How to Winterize a Pool: Closing a Pool for Beginners: Closing a Pool for Winter: Draining your Pool

[@KB-cu5up]

Best video I've watched on pool closing so far, and I watched a bunch! Finally have the confidence to close the pool by myself. Quick question - you mention to fill the water level back up within 2" of the bottom of the skimmer if you have a mesh cover. My pool company did not do that before. I live in NJ and we get quite a bit of rain. Is it ok to put the mesh cover on with the water level below the return jets? Thanks!

[@Poolelementary]

Thanks for watching and were glad we could help! For your Question I Recommend the water level to be within 10 to 12 inches from the top of your pool because that is what a lot of safety cover companies want for warranty coverage. Now I'm not familiar with NJ rain fall but you should be safe if your water is within 12 to 18 inches to the top of the pool if you get rain before snow. In Montana where i'm from we usually just get 2 feet of snow before rain and the pools that had the water level below 16 inches from the the top ended up busting a few springs on the cover which is no big deal just 14 dollars a spring. So long story short depending on how low your return jets are is the question? If there over 18 inches deep put a little water in to be safe.

[@littleb2809]

Canada, great video, thanks!

[@COOLBREEZE1976]

This video was top notch. Thank you! Save me $350.

[@Poolelementary]

Glad to help!

[@wudgee]

New pool owner here, I just thought you turn the pump off for winter, now I know there’s more to it. Thanks.

[@Poolelementary]

Thanks for watching wudgee!

[@mommamiap]

Great video. I've been closing our pool for 20 years and there is always something to learn. Thanks!

[@Poolelementary]

Thanks for watching Maria!

[@candicematelski8549]

I just closed my pool using these directions! I hope it all works! Thanks for the very detailed instructions!

[@Poolelementary]

Your welcome Candice and thanks for watching!

[@candicematelski8549]

@@Poolelementary ok trying it again this year....

[@dukeplc]

Wow. what a great video. could not have been more complete. Thank you.

[@Poolelementary]

Thanks for watching!

[@MySlowTV]

Thanks for the multiple cases you went over. It was useful to me that you directly said to blow through the cartridge filter!

[@angeloromero2695]

Great videos bro great to hear on my spare time thanks

[@JimTiburzi]

Excellent video. Thanks for being so comprehensive and mentioning other types of filter systems.

[@12287boss]

I'm in northeastern pa, thanks for posting all these informative videos I really appreciate it, I also watched your Mini split series .

[@Poolelementary]

Thanks for watching!

[@jimwoods7639]

I just wanted to say Thank You for this excellent video tutorial! I am going to attempt to close my in ground vinyl liner pool for the first time this year mainly because we can not find anyone to do it this year. I feel pretty confident that your video will guide me through the process. Thanks Again!

[@Poolelementary]

Thanks for watching Jim and hope it goes well for you.

[@boewing7781]

Great job, learned a lot. Now I am ready to close myself. Thanks

[@Poolelementary]

Good to hear and thanks for watching! Hope you save some 💰 money!

[@BlushandRosie]

Tip for the lock covers. Use a screw bit backwards in your drill to open/close them instead of doing them by hand.

[@clifforddavidson2332]

Great Video!

[@Poolelementary]

Thanks for watching Clifford!

[@irvingguerrero7303]

Excellent video. Thank you

[@Poolelementary]

Thanks for watching Irving!

[@joshbledsoe1817]

Great content, excellent explanation and just a joy to watch!! Keep the videos coming!!

[@monkeylordofdoom14]

So helpful thank you!!

[@toddj.8245]

Great video I do pools amd this one of the best videos i have seen

[@jpaulferguson7690]

Great video! Very informative!!

[@Poolelementary]

Thanks J Paul Ferguson!

[@lahndee2020]

the growth of my anxiety after buying a home with a pool😳😖

[@vanzantd8850]

Pools are not very complex. If you just calm down and understand all it is, is a body of water and water coming in being pressurized by a pump through a filter to clean it and returning back to the pool. It’s truly not as complicated as people want to believe it is.

