Spring Opening Checklist

Use this when the cover is coming off and you need the pool circulating, tested, cleaned, and safe to evaluate without guessing at chemicals.

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Opening day field checklist

Take this to the pad.

Inspect and Safety

□Check drain covers are intact and secure
□Inspect electrical connections and bonding
□Verify GFCI operation
□Check fencing, gates, and barriers

Equipment

□Remove winter plugs and reinstall drain plugs
□Reconnect pump, filter, heater unions
□Prime pump and check for leaks
□Record clean filter pressure: ___ PSI
□Verify multiport valve position
□Check all valves are in correct position

Water

□Fill to mid-skimmer level
□Run pump for 24 hours before testing
□Test: FC, pH, TA, CH, CYA
□Record opening baseline numbers
□Do not add chemicals until pump has circulated for 24h

After Circulation

□Adjust pH first if needed
□Add initial chlorine dose per calculator
□Add CYA if below target
□Wait 48h before retesting CYA after addition

First 15 minutes: keep cover debris out

The fastest way to make opening harder is to dump cover water and decomposed debris into the pool.

Before power: inspect stop conditions

Find winter damage while the system is still quiet and not under pressure.

Restore water level and prime

A test result is not useful until the pool can mix and the pump can move water.

Test once the water has mixed

Opening chemistry starts with a result set, not a shopping list.

Choose the branch from the evidence

A clear pool, cloudy pool, green pool, and broken circulation system should not share one checklist.

Make only the justified additions

Sequential dosing makes the next test meaningful.

First 24 hours: clean, filter, retest

The first day proves whether opening actually stabilized.

Inspect and Safety

□Check drain covers are intact and secure
□Inspect electrical connections and bonding
□Verify GFCI operation
□Check fencing, gates, and barriers

Equipment

□Remove winter plugs and reinstall drain plugs
□Reconnect pump, filter, heater unions
□Prime pump and check for leaks
□Record clean filter pressure: ___ PSI
□Verify multiport valve position
□Check all valves are in correct position

Water

□Fill to mid-skimmer level
□Run pump for 24 hours before testing
□Test: FC, pH, TA, CH, CYA
□Record opening baseline numbers
□Do not add chemicals until pump has circulated for 24h

After Circulation

□Adjust pH first if needed
□Add initial chlorine dose per calculator
□Add CYA if below target
□Wait 48h before retesting CYA after addition

Educational guidance only. Verify labels, manuals, local code, and site conditions before acting. Stop for electrical, gas, structural, drain, drowning, injury, emergency, or chemical-mixing risk.

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