Prepare your pool for winter
The swimming season has ended and autumn is approaching fast. It’s time to store your pool or prepare for the winter months. When you use a SunnyTent, there are three options. We list them for you.
1. Leave your swimming pool and SunnyTent outdoors during the winter months
If you choose this option, you do not have to set up your swimming pool and SunnyTent again in the spring. This way you can enjoy the beautiful weather and swim as soon as possible!
Follow the steps below to prepare your swimming pool and SunnyTent for winter.
Preparing your pool for the winter months
How you prepare your pool for winter differs from pool to pool. Here we must make a distinction between inground swimming pools and above-ground swimming pools (for example, Intex swimming pools). We have listed the steps for both types of swimming pools for you.
Preparing an in-ground swimming pool
The biggest difference between the two types of swimming pools is that an in-ground swimming pool remains in place all year round. Once the swimming pool has been installed, it cannot be easily removed. If this is your pool, then follow the steps below to prepare your pool for winter.
1. Clean your pool
Make sure the water is clean and clear. Remove all dirt from the water and the floor of the pool. If necessary, use a pool vacuum cleaner. Check the water balance and, if necessary, chemically adjust it. Clean to the water line with a liner cleaner.
2. Pump the pool so it is partially empty
Empty the pool to about 20 cm below the (top) injectors and skimmer (s). When emptying the pool, set the filter to “Backwash” so that the filter is cleaned at the same time. As soon as the pool is partially empty, set the pump to the normal filter setting. As a result, as little water as possible remains in the pipes.
If your pool does not have a backwash setting, then you can use a submersible pump.
3. Prepare the technical components
It is now time to prepare the technical components. To do this, loosen all couplings. Now you can remove all O-rings. Remember where each ring was. Grease the rings and store them in a dry place. Drain the pump and the filter vessel so that no water remains. Then check the filter sand or filter glass. This must be replaced approx. every 5 years. If there is a pressure gauge, unscrew it. Keep it in a frost-free place. Now drain the pool heating. We recommend that you keep your pump and filter in a frost-free area. If this not possible then you should cover them with insulating material.
4.Make the pipes frost-proof
Now that all installations have been disconnected, you can blow dry the pipes. You can use a compressor for this. Once the pipes are dry, use a winter shut-off to cap the injectors and vacuum cleaner connections. Cover your skimmer with a gizzmo to prevent frost damage.
5. Protect your pool with winter floats and wintering fluid
Place winter floats in your pool to protect it. These ensure that the water can expand during freezing, without damaging the pool.
Add wintering fluid to prevent calcification and fossilization of impure particles in your pool. It keeps the swimming water crystal clear.
6. Cover your pool
The last step to prepare your pool for winter is to cover your pool. The SunnyTent already ensures that little dirt ends up in the water, but you can also purchase a winter cover to be on the safe side. A winter cover does not let light through, so it prevents growth.
A few more tips for during the winter
- Check the water level from time to time. If this rises too much, you can reduce the level with a submersible pump.
- Never break the frozen swimming water. This can damage the pool.
- Store water treatment products in a dry, frost-free and safe place.
Preparing an above ground pool for winter
In general, it is not recommended to leave your above-ground pool outside over winter. However, you can with a SunnyTent. To do this, follow the next steps.
1. Clean your pool
Make sure the water is clean and clear. Remove all dirt from the water and the floor of the pool. If necessary, use a pool vacuum cleaner. Check the water balance and, if necessary, chemically adjust it.
2. Pump the pool so it is partially empty
Empty the pool to about 20 cm below the (top) injectors and skimmer (s). Then disconnect and drain the pump so that no water remains in the pump and hoses. If you have a sand or glass filter, check whether the sand or glass needs to be replaced. We recommend that you keep your pump and filter in a frost-free area. If this not possible you should then cover them with insulating material.
3. Protect your pool with winter floats and wintering fluid
Place winter floats in your pool to protect it. These ensure that the water can expand during freezing, without damaging the pool.
Add wintering fluid to prevent calcification and fossilization of impure particles in your pool. It keeps the bathing water crystal clear.
4. Cover your pool
The last step to prepare your pool for winter is to cover your pool. The SunnyTent already ensures that little dirt ends up in the water, but you can also purchase a winter cover to be on the safe side. A winter cover does not let light through, so it prevents algae growth.
A few more tips for during the winter
- Never break the frozen swimming water. This can damage the pool.
- Store water treatment products in a dry, frost-free and safe place.
Preparing the SunnyTent for winter
Before we start, we would like to point out the following: This option is only suitable for the SunnyTent Round M and L. Unfortunately, the other models (Round XL, Oval M and Oval L) are not suitable for leaving outside during the winter months.
Do you have a SunnyTent Round M or L? Then we can get started!
1. Provide extra stability
To ensure that the SunnyTent is not damaged, it is advisable to install a cross pole set. The cross-pole set provides more stability, so that the SunnyTent can withstand more wind and snow. We recommend a double cross pole set for the SunnyTent Round size L. For a SunnyTent Round size M, a single one could suffice if the SunnyTent is placed in a well-protected location.
2. Make the SunnyTent even more secure
Although you should always secure a closed SunnyTent properly, it is extra important when leaving the SunnyTent installed over winter. Make sure that the SunnyTent is completely closed and that the twist pegs are secured with the supplied locking pegs. If your twist pegs do not stay in place securely, then you can purchase extra-long twist pegs for extra security in the ground.