[@livingwithlexyoutube]

Same 😂😂😂

[@kathyr.6825]

I was so nervous as a new pool owner this summer but it turns out it was pretty simple once I calmed down… mine is even saltwater with a lovely sand filter and the water was almost always crystal clear with not much work!!! Plus it was so much fun!

[@erinrife]

Hire a professional until you're ready to take it over. Baby steps. We've owned our pool for 5 years and are just now closing it ourselves. The quote to close the pool this year in 2024 was double what it was in years past. $700+ to close a pool is a JOKE. So we're forced to do it ourselves.

[@OlinkaIsNasty]

Same here 😂

[@v.g.6944]

Nice video. I dont have any shut off valves on the pipes to/from the pump...

[@Poolelementary]

Thanks for watching. With no shut off valve on the suction side of the pump means blowing the lines out the best you can and Rv or pool Antifreeze is a must your gonna have to try to get a gallon down the drain line any way you can. I highly recommend installing shut off valves on the suction lines but I have had this sitTemps. Before and as long as the lines going into the ground to the pool are atleast 2 feet above your water level and you can get Antifreeze into the lines I have had success with the lines not freezing in below freezing temps. Shut off valves are highly recommended and I definitely need to do a video on how to install them. Thanks!

[@v.g.6944]

@@Poolelementary thanks for your reply.

[@ES_JEFE_FUTBOL]

Beautiful video

[@LubaLuba1]

Nice video did you ever do a video on your pool heater ? If not can you tell me a little about it I would like to get one too still gets get pretty cold unfortunately still in the summer up in the northeast. TY

[@Poolelementary]

Thanks for watching and no videos on installing new pool heaters yet but soon. when it comes to pool heaters there is a wide variety. It totally depends on if your pool is inground or above ground and the size of the pool. Also you need to have natural gas or propane to run them unless your thinking electric which you can't use on above ground pools and they can run your electric bill sky high.

[@LubaLuba1]

@@Poolelementary I have a inground gunite pool approx 20k gals what is your model and did you pay a lot ? My filter is inside my house..

[@mikehaidsiak4589]

Just watching this video for the first time, very informative, thanks. My question is how do you tell when you’re done blowing out the main drain? Thanks again

[@Poolelementary]

Hey Mike thanks for watching and I normally blow out the drains until I get a steady flow of bubbles coming from them in the pool.

[@mikehaidsiak4589]

@@Poolelementary thanks for the feedback, much appreciated

[@oscarlontoc8284]

Very helpful closing guide I am a 2-year old in-ground pool owner First year was a disaster with my solid tarp cover Where can I source a reasonably priced mesh cover? Thank you

[@Poolelementary]

Hi Oscar, I do order some of my customers safety covers through glipoolproducts.com or you can Google pool safety covers and you will get a bunch of options and prices.

[@Hannah-bp2nn]

You are so young! My 7 month old daughter couldn’t close the pool this year but we think by next year she will be able to do it on her own. 😉

[@josephteneriello6346]

Great video! One question. I drained my pool JUST below the returns, about 15 inches below the top of the pool. I use a loop-loc mesh safety cover. The loop-loc website mentions the ideal water level should be 15-18 inches below the top of your vinyl liner pool ( I don't have tiles ) , but you mentioned we should fill ours back up after installing the cover. Should I add more water? I live in MA and we tend to get some decent rain before snowfall in the fall and winter so I'm assuming the water level will probably go up a decent amount before the snow season hits. Thanks again!

[@Poolelementary]

I'm not super familiar with your weather in MA but I would definitely fill it within 18 inches from the top of the pool if that is what loop-loc recommends due to the warranty of your cover. If you do get a early heavy snow you want the center of the cover to be able to reach the surface of the water before it has the chance of popping the springs or even worse tearing the actual cover. It's always cheaper to have to pump out a couple inches of water come spring than having to replace anchor springs or a cover.

[@AndrewWisniewski-o6f]

Great video now make one to open it pls

[@Poolelementary]

Thanks and already have a pool opening video on my channel available.

[@aproenza81]

What setting do you leave your filter on after waste. I have close option on my filter.

