Pool Maintenance | How to Open Your Swimming Pool for the Summer

Opening your swimming pool for the season can be exciting. We highly recommend that you use a professional pool company to perform the opening and closing of your pool. Much like winterizing a home a professional with the knowledge and experience can save you a lot of time and money!

Pool Opening Tips

Taking The Cover Off

The very first thing you need to do is remove the cover from your pool. If you have a safety cover, you will need an installation rod and hex key to remove the springs from the anchors and screw them down flush to the concrete.Again a professional is recommended for this process. Did you know that The Pool Guyz of Virginia Beach will close your pool for FREE when you purchase a pool cover from them?

If you have a standard tarp cover with water bags, just remove the water bags and empty them to store for the winter.  Remove any debris and drain the water off of the cover. You don't want the debris falling in the pool and draining the water will make your job a lot easier.

Fold the cover in half continually until it's easy to remove the cover from the pool.

Remove The Winter Plugs

Walk around your pool and find all the return lines. Remove the winter plugs with a screw driver from all the return lines. Air usually comes out when this is done if the pool was closed properly. Most pools have 2-3 returns, some have 4. Replace the plugs with eyeballs to circulate the water.

Remove the "Gizmo" from the skimmer or the ice compensator and replace the baskets.

Your pool will probably be a light green color. Make sure your pool is filled mid-way up the skimmer opening before starting your filter system.

Get Your Filter System Ready

Before you start your filter system, make sure all of the drain plugs are properly installed. Your filter system should have one main drain plug and your pump may have two. It's always a good idea to store your plugs in your filter basket for the winter season so they'll be easy to find when it's time to open the pool for the summer!

Replace the pressure gauge on your filter as well as any other parts that belong.

Check the o-ring on your pump lid to make sure it’s in good condition. Bend it between your fingers to check for cracks. If everything looks ok, just apply a Teflon-based o-ring lubricant before screwing the pump lid back on.

Once everything is in place, start your filter system.

Note: Your pump may have to be primed if no water is coming through. Turn off the pump and remove the lid. Fill the pump housing with water. You can use a hose or a giant bucket of pool water to do this. Replace the lid and your pump should prime itself. (having trouble getting the pump going? Don't let the water sit uncovered - call in a professional and get your pool up and running as soon as possible)

Depending on the type of filter system you have you will need to clean/replace the cartridge filter.
If you have a salt system you usually need to add salt at the opening of the pool.

If you have questions please as to they type of equipment or how to operate it please consult a professional pool service.

Test and Shock

Once your pool is up and running, take a water sample to your nearest pool dealer to get a professional water analysis done. Make sure you pH and alkalinity are properly balanced.

At this point, it’s a good idea to add the proper sanitizer to your water (i.e. chlorine). You can turn your salt system or chlorination system on high when opening the pool.

Some people like to shock the pool to help in the clearing of the water process.

Cleaning Up

Make sure you clean your winter cover before storing it away for the season. Check your local pool supply dealer for winter cover cleaner. Need a winter cover for your pool? Call The Pool Guyz at 757-463-0600

Vacuuming your pool using a manual vacuum at first is a good idea to get all the heavy debris out (if there is any). After that, you can continue to use your automatic pool cleaner.

Remember if you go it alone it's possible you could ruin equipment or something worse. Call in a professional The Pool Guyz serve Virginia Beach- it's worth it!

Have a Splash & Enjoy Your Cool Pool!