This time of year is always exciting for pool owners because it signifies the beginning of the swim season. As spring approaches, book your luxury swimming pool service now to ensure timely maintenance so you don’t miss one nice weather day.
Waiting too long to contact your pool maintenance team could mean you end up with a June pool opening date, which is not ideal for getting the most out of your backyard oasis.
Wondering what’s involved in opening your pool for the season? Here’s a look at the steps your maintenance team will take.
Pool Opening Step-by-step
Plan for how you’ll open your pool and allot the appropriate time for the job if you plan to do it yourself. Otherwise, here’s what to expect your pool service team will do.
1. Remove the Pool Cover
The first step is to take off the pool cover. You should clean it up a bit and then store it in a safe place to await winterizing the pool next season. Generally, pool covers have some build-up of dirt and grime from protecting your pool for the last several months so cleaning that off now will speed up the pool closing process later.
2. Add Water to the Pool
During winterization, you likely didn’t fully drain the pool, so you’ll already have a solid starting point to get your water back up to the proper surface level. You want to fill the pool until the water comes halfway over the skimmers. Maintain that pool level throughout the swim season for the best results. If your pool has an auto filler, just monitor it to ensure it’s still working properly after the winter.
3. Remove Debris
There should not be too much debris in your pool if you kept the pool cover on all winter and cleaned everything up before winterizing. You should still check for leaves or other items in the water and remove them.
4. Prep the Pool Filter
Check your pool filter to ensure all components are in working order. Several parts of the pool’s filter need to be updated every few seasons. Some items you’ll want to review include the O-rings, media cartridges and filter gauge.
Next, remove the winterizing plugs and reinsert your drain plugs for the pump, filter and heater. Ensure all threads have a tight seal to prevent leaks.
Then you’ll need to prime the pool pump and filter. This starts with removing air in the lines. A good way to do this is to fill the lines using a hose. Then open the filter gauge pressure relief and document its PSI. Inspect all components for leaks.
5. Balance the Pool’s Chemicals
Get out your test kit and check the water chemistry. You’ll need to then balance your chemicals and keep them balanced. If you’re unsure how to get started with balancing the chemicals after winter, visit your local pool store and perhaps even take a water sample with you to discuss your options.
Part of getting your pool back in operation includes shocking the pool, which will help with disinfecting it and removing algae. Brushing the algae off the walls will aid the shock in doing its job.
Purchase plenty of chemicals to use at least over the next few weeks. You don’t want to find that your pool chemicals are not balanced and do not have the necessary equipment to update them.
6. Prepare Pool Maintenance Equipment
Review your pool maintenance and cleaning equipment to ensure it’s still in working order after the winter. Some items you’ll want to have in good working order include a skimmer, vacuum and brush.