Rain! Pool full - drain or wait?

[west1745]

Hello to all,

I have a new inground plaster 12K pool with SWG. We have had a lot of rain and the pool is full to the top - skimmer not working but we have skimmed off debris and can use the Dolphin so I am not too worried about that.

The salt is low - and our AquaRite SWG has the warning lights for that lit up and is not putting out as much chlorine as a result. I usually keep chlorine about 3-5 ppm in the summer with it on 30%. Right now it is 2ppm so I added a gallon of Ultra Bleach and all is fine. (also tested Ph and Ak and those are good)

I was wondering if I should just ride this out and let the water evaporate naturally on its own or if I should drain and readjust the chemistry? I don't mind testing and adding liquid bleach in the mean time - but didn't know if there was a reason to drain. Does it hurt the SWG if it doesn't have enough salt?

Comments? Opinions?

[cwstnsko]

Usually after a really big rain, I drain water until the skimmer just starts working, then let evaporation take it from there.

[eljefe281]

I'm curious about something.

I see a lot of posts about draining the pool after a rainstorm.

Are these pools not equipped with overflows, or is the overflow simply not adequate to handle the volume of rain that falls?

[mshumack]

I'm curious about something.

I see a lot of posts about draining the pool after a rainstorm.

Are these pools not equipped with overflows, or is the overflow simply not adequate to handle the volume of rain that falls?

I have an oveflow built into my "autofiller". It uses a one inch PVC line for the overflow drain. After a heavy night's rain if my pool is 2 inches high, it will take all day for the water level to drop.

[Phillbo]

I'm more concerned with water getting behind the pool walls at the coping than chemistry when mine gets flooded .. If the water is at or above the top of the tile, I backwash until it is in the center where I keep it.

[Simmons99]

Mine is right at the top line of the tile after about 5-6" of rain in the last week. DH and I were debating a drain - if we get another soaker today - I am draining about 2" out.

Yes you will need to add more salt if you have to drain and your salt level is low - my pool builder says that the warning light is just that - a warning. But if you drain it the salt concentration will not increase - just add about 1/2 as much as you think you will need and then test and see if you need more.

[joliecharlie]

We are on a well so we are thankful for a good rain to fill our pool. We drain/backwash so that the skimmer works and let evaporation take over from there. If we have a big rain expected, such as tropical storm, we drain some water prior so we won't have have the problem of water behing liner. I am interested to know if we could retrofit an overflow valve to our existing pool...that would certainlly be helpful if we were out of town and couldn't manage the water.