[@Poolelementary]

You want to use recirculate to blow out the return lines if your accessing the lines through the pump or pump unions. If you have winter blow out ports and the access points of the lines are past the filter you can use the closed position on the filter if your losing to much air out the pump.

[@Poolelementary]

Don't forget when your done blowing all the lines out to put your filter on winterizing or in between settings to keep your filter valve open also.

[@andrewk4684]

What do you leave the filter set on once closed?

[@Poolelementary]

Either on winterize or if your sand filter doesn't have this feature on its multiport valve just leave it in between any of its settings to make the valve stay open.

[@Sumbaddy129]

Great video. Looks like you guys are somewhere in Canada. I think we are going to close the pool ourselves this year. We've had pool companies blow out our lines but they've never used anti freeze. I guess if it's blown out correctly you don't need it?

[@Poolelementary]

That is true but we use the antifreeze incase our winter plugs fail. When you have to insure every pool you close the antifreeze is just an extra precaution.

[@alslewa4738]

Great content and very good explanation. One question, does the main drain need any antifreeze to be added to it or not necessarily?

[@Poolelementary]

Main drain doesn't need antifreeze if you get a good airlock on it with your valve.

[@glennjacobsen6647]

If you can gravity feed about 5 gallon of antifreeze from your pump to the main. The $15-$20 for that peace of mind is well worth it. Main is usually below freeze level, but should you lose water, say hole in liner, the antifreeze will protect the main.

[@glennjacobsen6647]

I shoot all lines, and equipment with antifreeze. That's what I'm being paid for.

[@ZorrodeLaMancha]

@@Poolelementary How do you determine how effective an airlock there is?

[@MrMusic55123]

do you drain it completely or just partially? How about the hydrostatic pressure that could lift the pool out of the ground?

[@Poolelementary]

You just want to drain it below the return jets and I never drain it below 6inches of depth in the shallow end of the pool unless I'm 100% sure there is no hydrostatic pressure due to ground water levels. Thanks for the question and thanks for watching!

[@kylehurtgam7458]

Thanks for the great video! I closed my pool today and couldn’t have done it without your video! That being said, I ran into one problem that I’m hoping you can help with. Going into my pump are 2 lines, one from the shallow end skimmer and the other from a deep end skimmer. My 3 return lines are to the stair jets, a deep end jet, and the 2 floor returns. The problem I ran into was that I couldn’t pump out enough water to get below the stair or deep end jets because my skimmers are about 4 inches higher. I ended up grabbing a submersible sump pump to lower the water level. Could I have used my floor returns to get the water out (by shitting off all the other valves) and essentially had the flow of water going in the opposite direction in order to pump more water out? Or will that damage the heater/salt generator?

[@Poolelementary]

Thank you and glad to here you got your pool closed for the season! With out actually seeing your equipment setup I can only guess but if you don't have a line coming in the front suction side of your pump with the skimmer lines that goes to a deeper suction line such as a floor drain in your pool you really are out of luck to pull the water down any further than the bottom of your skimmers. To use your lower return lines would take a great deal of plumbing adapters do to the pool pump not being able to reverse its water flow. You would have to hook the low return jets line to the front suction side of your pool pump and that just sounds like a nightmare of a project. Lol.. I think you chose the right way to do things with submersible pump. Thanks again for the great comment and have a great winter Kyle! Pool elementary..

[@appstate1996]

Hi Justin, thank you for the video. This was really helpful to me. My pool water/filter lines are different than the setup in the video. I only have one valve on the entire system. So, I guess the skimmer and main drain are all tied together (?). Is that going to be a problem?

[@loriperry9544]

how much shock or chlorine to add when winterizing?

[@Poolelementary]

I like to bring the free chlorine levels up to 3-5 parts per million to make sure it's clean. I can not tell you how much to add do to pool size and what condition your pool water is in currently sorry.

[@johnedwards4715]

Hi. Is that an Inground pool liner type?

[@Poolelementary]

Not sure what your asking but most of the pools in this video are vinyl liner pools.

