How to Know the Best Time to Close Your Pool

It’s the same question every summer. When should we close up the pool? Before labor day? After? Before the first cool weather spike?

While most people know to close up their pool before cold weather arrives, many don’t realize that closing too early can actually be bad for your pool. When you close too early, the winter chemicals that you add to keep your pool clean and algae-free won’t typically last through the cold weather season.

The hotter the outside temperature, the faster pool chemicals are consumed. If you close your pool too early, the pool chemicals have a longer period in higher temperatures, causing them to be consumed faster. This means that algae blooms and staining in your pool is more likely to happen.

For a pool owner, this will make for a longer and more labor-intensive opening the next year. Because of the increased algae blooms and staining, the pool will have to be drained and refilled with clean water or the amount of chemicals will have to be increased, raising the operating costs during opening.

There are a few simple ways to know when to close up your inground pool until the spring. Check out these easy tricks:

Temperature Test

Once the temperature of the water is consistently below 65 degrees Fahrenheit, this is a good indicator that it’s time to begin closing the pool. The consistency of temperature is key. If you’re getting a few days where the water dips down below 65 degrees, but the majority of days are significantly warmer, you may want to wait a while before fully closing the pool.

Climate Test

Every pool owner’s opening and closing dates vary depending on where they live. For some owners, the season may be quite short, lasting only 3-5 months. For others, there is no such thing as pool openings or closings, because the weather is so warm all year long. If you live in a year-round warm climate, it may be more beneficial to keep the pool heated on cooler nights than to do a full pool closing. For those in climates where the weather gets below freezing, it is beneficial to close up before the first chill really hits.

Environment Test

Again, similar to the climate test, the environment test is a good litmus test to help you know when to close your pool. Let’s say you live in an area where the temperature of the water isn’t quite dropping to 65 degrees consistently, but you’re surrounded by dozens of trees. If the leaves on the trees are falling and filling the pool faster than the water is dropping in temperature, it may be a good idea to close for the season to avoid the maintenance and cleaning.

Consult a Pool Closing Expert at Anthony & Sylvan Pools

Still unsure when to close your pool or need help getting the process started? The knowledgeable and skilled team at Anthony & Sylvan can help make pool closings and openings a breeze. Our team can help you test your chemicals and temperature and supply you with everything you need to make the process go smoothly. We can even send out one of our teams to do everything for you! Just give us a call at 1.877.729.7946 or visit us at one of our many locations.