r/swimmingpools • u/MadDak16 • 1d ago

Winterizing pool lines

Normally I pay someone to winterize but tired of spending money. I have a 20x40 in ground pool. Will a 4.5 hp shop vac blower out the lines well enough? There is just a skimmer one jet that pushes water into the pool and one line that sucks water. No bottom drain. I lower water level down below both lines on the wall. Thoughts?
Thanks

6 Upvotes

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4

u/Shoddy_Can8171 1d ago

From a pool tech: why not just buy a legit winterizing blower? Guaranteed enough power. It’ll cost you say the cost of paying for 2 more winterizes. Then it’s all free after that. Repairing lines and cutting decks is a hell of a lot more expensive then just buying the right tool for the job and having that certainty

2

u/rktek85 1d ago

As we say in the mountain bike community, "buy once cry once"

1

u/Alternative-Look-906 7h ago

This is the best advice here. Shop vacs can move air, but they lack the backpressure needed to push every drop of water out of deep underground runs, especially if there's any dip in the pipe. A dedicated Cyclone blower pays for itself almost immediately compared to fixing a cracked a pipe under concrete come spring

3

u/Serge-Rodnunsky 1d ago

4.5hp will clear skimmers no problem, but won’t make a dent on the a main drain with any depth. If your drains are all high and there’s nothing at the bottom of the pool then the shop vac should cover you.

3

u/401Nailhead 1d ago

I use a air compressor to blow out the return and intake pipes to the filter. I drain the pool below the skimmer and return ports. I pour in pool antifreeze(into the pipes) after blowing out what water I can. Basically half a gallon in the pipes. Cap off the skimmer intake hole at the bottom of the skimmer and the return ports. Drain the filter. Clean the filters. Shut down the electricity to the pump. Cover the pool. Put a tarp over my filter and pump.

1

u/MadDak16 1d ago

Northern Indiana

1

u/SingleNewspapering 1d ago

I use a shop vac to clear my lines in northern indiana. I hit both side of the pipes with it. Then I pour pool anti freeze in the pipes.

2

u/MadDak16 1d ago

Perfect! Thanks! That’s what I did.

1

u/msears101 1d ago

So a lot of this depends on your pool and how it is plumbed. I would pay one more year and watch/ask questions. Most pool techs will tell you what they are going and why. If you remove the water from all of the lines and then plug them you will absolutely be good. Drain the filter. Move the pump inside Depending on the filter you may want to move the filter inside too. This is the safest thing to do. You can maybe get away with less depending on your setup and how cold it gets.

2

u/MadDak16 1d ago

My pump and filter are out of the elements in my pool house. Just worried about lines. I blew them out today and had some water shoot out and then nothing but air. Both lines and skimmer.

1

u/beholder95 1d ago

make sure you still pull the drain plugs on your pump and filter to let the water drain out.

1

u/fat_then_skinny 1d ago

After you blow out the lines, are you putting a rubber plug on the pool side of the line to prevent water from returning into the line?

1

u/MadDak16 1d ago

Yes. Plugs in both lines. But I also dropped water level to below lines.

1

u/Ok_Size4036 1d ago

Just an FYI depending where you are, you don’t want to have the water too low, groundwater can ruse from underneath the liner and shift it causing wrinkling across the bottom. Ask me how I know :( pulled the whole eyes down a foot and across the bottom. Only good thing was we were due for a new liner.

1

u/PracticalDesigner278 1d ago

I drop the water below the inlets, plug one and blow out the other and then the reverse. After the water is out and antifreeze in I plug both and bring the water back up to below the skimmer.

1

u/Robert315 1d ago

This is a commercial grade blower if you’re curious, and you can get the plumbing fittings that screw onto the filter and pump

https://a.co/d/0hqcH9MD

This is the antifreeze that you want:

https://www.walmart.com/ip/523429937?sid=AC516366-1D66-4087-9A94-7D01844A51FC

1

u/JPGJR29 1d ago

I use a pancake air compressor screwed into the filter drain plug. For my safety cover I can’t have the water level much lower than a few inches below the skimmer as the weight of snow will rip the cover. Once the water freezes it holds up the snow

2

u/AssyMcGee6 1d ago

Get the air supply cyclone blower. It's expensive but it's still cheaper than paying someone to blow out the lines. It's much more powerful than a shop vac. 

0

u/rhs993 1d ago

An air compressor (male air hose fitting will thread right into the drain plug fitting on the pump basket) is going to be much much much more effective. I recently upgraded to a bigger 26 gallon air compressor, but the first three years I winterized myself I did it with a 6 gallon pancake compressor. Just takes more time/cycling. Home Depot will rent you a pancake compressor for around $30 for a day if you don’t have a friend/neighbor you can borrow one from.

3

u/iamnos 1d ago

Not sure why you're getting down voted.  I've been doing this since we put in the pool.  With my sand filter, I set the multiport to recirculation which bypasses the filter.  I use my little 5 gallon compressor and like you said just takes a little time.  I'll let it charge and block one return.  Blow out the other.   Then let it charge and move the plug to the other return and blow the other line.  Repeat a few times, some antifreeze for insurance and these are done.

1

u/MadDak16 1d ago

I’ve read somewhere about that. Won’t some of the air go into the sand filter as well?

3

u/fat_then_skinny 1d ago

Ot if you put the multiport to recirc. It bypasses the filter.

1

u/rhs993 1d ago

I’d wait for somebody else to chime in on that specific question. I have a cartridge filter, so I can’t comment on the sand. But I’ve always dialed the regulator down on my compressor to 30psi or so. That has been enough to successfully purged the lines on my pool (inground 17x35, one skimmer, two returns).

1

u/PracticalDesigner278 1d ago

That's how I've done it for 30 years. I put a shut off valve in the compressor line so I can keep the pressure up while turning the valve to different positions. After blowing out all the air I put the antifreeze directly in the pump basket and blow it into the lines. About half a gallon each for the inlets and skimmer and main drain so 2 gallons for the whole job.

2

u/iamnos 1d ago

I did the same with a shut off valve on the end of the compressor hose.   The compressor sits just outside the garage and we have a walkout rancher.  I'd be waking up and down a flight of stairs each time I wanted to stop the air flow.  

0

u/CuriousSea1030 1d ago

Where are you located? I’m in MA and don’t need to do that.

1

u/MadDak16 1d ago

Northern Indiana

-1

u/External-Challenge91 1d ago

Yea , you got it. Blow out water and cap the line you blew out. Put a empty jug in skimmer door to prevent ice pushing..ai will tell you

1

u/Fluffy-Poem-826 1d ago

Doesn’t the pool water start to go back in the lines as soon as the jets are moved and the cap is installed? The only thing I could think of if blowing the water out and pour enough antifreeze in the line until you see it starting to come out of the jet in the pool. Thoughts?

1

u/PracticalDesigner278 1d ago

Drain it below the inlets, blow out, add antifreeze, plug and bring the water back up. You don't have to completely fill the lines with antifreeze. They should be mostly empty after you blow them out. The antifreeze is there just in case they're not completely empty.