[@jayshad06]

Hi, do you think I can use a shop vac to blow out the return line with a bungee cap on the return line? it's a 5 hp shop vac. also how can I use a shop vac to clear that return jet line? closing my pool, myself for first time. the guy I paid to open and close this year who has his own business LLC , he sucks and doesn't know what he's doing I can tell because of educating myself now all about pools thanks to guys like you! he closed it last year then I bought house and the Jandy valve wasn't even on the close position to air lock floor drain ! luckily winter wasn't bad in NJ for 2022 I would've bought an expensive house with an expensive repair pool ! he did open but just removed safety cover and drain plugs and installed plugs and gauge and started up pump that was is it no cleaning or nothing else he was done in 15min I watched on my video cam while at work! pool was green as Godzilla! I will be doing everything myself now! lot of rips off people out there that don't care if your pool gets damaged from water freezing up pipes always about the money!

[@Poolelementary]

The shop vac should work but you will have to give it a try to see. Totally depends on how many return lines you have. If it give you good pressure coming out you might have to vacuum them out also.

[@jayshad06]

@@Poolelementary thank you for the quick response!

[@WendyYerkes]

For the winter should my simmer and bottom line be on or off? Also where should I have my filter dial at?

[@Poolelementary]

Drain should be off and airlocked. Skimmer should be open in the pump room. Filter dial should be in Winterize position or stuck up in between setting opening all of its settings

[@WendyYerkes]

@@Poolelementary are my shut of values open or closed?

[@ZorrodeLaMancha]

What should the pressure be set to from the compressor?

[@Poolelementary]

Hi Gregg on the drain if you blow the line and shut the valve you can come back and crack the valve open after 10 minutes or so and you should here air whisping towards you if the valve was holding if not you need to try to get atleast a couple of gallons of antifreeze gravity fed down that line if you can. Air pressure should be 5 to 20 psi but only use what you need so start low and see how that works first.

[@ZorrodeLaMancha]

@@Poolelementary Thank you very much! This is so very helpful. The way you address the details really helps to lower the anxiety when closing a pool! I imagine that doing this wrong could amount to costly repairs if the lines under the patio needed to be dug up.

[@lordgarth1]

Wow. That pump has almost no straight run before the elbow.

[@Poolelementary]

I Know! Most of these pools I work on are as old as me and need of some major over hauls. I'm Surprised some of them even function. Lol

[@ZorrodeLaMancha]

I didn't get any water or air blowing out of the returns when putting the shop vacuum up to blow air into the inside rear hole(motor side) of the pump. I assume it is not to the same portion of the pump as with the skimmer and deep end wall drain because the lines to those are closed off. Could I be using the wrong multi-port filter valve setting? What setting should I use when blowing out the returns? (All the returns worked fine before lowering the pool. I have (2) returns in the main pool & (2) spa jets in the center pool step area at the shallow end. I closed up all the returns except for the one I tried to blow out.)

[@Poolelementary]

I always set the multi port valve to recirculate when blowing out the returns. This bypasses the filter completely.

[@ZorrodeLaMancha]

@@Poolelementary Thank you! I'll try that. I guessing there's no wrong setting but that "Recirculate" is the best one because it isolates the area of concern. My problem is likely also due to a poor shop vac connection to the rear chamber to the pump. I will get a 1/4 compressor fitting adapter & use my compressor to blow out the lines.

[@ZorrodeLaMancha]

My problem was due to having removed my chlorinator. It was literally & figuratively “out of the picture” as it is shrouded by hedges. While thinking through the return route of the water to the pool it became clear that because the chlorinator is in-line to the returns, & because there is no plumbed bypass, that no air pressure would have a path to the returns in its absence. The recycle setting worked great. The waste & backwash setting just blew air out the filter’s waste hose. Thanks again for your support. 👍

[@richardsweat4967]

What is the antifreeze for, if they’re is no water in the lines?

[@Poolelementary]

You don't have to use antifreeze but I do just incase one of the winterizing plugs fail. Antifreeze is just an extra safety precaution and is cheaper then digging up concrete.

