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6 Tips for Winterizing Your Fiberglass Swimming Pool

Chad Maag • February 28, 2023

Once the warm months are over and there’s a noticeable chill in the air, it’s time to properly winterize your fiberglass swimming pool to prevent damage from happening to it and get it ready for the next swimming season.

But what goes into doing this properly? Is it possible to do this on your own, or is it best to hire a pool service company? We’ve got all the tips you need to get the job done.

Once you’re ready to winterize your fiberglass swimming pool, you should:

Choose the right time.
Check all of your levels.
Have your fiberglass swimming pool cleaned.
Remove the power and lower the water.
Use pool shock to kill bacteria.
Properly cover your pool.

Now that we know the six tips you need to winterize your pool, let’s get into the details of each step.

Choose the Right Time

As the pros at This Old House point out, the first step in winterizing your fiberglass swimming pool is picking the right time to do the job. If you winterize too early, algae might accumulate and compromise your pool. But if you wait too long, you risk damaging both your pool and the equipment that keeps it running smoothly.

Once the daily temperature dips below 65 degrees and stays there, it’s safe for you to start the winterization process.

Check All of Your Levels

The first real step in winterizing your pool is to check all of your chemical levels. You’ll want to test the pH, chlorine, calcium, and alkalinity of your pool to ensure that none of the levels are off balance.

Have Your Fiberglass Swimming Pool Cleaned

Once you’ve picked the right time and balanced chemical levels in your pool, it’s time to give it a thorough cleaning. Start by taking out all accessories, from pool ladders and handrails to steps, cleaners, and skimmer baskets. You should then clean out the entire pool, including vacuuming the bottom of the pool, skimming the surface, and brushing the sides.

Remove the Power and Lower the Water

The next step is to remove power from the pool and disable any automatic clocks and pumps that you might typically use. You’ll then need to lower the water level to under the skimmer basket. This will protect the accessory from freezing and possibly breaking during colder months.

All equipment should be fully drained of water, and you’ll also need to remove all water from the pool lines. If it gets particularly cold where you live, you might even want to add antifreeze to the pool lines.

Use Pool Shock to Kill Bacteria

Now that you’ve thoroughly cleaned your fiberglass swimming pool, you’ll want to add a pool shock to kill off any bacteria or harmful algae that might linger through the winter. It’s very important to read and follow the instructions since individual pool shock products can differ.

In general, though, you’ll want to be sure that all the chemicals have properly circulated throughout the pool and that you’re using any chlorine shocks separate from your algaecide.

Properly Cover Your Pool

After all of these steps are done, the final step is to properly cover your swimming pool. If the seal is insufficient, it could lead to serious damage to the fiberglass of your pool, so you’ll want a safety cover that can stand up to the coldest temps and harshest winds.

Your safety cover needs to be anchored down either with weights or springs. Your winter cover, however, doesn’t need to be secured this way. Make sure that the cover you’re using doesn’t have any tears or holes in it, and that it tightly and securely fits your pool.

Conclusion

While all of these steps are necessary to protect your fiberglass swimming pool and ensure that it lasts and looks great for years to come, you don’t have to do it yourself. A reputable pool service company will be able to handle all of these steps for you so you don’t have to.