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I have a 16X32 IG Vinyl. I closed with exact instructions from the forum and pumped the water below the returns. I covered the pool with a permeable spring type cover. All was well until we started to have one of the wettest, snow-filled winters. I have about 4-5 inches before the ice is over the top, to make matters worse we just got 12 inches of snow after I checked the level.
1. Am I worrying for nothing?
2. What can I do if it is a problem?
Thanks,
Joe
I'm no expert since my pool stays open all year, but I would think that if you blew all the water out of your lines and have put some form of packing in the skimmer to absorb the ice expansion, there's really nothing else you can do and you should be okay. The people who live in the more frigid northern areas use the same advice for closing their pools that they give on the forum, so I would think that you would be okay. Any comments from those of you who do close your pools and have experience with the ice?Quote:
Originally Posted by jmjbj_h
Janet
Slide a piece of plastic hose between the ice and the wall and syphon out some water. It's not hard and it WILL give you peace of mind. Something like 1/2" clear hose will fit and still give good flow. I check my pool periodically through the winter and do that when it's high, even if I have a foot of ice.
Jans comments are correct. I only drain mine to mid-skimmer level so with snow and ice, like today, the level will go up. Trying to drain at this time would be more of a risk because the massive ice block can do damage.
Al
Edit: I found the duplicate post and Carls response. To restate...be careful if you drain with a large ice block in the pool. That's a lot of weight and if thick enough it can damage stairs or even shear off the return jets if they protrude into the pool even a little...as they usually do. I force a rectangular piece of foam in the skimmer throat so ice can't creep into the throat. I have drained mine with a thick ice block but do it very slowly, maybe 1/4" every day and I do keep a close eye on problem areas.
Joe, you've gotten good advice from 3/4 of the moderators (Watermom didn't 'chime in') - listen to it! If you closed the pool, as advocateded here, which you said you did, you shouldn't have any problems. I do want to point out that ~10" of snow = 1" of water, so don't drain too much water out of your pool (you've got a mesh cover, so try to keep it out of the pool water.) If you want to drain some, you can use calcium flakes (~77%) to melt a hole in the ice into which you could put a 'sump pump' to drain some of the water out of the pool, but I doubt it's needed, perhaps there are some pools that need constant attention over the winter, but I doubt that yours needs that sort of scrutiny.
We've met before, and I'd hope you would trust me, but I think your pool will be fine come spring.
You are right to trust the good folks here, and I hope you continiue to do so! :)
I'm here! I just figured the other three had everything under control -- but I'm here, too! Waiting anxiously for everything to thaw out!
Thank all of you so much for the timely advice. I was wondering if the block of ice may ruin my returns, stairs, etc. if I drained it too much. I think my plan will be to run an get a sump and some 1/2" hose in case I have to move quickly, only drain a small amount at a time, and hope that I don't have to use either! I will update this with my results.
I also have the permeable mesh cover and try to keep the water level just below the cover, about mid skimmer level with some foam stuffed in the skimmer opening.
Keeping the water level up will allow the cover to sag onto the surface of the water (or ice in this case) in times of heavy snow and ice.
I have several bent springs I replaced before I learned a higher water level is a supporting surface and helps prevent wear and tear on the cover.
Hope this helps, Tony
Hello All!
With 45-50 Deg. Temps this week so far, all the snow...on the ice...in my pool is melting rapidly. As it rose, I took some Hardness Increaser, dumped a little pile a couple of times, and made a nice little hole in the 4" ice. I bought a cheap one-way pump that attaches to garden hoses and snaked an end into the hole. I have been pumping each night, a quarter to half and that seems to equalize what has been melting each day. Thanks for all the help here. Just for a good scare, what could really happen if the pool overflows?
Joe
We live here in West Michigan, right along the lake. We get tons of lake effect snow each year.
Our cover is a mesh cover. We've never done anything to the pool once we've closed it. By spring, it's never been up over the edge. And we only lower the water to the bottom of the skimmer in the fall. I'm amazed that it hasn't overflowed yet, but it hasn't.
But as wasted pointed out, there is little actual water in melted snow.
Also, I would worry about dropping the level of your water under the ice. Thinking of a huge chunk/slab of ice going down just doesn't sound right. Even if it didn't shear off your inlets, it might tear your liner if your pool was off by just a tiny bit in some places. Meaning not perfectly symmetrical.
So I guess I'll have to say that if it was me, I wouldn't worry about it. :)