[@ivanjadric29]

If you blow lines with air compressor can you go through the heater

[@Poolelementary]

Possibly it just depends on the pools set up and plumbing

[@jayshad06]

I forgot to ask you is there a reason why you Don't use a duck plug or bungee plug for your returns instead of expansion plug ? Figured it's easier just install and push out the water then you can allow your anti freeze in from your winterize ports . Just curious why you don't use those .

[@Poolelementary]

We're in Montana where it gets cold and I have had the pools ice expansion push them open and destroy duck plugs. I Only use the solid plugs now because of that.

[@jayshad06]

@@Poolelementary oh wow ok got it ! But it gets pretty cold here in NJ as well should I worry about that here because that's what I'm going to use should I not ?

[@Poolelementary]

You should be fine I think I just had an unlucky situation but it happened. Note I have closed over 1400 pools so the odds are pretty good of just about every device failing at least once. Lol

[@FixItWithMe]

If I have two return Floor Jets, do I just blow it out like a main drain and air lock it?

[@Audrina-my9li]

hello, is it better to blow out the return line directly from the back side of the pump like you showed, or to unscrew the union at the top of the pump? I think I also have a union between my heater and automatic chlorinator. Which one of these locations would be best, or does it not really matter too much? I'm hesitant to unscrew anything as I haven't closed my pool before by myself and am worried about breaking something accidentally. Thank you

[@Poolelementary]

Hello, I would probably use the union directly above the pump just because it's normally easier than trying to blow through the pump. If you use the one between the heater and your chlorinator you will have to blow the lines in both directions so it's always best to use an access closest to the pump which is the end of the line.

[@Audrina-my9li]

@@Poolelementary thanks so much! In case I have issues unscrewing the union and need to go through the pump there's no risk of damaging the pump in any way though right?

[@Audrina-my9li]

one more Q - if my chlorinator is non-detachable, is it ok to just vacuum it out using a shop vac?

[@cathleenthomason6085]

Where the antifreeze bother you the following summer that’s in the water

[@Poolelementary]

Not at all. Marine antifreeze is made of alcohol which will just evaporate off the water and the coloring will not be noticeable with a pools water volume. Thanks for watching Cathleen!

[@candicematelski8549]

How do you know when the switch in the heater is off or on?

[@toddlaux4150]

If I missed it I apologize, but did you add the antifreeze to the main drain line? If so how did you do it after air locking it?

[@Poolelementary]

I normally just air lock the main drain if the valves are good. If the valve leaks back I replace them.

[@ZorrodeLaMancha]

@@Poolelementary I imagine that you could pour antifreeze down that line & if it takes it then there isn't a good enough vacuum. Does that make sense or would this be impossible?

[@jeffwillits3719]

@@ZorrodeLaMancha I'm just a fellow pool owner like yourself but if you pour antifreeze down that line it would just go into the pool. There are no plugs on the main drain at the bottom of your pool. The air trapped in the line keeps the water from coming back up the line where it could freeze.

[@thomashayer1748]

I used my air compressor and its not working. I see no bubble or feel air coming out the return jets or skimmer. I only feel air coming out the filter pressure gauge slot.

[@kirbynorwalkamerican2065]

Why have a heater and not use it through fall

[@willardrader899]

How come I never see water blowing out of main drain when I blow out

[@Poolelementary]

You should get bubbles out of the drain when blowing it out. If your not you dont have enough air pressure or you are losing air pressure maybe through the skimmer line. Not 100% sure every pool is different. Thanks for watching Willard and Remember Marine Antifreeze is your friend if you can get some down each line.

[@willardrader899]

@@Poolelementary thanks so much .

[@jasonross1761]

Hahaha, at 8:41, what's she doing?

[@vbliving5815]

My pump died. It’s time to close the pool. My pool is turning greener everyday. I don’t want to buy a pump just to close the pool for the winter. What to do?

[@pantloaded]

why wouldn't you put two of the holds for the cover on before walking it to the other side of the pool? it would have been almost done lol

[@desertfox4273]

I run that shit right to the neighbors yard

[@pantloaded]

i think you overcomplicated the hell out of this. if you just bought a pool blower you could do this in 5 minutes.

[@OlinkaIsNasty]

Do I need to outplug the sand filter if it is installed inside the house in a technical room? Thank you!