Jennifer, If I may, from my perspective of opening and closing a pool
here in the Northeast . I have always welcomed extra hands and minds as
we open and close the pool. we used to pay $250 to the company,
Islander pools when we first got this pool some 11 years ago. However
after listening to what these guys were doing I figured why not spend
that extra $500 on some car payments or some good Scotch. this is a
teamwork project of opening. first of all the pool is an above ground
pool which is a 33 foot round pool. . what we are supposed to do when we
close is to drop the water level below the input line where the water
blows back into the pool. at that spot we unscrew that screw on
piece which feels like it has an eye ball inside which in facts directs
the flow of water. then that is unscrewed and replaced with like a
rubbermaid winter cap , thus keeping the water from flowing back thru
should the water level rise during the winter or cold months. then
there is the plumbing for the discharge lines and pump all which must
be taken apart and properly stored in containers which can be readily
found again in the Spring. the old statement sometimes works as in"
many hands make light work" well the many hands comes in removing the
winder tarp or cover which has been tied or weighted down. I hang many
gallon jugs of water to keep the cover tight during the winter. so to
remove the cover one must first remove the melted snow/ water which
might be built up on that same cover. we use a winter cover because of
two bean trees we have as well as neighbors trees which dump all sorts
of crap down which could end up in the pool. now also if the pool is
closed properly the water should be clear and clean as there has been
no sun exposure for many months. No sun means no algaie . . Once the
winter cover is released, with extra hands and the excess water is
either siphoned off or pumped off, then it is a process of rolling the
cover off and letting it air dry on the lawn. More about the drying
pricess in another email. Okay. Now we dump in about 2 1/2 gallons of
chlorine shock which is about 11 to 12 % chlorine and I mix two one
pound box's of arm and hammer baking soda with water and dump that in. .
we add two garden hoses to bring the water level up and while that is
being done several hands can be used to assemble the plumbing. Not a
major job but if extra hands work together it is great. Once all this
is done. the only sighted help I need is to check the ph and other
levels in the pool. we used to dump in all kinds of chemicals such as
stabilizers ,etc. but now we can just use the initial liquid shock.
then add 3 inch chlorine tablets to an automatic chlorinator and flip
on the switch. I might also ask an extra hand for the initial vaccuming
with the big vac and installing the pool stairs which are like regular
stails with a railing which are made of sturdy pvc material. these
stairs are held in place by the weight of water which is pumped by hose
into the railing which drains down into I think the lower stair. .
anyone , blind or not can level up the stairs underwater and then we
are ready to go. the rest of the season I use mostly an auto vac system
which I can hook up as long as someone does not move my supplies. as
for helping out your Friend who wants it all done right, just ask," how
can I help and when do you want us there." What really ticks me off is
when the work is all done the folks coming up the driveway and asking
if there is any cold beer and is the pool ready. Now most folks who are
nice would bring their own cooler and towels but. alas . well I'll stop
here. this year I am locking the big backyard gate and only those who
come thru the house will get into the pool. why you would ask? well
that's another story. I'll just say you get lots of Friends , so called
Friends when it gets hot out and you have a pool. but good Friends would
offer to help in some way. such as one Friend is an awesome cook on
the grill and is a great bartender but he cannot lift to help on other
projects, so he is in like flinn. if there is other questions feel free
to ask on or off list. thanks.Lee
--
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"My favorite day," said Pooh.
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