To Close or Not to Close

As summer draws to a close each year, swimming pool owners are faced with a serious and often difficult decision: should they close their pools for the season or leave them open? In most cases, they’ll choose the former rather than the latter, especially if they live in a colder climate. However, the choice is ultimately yours to make. But, bear in mind that there are some real risks to leaving your pool open all year long.   

The Power Could Go Out

If you live in an area that’s prone to snow, leaving your pool open could be setting yourself up for disaster. If the power goes out, for example, your pool water could freeze, as well as the filtration system. This could do some major, expensive damage to your pool and its equipment. And, while you could take steps for instant winterization, the damage may already be done.

Work May Fall by the Wayside

Every pool owner knows that maintaining a pool requires a lot of work. And, unfortunately, that work doesn’t stop just because summer turns to winter, especially not if you leave your pool open. An open pool means you can’t just winterize it and forget it. You’ll have to continue balancing your water, maintaining your equipment, and cleaning the filter.

And, with the busyness of the holiday season and just plain forgetfulness, it’s easy for these tasks to fall by the wayside, which could mean having your pool fall into disrepair as the winter passes. Thus, unless you can commit to a regular winter routine, it’s probably best to close up shop come winter.

You’ll Spend More

As you can imagine, running your pump for a few extra months out of the year adds up in terms of cost, as does buying more chemicals and/or continuing to pay your pool service company throughout the year.

People typically find it’s a whole lot cheaper to just close their pools in the winter. But if you want to stay open, for whatever reason, prepare yourself for some added expenses.

Ultimately, you’re the only one who can decide whether to close your pool or leave it open. And, while there are certainly many benefits in favor of closing it down each year, you have to do what works best for you!