---
title: Opening a Pool for the Season
description: What to do between taking the cover off and having the pool safe and clear for a Memorial Day crowd.
category: home
tags: [pool, pool-opening, summer, water-safety]
version: "1.0"
updated: 2026-10-21
moment: memorial-day
sources:
  - name: Leslie's Pool Supplies
    url: https://lesliespool.com/blog/how-to-open-your-pool-in-the-spring.html
  - name: In The Swim: Inground Pool Opening Procedures
    url: https://www.intheswim.com/blog/inground-pool-opening-procedures.html
  - name: Freshwater Systems: How to Open a Pool for the Summer in 10 Steps
    url: https://www.freshwatersystems.com/blogs/blog/how-to-open-a-pool-for-the-summer-in-10-steps
  - name: Swim University: 6 Opening Pool Chemicals (Add These in This Order)
    url: https://www.swimuniversity.com/pool-opening-chemicals/
  - name: CPSC: Safety Barrier Guidelines for Residential Pools
    url: https://www.cpsc.gov/s3fs-public/362%20Safety%20Barrier%20Guidelines%20for%20Pools.pdf
---

Memorial Day weekend has a way of forcing the issue — the pool has to be ready, whether you've been thinking about it or not. This covers the short list of what actually needs to happen between cover's-still-on and safe-for-swimming, from draining the cover through balancing chemistry to making the pool safe for a crowd of guests.

## Before You Touch the Cover

- [ ] Pump standing water off the cover first `{essential}`
  It's important to drain your pool cover to prevent melted snow or rainwater from getting into your pool.
- [ ] Skim leaves and debris off the cover before lifting it
  So nothing dumps into the water as you pull it off.
- [ ] Hose the cover down and let it dry fully before folding it away
  It'll mildew in storage otherwise.

## Get the Water Moving Again

- [ ] Top off the water level with a garden hose
  Fill until it's about halfway up the skimmer opening.
- [ ] Pull the winter plugs and reinstall return fittings and skimmer baskets `{essential}`
  Remove all the plugs or Gizzmos installed in your pool returns and skimmers, and replace return fittings and skimmer baskets. Water can't circulate with those still in.
- [ ] Reinstall the pump, filter, and ladder/rails
  Use fresh Teflon tape and silicone lube on o-rings and drain plugs.
- [ ] Prime the pump before you flip it on `{essential}`
  Open all the valves before and after the pump, and open the air bleeder on top of the filter. Prime your pump by opening the lid and filling with water. Running it dry can burn out the motor.
- [ ] Run the filter system continuously for the first 24 hours
  Gets the water circulating and clear.

## Balance the Chemistry

- [ ] Test the water before adding anything `{essential}`
  Guessing at chemical doses on a holiday timeline is how you end up with cloudy or unswimmable water right when you need it clear.
- [ ] Adjust total alkalinity first, then pH
  Total alkalinity should be between 80 and 120 parts per million, and pH between 7.4 and 7.6.
- [ ] Shock the pool with chlorine, then let the filter run 24 hours before anyone swims `{essential}`
  With a holiday crowd adding more bather load than usual, you want the sanitizer level solid going in, not catching up after.
- [ ] Add chlorine stabilizer (CYA) `{when: saltwater-or-unstabilized-chlorine}`
  If you have a saltwater pool or use unstabilized chlorine, you need to add a chlorine stabilizer. CYA should be between 30 and 50 parts per million.
- [ ] Add calcium hardness increaser if the water tests soft `{when: water-tests-soft}`
  Mainly a concern for plaster or vinyl surfaces.
- [ ] Retest the morning of the party, not just after shocking
  Extra sun and bathers shift the numbers fast.

## Make It Safe for a Crowd

- [ ] Check the gate latches and fence self-closers work `{essential}`
  A pool full of relatives' kids is not the weekend to discover a gate doesn't latch.
- [ ] Check that drain covers are intact, not cracked or missing `{essential}`
  Damaged or non-compliant covers are an entrapment hazard that's been the subject of repeated federal recalls and warnings.
- [ ] Keep a reaching pole and life ring in plain sight near the pool before guests arrive `{essential}`
  Cheap insurance that's useless if you remember it after someone's already in the water.
- [ ] Assign one sober adult as the "water watcher" whenever kids are swimming `{essential}`
  With a crowd, it's easy for everyone to assume someone else is watching — name the person out loud.
- [ ] Skim and vacuum the pool surface the morning of
  So it looks (and tests) its best when guests show up.