Just purchased a new house in SW Ontario. With it came a large pool, no idea how to maintain it so I'll be watching this articles progression closely.

Just pour giant chunks of salt in it.

Over-wintering a pool is really painful. We live in rural France (not far from the middle of the country) and get a company in to do the job twice a year. Plastic facia's (cover plates) to the weirs are removed and brought inside. The heat pump has to be disconnected and brought inside; the same applies to all other pumps (filtration and contra-flow) and pipes need to be drained so that they do not burst with frozen water. Anti-freeze is added to the water and floats are strung diagonally across the surface to prevent it freezing. Lastly, a cover is attached to keep out the leaves. This is all reversed in the Spring and shock chemicals added to kick start the process of cleaning the water. It was a lot simpler when we lived in Johannesburg - the pool was the same all year around and looked decorative even when it was too cold to use.

We maintain ours as if it were summer. We keep it heated spring, summer and fall. Our west Texas winters are not severe but it does dip below freezing.

We live in NC so we do not close it for winter. We put a leaf net down to help in the fall and take it up around now. Ours is salt water so we don't maintain chemicals in winter. Just vacuum once in a while and brush the walls.

Salt water pool in Maryland and we winter it up...but pay the pool company for that :)

Do keep the in ground hot tub running though...nothing like hopping in 90 degree water when the temperature is near freezing!

close it up in Maryland with cover and pool company comes out once a month and pours something into it! Last year when we reopened it, was still blue.

We're in coastal Virginia and sometimes we keep it open. Even though it's solar heated, we can't use it when it gets too cold. And it starts to look like a big pond. Hoping to turn the filtration to salt water this spring.

My inground pool is under that snow cover. -32 Celsius degrees in Quebec last week, winterizing a pool is a must here !!!

1st a salt water pool is hands down the best way to go! The Water is like silk, less maintenance (almost no daily maintenance especially with the polaris) and is cheaper.. ( Salt ) We are in NY and close the 1st week in October. My favorite part of closing the pool is we bring it up to 102 and have a pool closing gathering the night before lol. Next day My Husband and sons do the rest. Lots and Lots of salt! Then We open at the beginning of May. Pool is still clean and is usually ready in 24 hrs. For those off months we only run the filter for 2 hrs ( depends on how hot it is) with the polaris running. Longer when it is hot. The pool is so crystal clear you cant tell the difference between the 8 foot side or the 3 foot side. we use a mesh loop lock cover when its closed. I also think one of the keys to opening up to a cleaner pool is opening up before it gets to warm. The warmer and sunnier it is the more algae. We had a very small 4 foot above ground pool in our old house. My husband spent countless hours taking care of it! Here we have a much larger built in pool the only maintenance he does is 1. Check the readings on the unit to see if it needs a boost. 2nd every 2 weeks or so brings the water to be tested. (very rare was anything needed) 3rd is completely optional lol. He tends to taste the water to decide if it needs salt or not lol. I swear his taste buds are as accurate as the unit!

Vacuum pool. Turn heater off, close pipes off, disconnect the filter and bring it in. Put in pool pillows, or not. Cover pool. We don't use chlorine, we use something called pristine blue. Maybe that is what keeps the pool from going green over the winter, but it has never looked bad when we open it in spring.

What is involved in converting a pool to salt water?

This is what we do with the pool in winter in Saskatchewan. Let it freeze, have fun on the ice, then when it melts it gets drained and repainted.

Here is a list of services that we provide, which should give you a pretty good idea about how to winterize a pool. http://www.platinumpoolcare.com/swimming-pool-maintenance/pool-openings-closings-services.html

Hello, and thank you for your inquiry. Winterizing isn't absolutely necessary, as long as the swimming pool was built properly. In our climate, the walls and floors are 12" thick reinforced concrete to withstand the freeze thaw cycles that we experience. The pipes are installed below the frost line, and the control systems have freeze protection on them. The use of automatic pool covers will also help retain heat in the pool during the winter months. All that said, we don't have a large percentage of clients that keep their pools open for the winter months. Most people that attempt this find that they don't get enough usage out of their pool to justify the costs of running it. Hot tubs are easier to clean because they are smaller, but vigilance is required for that same reason. Chemical swings are likely, especially because of the higher temperature water and the bather load in a smaller vessel of water. Salt Water Chlorination is a very heated subject around the world, especially in professional pool builder circles. I would encourage you to do your research online to ascertain the pros and cons of these systems. A thumbnail sketch of what they are is as follows: Salt (NaCl) in the pool water is circulated through an electrically charged cell at the equipment pad that breaks the NaCl apart, creating several by-products; including Hypochlorous Acid (HClO) and Sodium Hypochlorite (NaClO), which are the same chemicals that are already used as sanitizers in swimming pools. You are already probably familiar with Sodium Hypochlorite by its brand name, Chlorox Bleach. The common misconception about Salt Pools is that they are chlorine-free. In fact, Salt Pools are making chlorine right in the pool. Thank you again for your inquiry, and we hope that this information is useful for you.

To close for the winter, just pour in several bags of $$$ and cover. To reopen in spring, uncover and pour in several more bags of $$$. ;-)

We have a pool in SE B.C. and we do winterize , we used to get a pool company to do it but now do it ourselves . If you go on-line there are step by step instructions it is really not that hard and really not that expensive either. I think it is worth the work to have a pool in our HOT summers.

I have heard of the philosophy where you don't buy the house with a pool, you buy the house next door to the house with a pool and help your neighbor with the pool maintenance.

As a pool professional in a cold area I have winterized thousands of pools. Recently I started a video blog series where I talk in detail about different subjects that relate to the pool and spa industry. In a January 2016 episode I created an 8 part video series for how to winterize a swimming pool including sections on water level, return lines, skimmers, pumps, cartridge filters, sand filters, gas heaters, pool lights and salt water systems. In total the 8 episodes total just over an hour - a great investment in time if you are new to pool ownership and want to learn how to properly winterize your own pool. Not intended as a stand alone guide - this is a conversational series that is basic enough for pool owners but advanced enough that experienced pool technicians will be able to compare methods with another industry expert: 8 Part Video Blog - How To Winterize A Swimming Pool

how i winterize my pool: the week before labor day the pool company calls and says 'what day next week do you want us to close up your pool?'. then they do it. crazy easy, not expensive, not sure why anyone would ever do it themselves.....

bonnieth, To convert to saltwater, they will cut the pipe (over where the the filter and equipment is), add a connector to each cut end, and screw the chlorine generator in between. There is also a digital box that plugs into the salt/chlorine generator, which should mount next to your pump switch. It's relatively easy.

All you would then do is add salt to the pool.