3. Follow the instructions for use
As indicated earlier, the SunnyTent can withstand more wind and snow with a cross pole set, but not all wind and snow. That is why it is important that you open the SunnyTent as soon as the wind starts to blow too hard or it snows / hails. By following the instruction in the manual, you protect the SunnyTent.
2. Store your swimming pool and SunnyTent during the winter
To ensure that your above-ground swimming pool and SunnyTent are not damaged during the winter, you can store them both. We have a number of tips for this.
How should you store your pool
1. Draining your pool
To store your pool, you must first empty it. This can be done in two different ways.
Do you have a submersible pump?
This is the easiest method to drain your pool. Place the submersible pump in your pool, place the end of the hose where you want the water to drain, plug it in and unplug when it’s done. You can remove the last drops of water with a mop.
Via the drain valve with a garden hose
The drain valve is located at the bottom of the pool. First check that the plug on the inside of the pool is properly seated on the valve. Then unscrew the cap on the outside of the valve. Roll out the garden hose to where you want to drain the water. Connect the garden hose to the adapter and then screw it into the drain valve. Once the pool is almost empty, you can lift and tilt the pool to get the last drops of water out. Finally, disconnect the garden hose and the adapter and place the plug and cap back on the drain valve.
2. Storing your pool
Store your swimming pool in a completely dry and frost-free location. To prevent small leaks, you can choose to powder your bath with talcum powder. We also recommend that you pack the pool properly to prevent holes forming, from chewing by mice or other small animals.
How do you store your SunnyTent?
1. Clean your SunnyTent
Before you dismantle the SunnyTent, it must first be cleaned. You can clean the outside of the tent with a soft sponge or soft brush and lukewarm / warm water (approx. 37 degrees Celsius). Do not use a hard brush, hard jet, scouring pad or other aids, as this can damage your tent foil. Also, do not use any chemical cleaning agents, as these can damage the seams / stitching. If your tent is very dirty you can add a little bit of mild biological soap to the water.
Note: Only clean the outside of your tent foil and not the inside as the inside of your tent does not get really dirty and because you will remove the anti-condensation coating on the foil.
The way in which you clean the SunnyTent differs per model:
Cleaning the Round SunnyTent
- Make sure the tent is fully upright, closed and secured with the twist pegs in the ground.
- First clean the tent layers that you can easily reach. In general, these are two tent layers at the front of the tent and two at the rear. Let’s call these layers 1, 2, 5 and 6.
- Then only the two tent layers at top of the tent remain, which you cannot reach. We will call these number 3 and 4
- Loosen the tent on one side (by turning the twist pegs anti-clockwise to release the tent poles). One person holds this open side in the middle, while the second person pulls down the tent on the other side. In such a way that layer 3 is within reach and can be cleaned. This should be done with two people: one on each side of the tent.
- You can then clean layer 4 by doing the same on the other side of the tent.
Cleaning the Oval SunnyTent
- Make sure the tent is fully upright, closed and secured with the twist pegs in the ground.
- First clean the round tent layers (head sections) that you can easily reach. Also clean the centre section as far as you can reach.
- If you also want to clean the higher parts of the tent foil, it is best to loosen the middle part on one side, with which the tent comes down. Note: follow the user manual of your SunnyTent to prevent damage to your tent.
2. Take down the SunnyTent
If you want to dismantle the SunnyTent, go through the set-up / installation steps in the reverse order. Here is a brief summary.
- Release the SunnyTent by removing all twist pegs.
- Carefully lower the tent so that it is on the ground.
- Remove the pole sets from the hinge anchors.
- Straighten the tent so that the pole sets are straight and remove the pole sets from the pole tunnels.
Never pull on the pole sets, because the pole parts can separate from each other. Always push the pole sets out of the tunnels, instead of pulling them out. You do this by pushing the pole set forward with hand 1 while holding the pole tunnel with the other hand (2). Then clamp the whole thing with hand 2 and pull back the (empty) pole tunnel with hand 1. You repeat this until the pole set has been completely removed from the pole tunnel. Watch our video demonstration for additional information and guidance. - Dry the SunnyTent thoroughly with a soft cloth before folding the tent.
- Thoroughly clean and dry the pole sets, hinge anchors and twist pegs.
3. Storing the SunnyTent
Just as with a swimming pool, the SunnyTent must be properly stored to prevent damage. Here are a few points of attention for you:
- Make sure that all parts of the SunnyTent are completely clean and dry before you store them.
- Store the SunnyTent in a frost-free and dry place where it does not get warmer than 30˚C. If you place the SunnyTent next to a heating pipe or another heat source, there is a chance that the material of the pole tunnels will shrink.
3. Leave your swimming pool outdoors, but store your SunnyTent
If you have a SunnyTent other than the Round size M or L, we recommend that you store the SunnyTent in winter.
Do you have a different model (other than the Round M or L) SunnyTent and an above ground swimming pool? It is therefore advisable to store your pool. Without the extra protection of the SunnyTent, these swimming pools are not suitable for leaving outdoors over winter.
An in-ground or permanently established swimming pool cannot be put away. In this case, it may happen that you have to store the SunnyTent, but leave your pool outdoors. The steps for storing the SunnyTent can be found above. At the top of this article we describe how you can prepare an in-ground pool for winter. An extra point of attention: Without the SunnyTent, dirt can get into your swimming pool more easily. Make sure you tighten the winter cover so that as little dirt as possible gets into your pool.
The winter checklist
We have made a checklist for each option so that you do not skip a step:
- Store your swimming pool and SunnyTent during the winter
- Leave your in-ground swimming pool outdoors but put your SunnyTent away
Good luck!
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