Home > Learn > Closing Your Pool

Closing Your Pool

Quick Tips on How to Close Your Pool
•    Make sure before you start that you have all the proper materials needed
•    Add winterizing chemicals (make sure they are pre-dissolved)
•    Choose what type of winterizing plate you are going to use on your pool
•    Drain your pool (if needed)
•    Wedge a plug in the return fitting
•    Disassemble and clean your filter
•    Store your filter in a dry, warm area
•    Check for correct cover size
•    Loop cable through eyelets
•    Inflate and tie up ice compensator
•    Fasten cover to pool
•    Use Cover Clips or Water Tubes

Closing your pool properly is very important. Properly closing your pool will greatly impact how much time you spend on opening your pool in the spring. If you cut corners, your pool will show it.

Do You Have Everything You Need?
     First before starting anything, make sure you have all the supplies you need to complete closing your pool.
•    Cover
•    Skimmer face plate
•    Cable & Winch
•    Cover Clips
•    Winterizing Chemicals
•    Water Tubes
•    Ice Compensator
•    Main Drain Cap (if you have a bottom drain)
•    Air pump to blow the water out of the bottom drain plumbing (Hairdryer,Wet/Dry Vac, Compressor)
•    Screwdriver—Flathead and Phillips
•    Return fitting plug
•    Gizmo skimmer protector (for in-ground pools)

Adding Chemicals
     The addition of chemicals is very important in closing your pool. You don’t want to add just any type of chemicals, but rather winterizing chemicals. Winterizing chemicals have higher concentrations of what you’re adding into your pool, which will last the duration of the winter months.

Balance the water chemistry
Adjust PH to 7.2-7.6.
Adjust Total Alkalinity to 80-120 ppm.
Adjust Hardness to 180-220 ppm.

Vacuum pool to remove any debris on the bottom such as leaves or dirt
Vacuuming the debris will leave less chance for algae over the winter season.

Please remember to follow all instructions on the labels of each product for complete application instructions.

Purchase the correct size Malibu Winter Kit   There are 3 sizes.

Add Malibu Winterizing Powder to your pool
This magic formula gives you double protection against algae and keeps your pool crystal clear for the entire season into spring.

Add Malibu Liquid Super Strength Winterizing Gallon
For the extra protection you need.

Add Winter Alkalizer
This is a PH stabilizer which helps prevent the PH from changing during the winter months. A PH that varies may cause extensive corrosion to pool equipment.

Add Winter Chlor to pool
Will maintain your chlorine residual as long as possible after closing your pool. This helps keep water algae-free during winter. Circulate the water for ½ hour.
Add Metal Out to help keep metals present in your water from staining the liner over the winter.
Place Grease Monkey oil absorber in the water to soak up contaminants that enter the water throughout the winter.

Circulate Filter for 3 hrs
Circulating the filter for 3 hrs will allow a good dispersion of the closing chemicals.

**NOTE** These kits are made to provide protection for your pool water all through the winter season, until you once again open your pool. Inferior kits are on the market. These inferior kits do not give you protection throughout the whole off season. Inferior kits will result in an ugly mess come spring and cost more in start up chemicals than a quality kit.

Aquador Face Plate
     With the Aquador, your first year you must drain your pool below the skimmer opening to install the plate, but after that initial year, you’ll never have to drain your pool again!
     First, remove the skimmer face plate. Using the screws that you removed from the skimmer face plate, install the Aquador face plate. You install this from the inside of your pool. Do not use power tools to attach the Aquador, and avoid over tightening the screws. Over tightening can cause the faceplate to crack. The Aquador faceplate is permanent, and will then stay attached to your skimmer. The Aquador winterizing plate is a bit different than a traditional face plate. It is a clear, flexible plastic door that looks similar to a tupperware lid. This snaps onto the Aquador face plate preventing any water from escaping.
     The following years after installing the Aquador, all you do is snap the lid onto the housing, and you’re done! No more tools or hassles of draining your pool. Now when you open your pool, you don’t have to wait for your pool to fill, you can get started immediately. The Aquador is a great system that saves you time, which means more enjoyment in your pool.

