for the swimming season, make sure you know what lies ahead of you.
What Items Will You Need for Opening a Pool?
It is important that you have all of the tools ready before opening a pool. That way, you do not waste time trying to hunt things down that you need. Some of the things you need to have handy include a tote for storing your pool cover once it is off of your pool and dry, and the chemicals you need to kickstart the water. You will also want a hose for filling the pool back up. Ideally, you want to have the items that go into your pool clean and ready to put in. This includes the ladder and rails. You should also have a pump to deflate or draw up your pool cover, depending on which type you use. Then, you need a cleaner for the pool cover itself. Once these items are ready, you are ready to begin opening a pool.
You Need to Remove Your Pool Cover That Protected Your Pool During the Winter
The first thing to do is to remove anything on top of your pool cover. This includes water, debris, and leaves. If there is a lot of water, a submersible pump comes in very handy. However, you can also let this dry once the debris is off if you would prefer to wait a few days. Just make sure you use dull items to remove the leaves and debris. If you don’t, you could wind up hurting your pool cover, making it unusable next year.
Once the pool cover is cleaned up and dry, it is time to take it off of the pool. You should have help for this step, as it is not a good idea to try and do it alone. Opening a pool is often a 2-4 person job, depending on how large your pool is. What you want to do is take your pool cover off and clean it. Then, let it dry. Once it is dry, you then want to store it in that tote you set out. This keeps critters from nesting in the pool cover, and helps give you more years of use out of it before it requires replacing.
Then, you will have to walk around the pool and remove any winter plugs you put in. They should be in your skimmer and all jets around your pool. What you want to see is bubbles that rise up in the water when the plugs come out. You also want to install any jets back into your return lines that were taken out when you closed the pool. This is then when you put your pool items back in, like your decking and stairs.
Getting the Water Ready is the Most Important Part of Opening a Pool
Now, it is time to worry about the water in your pool. You want to first, fill the pool back up to optimal levels if it needs it, which most pools do. It should go back to being about halfway up the opening for the skimmer when it is at the right level. Make sure your pump is ready to go at this point so that you can have water circulation going. This helps getting the chemicals dispersed as part of opening a pool. Plus, make sure your filters are also clean and ready for operation.
Now, you want to turn the pump and filters on, so that the water in the pool gets moving around. You may need to prime your pump if it does not start sucking in water right away. To do this, you must turn the system off, fill the entire pump housing with water from your hose, then turn everything back on again. That should get things moving. Now, you should go through and skim out any debris left in your pool. Once your pool is clean, test your water. If you know how to check the chemical levels, then do it at home. If not, take it to your local pool shop and have them test it. Once your water levels are balanced out properly, shock the pool and get your sanitizer in the pool. Once the pool chemical levels are in the right range and stay that way for a full 24 hours, you can enjoy using your pool!
There is Help When You Do Not Want to Tackle Opening a Pool On Your Own
While it may not be a glamorous thing to do, opening a pool is doable with the right knowhow. However, it can take a lot of your time, and if you do it wrong, it could delay using your pool for a while. If you are not sure you can take that on just yet, then seek outside help for it. There are many companies you can pay to have them come out and do it for you. However, what you want is a company with experience. Opening a pool is relatively simple, but when you use a company that also installs and repairs pools at the same time, they are much more likely to notice any problems your pool may have.
Most of the time, opening a pool is easy and straightforward. If you do not know what to look for, however, it could put your pool at risk. Save time, money, and headaches and have Lone Star Pool Services come out and help with opening a pool for you. If there is anything wrong with your pool, you will have the repair people on site to let you know what to do right away!