We have the 15 foot round Intex pool with the metal frame, that is about 4 foot deep. We live in South MS. We usually only get a few freezes a year, and they don't usually last for more than a few days at a time. DH says we probably get a total of 14 to 16 days below freezing all winter, and it is extremely rare for our temps to go down into the teens. Usually the lowest we see is mid-20's. With all that being said, is it better to take down the pool or winterize it? DH wants to leave it up but empty, but from my understanding, that isn't a good idea either. I'm not so sure about having to take it all down, and then risk holes being in it when we go to all that work of putting it back up again (and it was quite a bit of work, as DH's dad had a load of sand delivered and DH worked really hard to make it level). Also, if we take it down, I can envision it turning into a giant litter box for the cats around here (including our own). However, DH also doesn't want to have to go into a lot of trouble maintaining it over the winter.
We do have a large container of Polyquat and can get more if needed.
We haven't been swimming much lately and have been a bit less diligent with the pool. DH noticed a bit of green algae on the bottom of the pool a couple of days ago and shocked the pool.
We've just had our first cool front come through and are expecting temps down into the upper 50's/lower 60's this week, with highs in the low-to-mid 80's (with one day up to 87). At what temp do you decide it is time to put the pool up for the winter? The pool temp was just 80 degrees the other day, and it may yet warm up down here to swimmable again a time or two. Also, do those solar blankets really help?
One last question, if you do winterize, with the temps we expect over the winter, do we need a winter cover? We just have the cover that came with it. We actually used that cover when we went on vacation and somehow it fell into the pool. However, as long as we are actually here, hopefully we can do a better job of securing and watching the cover.
Sorry for so many questions, and thanks so much for any advice you can offer!