inground pool help!

I'm in Fort Worth TX and we're undergiong a major cold snap (like the rest of the country seems to be!). So far, the pool pump is running and all seems to be well, but the forecast is for sub freezing temps (lows in single digits F, highs no more than 20~25).

I ask this august and knowledgable group -- is there any way to insulate the pool pump/equipment to make sure things stay running through the cold snap? We had an incident year before last -- with a couple of days of below freezing temps, pool was running fine and then all of a sudden something froze up. I managed to pull the drain plugs in time and there was no damage. Trying to prevent that -- any tips/tricks for insulating or using pipe warmers? No imminent danger -- water temp is around 44 now, but if I need to go to the big box store for supplies, I'd like to do it before it gets dark.

Goggle up the term, "Marine RV Antifreeze"
Available a lot of places I am just not sure if any of those places will be in your otherwise warm climate.

Turn off the pump and ignore it?

There is some kind of antifreeze that can be dumped into the skimmer and then you shut off the pump when it starts discharging.

am trying to keep it running -- if it freezes one of my nitwit dogs is sure to go out there running on it...not a good situation.

Can't put antifreeze in the pool........

Yeah, if you want to keep it running, then the antifreeze won't work I don't think.

Propane heater near the pump and filter?

Just turn it on and keep it running. If you don't want to do that, screw plugs into the discharge and intake lines, disconnect the hoses at the pump, and drain it. Partially fill a lot of 3 liter soda bottles and toss them in the pool. In case the top freezes, the ice will crush the plastic bottles instead of the pool sides. Heat tapes aren't really a good idea, most pool piping is plastic.

Michigan Pool Owner here.

In the bottom of your Pump with be a small drain plug. The threads are indentical to an air hose quick release nipple.

1. pump water below skimmer

2. Turn Filter to "Closed". attach air compressor to said quick release nipple.

3. Set compressor to 5-10psi output. run for 5 minutes. go through and put plugs in return jets and skimmers. (skimmer last)

4. KILL AIR COMPRESSOR and disconnect

5. Fill lines through access ports with marine antifreeze

The temperature gauge on our pool said 62 degrees yesterday.

Brrrrr, it's a cold winter here!

I'm in FW too. My thermometer is reading 17, very unTexaslike degrees. My pool never froze with the pump going, I don't know how it could, but you can turn the pump off and drain the pump and then there's nothing to freeze.

That doesn't help with the dogs or kids running on the ice.

maybe leave the pump run constantly,flowing water doesn't freeze easily. throw some old blankets or a tarp over it with a heatlamp safely placed under it. My friends froze because he had a timer on it to shut it off. He said if he had left it running it would have been ok. I'm not a pool tech , just throwing out ideas. YMMV

Didn't think about the timer. Mine had a switch that automatically turned the pump on at 35 degrees and it stayed on till the temps rose. Never had a freeze up.

BTW...the certain makes of the Marine/pool antifreeze are pet friendly to an extent

It takes a lot of hours of really cold weather to drop your pool temps enough to freeze even the surface. I would only worry if the pump isn't running and you have pipes exposed to air temps because then you might risk a pipe blowout. Check your pool thermometer, unless your whole pool is getting down near freezing you are never going to freeze the water in the pipes being moved around by the pump. The surface will probably never get more than a small film around the edges even if you turn the pump off.

Edit-saw the 44 degree comment. A simple solar pool blanket is probably the best bet if you can keep the dogs off of it.

orphancars wrote: I'm in Fort Worth TX and we're undergiong a major cold snap (like the rest of the country seems to be!). So far, the pool pump is running and all seems to be well, but the forecast is for sub freezing temps (lows in single digits F, highs no more than 20~25). I ask this august and knowledgable group -- is there any way to insulate the pool pump/equipment to make sure things stay running through the cold snap? We had an incident year before last -- with a couple of days of below freezing temps, pool was running fine and then all of a sudden something froze up. I managed to pull the drain plugs in time and there was no damage. Trying to prevent that -- any tips/tricks for insulating or using pipe warmers? No imminent danger -- water temp is around 44 now, but if I need to go to the big box store for supplies, I'd like to do it before it gets dark.

Cover the pump and equipment with moving blankets or something like that. Keep it running and put a 100W light buld in a shop light and stick it under the blanket. Or for even more power use a 500W Halogen shop light.

Our pool has frozen several times this winter. Ice as much as 1/2" thick or more. I keep a few semi-filled plastic gallon jugs floating in it so that they'll be what the ice expands into when it freezes & I drained the pump in November. This is what I've done for the past several years with no problems in the spring.

thanks folks for all the suggestions! Just checked the pool temp and it is 41 degrees. Low tonight is single digits. Should be okay overnight...........

Interestingly enough my ponds have been freezing in temps of the high 20's and still air, but last night with a low of 9 and a stiff breeze they didn't freeze. The wind is causing ripples on the water and that little movement stopped the freezing.

In Fort Worth we're supposed to have a high of 19 today and another low of single digits again tonight. That's the coldest it's been in the DFW area in 22 years. Just in time for the superbowl.

And while the forecast for the superbowl still shows 60's now we see another storm is coming in from New Orleans area and is likely to dump a bunch of snow on Friday &/or Saturday and it could change the forecast for the game to something approaching Green Bay temps. So much for heading south for the game.

Way back when we had a pool with a small pumphouse lean to behind the garage. In what passed for really cold weather in SC (teens) we would hang some 100 watt bulbs over the pump/basket etc. and never had a problem.

Of course, thanks to Congress 100 watt bulbs will no longer be available soon.

What about rock salt?

pilotbraden wrote: What about rock salt?

There is pool salt. I have a salt water pool. Don't use rock salt that would screw up your chemicals something fierce.

back when we lived in grapevine there was a cold snap like this one, in fact, that might have been 22 years ago...

anyways, the pool started freezing over, even with the pump running and the heater going, just couldn't keep up. what my parents did was fill buckets of hot water from the sink and dump into the pool. all. night. long.

from what i understand it was miserable, but they didn't have any pipes freeze or break, and i'm not really sure it did a ton of good for the pool, but i guess it was better than sitting and waiting for the thing to bust a pipe.

they now live in keller, but have a salt water pool, so i guess don't have to worry about it as much.

Glad I don't have no stinking pool. Just more problems I don't need.

spitfirebill wrote: Glad I don't have no stinking pool. Just more problems I don't need.

QFT. My first 2 houses came with pools. When the Wife suggested a pool here at house #3 I told her never, ever again. Especially here in the northeast with a 4 month or so season it's just not worth the hassle.

I too will never ever have a pool. The one I mentioned was at the house we lived in while I was in high school and that damn thing was far more trouble than it was worth. We had an incident one Sunday; we got home and discovered one of the neighbors had sent her kids over to play in our pool, with no adult supervision. I thought my dad was going to blow a head gasket.

The next day his attorney told him a pool is considered an 'attractive nusiance' and there's not much of any way to shield yourself from lawsuits. Great.

spitfirebill wrote: Glad I don't have no stinking pool. Just more problems I don't need.

You also don't have pool sex. Just sayin.