Help with 1st time pool closing...

[mariner09]

I need to close my pool, myself, this year. We hit some financial snags and the pool got away from us. It was a SoftSwim pool and we just couldn't afford to keep up with it. I plan to switch to chlorine in the spring when we open.

Here's the specs, 17000g IG vinyl with Foxx Pool wal-pak. I use cartridge filters. The pump is next to the house about 15' away, all underground piping. The filter housing is underground but exposed via the open top of the box it sits in. There's also a CL-200, but it hasn't been used for some time, AFAIK.

Here's my theory based on what I saw when the "Pro" opened it:

1. Drain the pool below the intake to the filter housing.
2. Start feeding pipe-line antifreeze into the filter housing until it starts coming out the inlet, then plug the inlets and shutdown the pump.
3. Cover the pool.

Here are some challenges. I don't have a cover at the moment. I was thinking of getting a very thick pool cover tarp online and using the water bags to keep it down. That should be cost-effective.

The pool water is another story. It's quite green. I've been putting in Algecide, but I fear without the other 2 items in the Softswim equation, it's not doing any good. The filters don't have very good flow, either and make it difficult to get proper cleaning.

What should I add to the pool to prevent any further Algae growth?

I was thinking of getting a vaccuum attachment for the cartridge housing and trying to suck up most of the algae before I trated and covered. I have a Ray-Vac, but that isn't doing anything.

If anyone can comment on my theory and add any advice, I'd really appreciate it.

[mariner09]

Bump...

Either my thoughts are right on for this or I'm just asking way too many questions in one post....

[JohnT]

Bump...

Either my thoughts are right on for this or I'm just asking way too many questions in one post....

Very few people here use Baquacil/Soft-Swim, so you won't find much info here. If you can keep it open for a while, you may be better off to convert now and get it over with. Post details about your filter and pool.

[waste]

Mariner, closing it yourself is a good way to go. As John pointed out, most of us, myself included, don't have a 'handle' on the chlorine alternatives for chem advice. I know you've been around a while so you'll understand it when I say that it's the Softswim that has hurt your cash reserves, and left you with a green mess. A solid cover should ~ halt the 'swamping' of your pool, but the water tubes tend to leak and need to be replaced every few seasons (... not all at once, but expect to replace 2 - 5 every year). You are going to open the pool to the same 'swamp' that you closed it, next spring will be the perfect(!) time to change over to BBB (read, like you haven't ) the 'Baq' section of the forum.
Next spring, ditch the expensive 'stuff' and convert to BBB - the water draining required to clean the pool will help with the conversion (and bleach is a lot less expensive than the Softswim cr*p), work the conversion and spring cleaning to get yourself to the point that soooo many people here have had sucess with. Cover it soon, and prepare yourself for a 'week of H*LL' next spring, when you pull the cover.
I'm only trying to give you a realistic forcast of what to expect, not scare you
Best of luck, we are here for you!!

[mariner09]

I'm certainly not looking to maintain any amount of Softswim at all.

The water temp is quite cold, so I doubt anything is growing.

I also plan on doing an early opening to get it all cleaned up before the season starts.

Aside from a lot of vaccuming and scrubbing I think it'll all be fine.