Doughboy Pools
     Doughboy makes a winterizing plate specifically for its own pools.With this system, you want to drain your pool 4 - 6 inches below the skimmer. Loosen the face plate screws, but do not remove
them. This should give you enough room to remove the skimmer, but leave the skimmer face plate loosely attached. Use the same gaskets from the skimmer if they are in good shape. If they are worn, replace them with the ones provided in your winterizing plate kit. Position the winterizing plate from the outside of the pool over the skimmer opening. Make sure the screws are through the openings on the gasket, and then align the holes in the winterizing plate. Make sure not to over tighten the screws, otherwise it can cause the winterizing plate to crack. Aquador also makes a winterizing plate that is made to fit a Doughboy skimmer opening. Follow the instructions for Aquador on how to install.

Return Fitting Plug
     After deciding the skimmer face plate, choose a return fitting plug size. You can purchase a small plug, and just plug up the eyeball of your return fitting, or you can take apart the return and seal the entire opening with a larger plug. Either plug will perform the same task. The plug has a wing nut that you can tighten that causes the rubber plug to expand inside the opening. This fills the gap and restricts water flow. If you have an inground pool, insert a Gizmo skimmer protector to prevent water and debris from getting down into your pipes and also to absorb the force of any ice that may freeze inside the skimmer over the winter.
Drain your water below the skimmer if you do not use an Aquador face plate.

Filter
     Now that all of the openings are covered, you can dissemble the hoses and filter. Unclamp each hose from the filter and the pool. Also, empty any media out of the tank. Replace the media the following season. Hose down and clean the filter tank. Make sure to wipe out and completely dry the inside of your tank. Store your tank somewhere indoors (i.e. garage, shed). Take any hose adapters, clamps, etc. and store them in the strainer to keep from losing them.

! Caution: Do NOT leave media inside your tank, or leave your tank outdoors. Both actions can cause any water left in the tank to freeze. Water freezing can lead to your filter tank cracking.

Putting On Your Cover
     First what you want to do is to make sure you have the right cover. On your cover, it should read two different sizes. The first size is what pool size the cover is made for, and the second size is the actual size of the cover. Your winter cover should be 3feet larger that your actual pool size. So for a 24 foot pool, the actual cover size will be 27 feet. Make sure to check the label before putting your cover on. This can save you valuable time if it is not the right size.
     Next, what you want to do is begin weaving the cable in and out of the eyelets of your cover. Then, inflate the ice compensator and tie it loosely so that it floats in the center of the pool. Make sure to only fill the ice compensator half full. If you fill it too much, it can cause the ice compensator to burst. Slide the cover over the pillow and rails of your pool. Secure the pool cover by attaching the cable into the winch. Tighten the winch, and your cover will secure itself under the rails of your pool.

What Else Can I Do?
     Keeping your cover from flying off can be difficult depending on where you live. Some areas have strong winds that can catch beneath the cover, causing the cover to fly up. Here are a few ways that can help your cover from becoming a parachute.

Cover Clips
     Cover Clips can be used either on its own or in conjunction with the cable and winch. These clips are made of a heavy plastic, that snap the cover onto the underside of your pool rail. You want to
space these clips evenly apart all the way around your pool. Read the packaging to find out how many clips you need on your size pool.

Water Tubes
     Using water tubes is another way to help keep your cover secure. Fill the tubes up with either pool water or water from a hose. Then space these tubes out on the rails of your pool. Tubes work
excellent also if you have a deck or walk-around where you can not secure a cable. In addition to these tips, you can also spray an inch or so of water on top of your cover. The weight of the water will
help keep the wind from getting under your cover.

Email:*
First Name:*
Last Name:*
Address 1:
Address 2:
City:
State:
Zip Code:
Yes, I would like to receive special offers and updates from American Sale!