Winterizing Pool Equipment Tips

August 31, 2016 by cryan.com

Here's the run down of various equipment that we have that we need to make sure they are properly taken care of at the end of each pool season. It's critical to make sure that they are stored correctly for long term care.

We disconnect all the hoses from the pool and make sure that all exit points are closed.

Sand Filter

We take out the cap out of the sand drain and let the water flow out for a couple of days.

We take off the top of the sand filter and store that part in our basement. We keep the screws and nuts in a plastic bag and tape it to the device. The top is stored off the floor well out of the way.

The base is kept outside. It's very heavy to move. We did move it the first year we lived in our house but have found that moving it causes some risk with cracking the device. We keep it in the original location but wrap around some attic installation around it and then put a standard outside tarp then tie everything together with a stretch hook.

Three Quick Tips

• You can not throw away the attic installation as part of household trash, at least not in Framingham. The tarp should protect the installation enough so that you can reuse the installation every year.
• Once the water drains out of the filter, put the cap back. Don't loose the sand drain cap!
• Replace the sand in the filter every 3-4 years.

Pump

At the same time we remove the cap from the bottom of the sand filter, we take the strainer cover off and let the water dry in our Hayward Pump. We disconnect all the pipes and make sure that the basket is nice and clean. Take out the 'O' ring that is under the strainer cover and put in a sandwich bag. This will help the longevity of the 'O' ring.

We then store the entire Pump in the basement.

Three Quick Tips

• Use Pool Lubricant when putting back the 'O' ring in the spring. It will help with a better seal.
• We keep the strong PVC pipe on the Pump, so we don't have to worry about having to connect it again in the Spring.
• If you have a pool pump ground wire, don't bury it in the ground. Connect it to something so you can find it in the spring.

Chlorinator

Once the hoses are removed, the water in the chlorinator should dry up pretty quick. Remove all Chlorine tabs and throw them away. They will loose it's strength over the winter, so there's no point in keeping them.

We keep the Chlorinator in the shed for the Winter.

• Keep the cap on the chlorinator so that nothing big nest inside. We hang our chlorinator upside down in our shed.
• Take the 'O' ring out and put in a sandwich bag. Label the bag - "Chlorinator Ring." Keep the bag with the pump.
• We try to air out the chlorinator as long as possible. Usually, don't hang it until we take the snowblower out of the shed.

Hayward 900 - Wanda the Whale

The above ground vacuum should not be stored in the shed for the winter. Store all the hoses and "Wanda the Whale" parts together. As per instructions, you shouldn't bend the hoses. The best thing to do is to store the pieces in the original box. Make sure that everything is fully dry before putting in the box.

It's highly recommended to store Above-Ground Automatic Pool Cleaner inside for the winter.

• The box that the Wanda the Whale comes in is perfect for long term storage. Just keep the box dry. Makes it easy to setup again in the spring.
• Make sure to completely clean out the Whale. Use a small screwdriver to get the junk inside.
• An 18-gallon plastic bin works perfectly as a substitute for the box

Last regular Pool Post of 2016

This wraps up the weekly blog posting for this summer. We'll return to regular posting in May 2017. Have a great off season! Thank you for all the feedback this summer!