When the warm weather arrives, it’s time to get your pool up and running again. In practice, the first thing to consider is the water temperature: it should be above 12°C for chlorine-bromine pools and 15°C for salt-treated pools, to avoid damaging the electrodes.
Ce guide vous accompagne pas à pas, que vous ayez fait un hivernage actif ou passif. L’analyse de l’eau de votre piscine est également primordiale. Ces étapes sont très importantes afin d’éviter l’apparition d’algues et de micro-organismes dès le début de la saison.
Follow our step-by-step advice to get the season off to a great start and enjoy a beautiful pool all summer long!
Before we get into the details of each step, here’s what you need to know to get sta
To determine when to restart your pool, the water temperature :
Depending on your location, the start-up period is generally in early spring, between mid-March and mid-April.
It may be a tempting idea to put off starting up your pool in order to save on electricity or maintenance costs, but it's a bad idea! In fact, the rise in water temperature leads to the development of bacteria and, in particular, the appearance of green algae. You run the risk of having to treat these algae with costly products to restore clear, healthy water, in addition to the time spent scrubbing the walls. To avoid this stress at the start of the season, keep an eye on the water temperature and summerize your pool without delay.
On the other hand, restarting too early in the season can put your equipment at risk if the frost returns.
The steps involved in restarting your pool after active or passive wintering are different. It is therefore imperative to adapt the process.
Cover: clean and dry the cover before storing it in a dry place
Now that the risk of frost has passed, you can take out the gizmos, floats and wintering plugs, clean them and put them away until the end of the season.
Refit filtration accessories such as filter socks and nozzles, then screw adjustable jets into the outlets.
Open the valves in the intermediate position and retighten the unions on the valves, filter and pump.
In order for the pump to operate, the water level must be raised to about ¾ of the skimmers.
It's important to clean and check your filtration system so you can enjoy peace of mind all season long. To do this, close the drain plug on your filter. Then replace the drain plug on your filtration pump. Fill the pre-filter with water and tighten the lid. Thirdly, open the valves in the equipment room and set the valve to filtration. Finally, switch on the electrical box and restart your equipment.
To find out more about filtration: Suivre le guide pour bien filtrer l’eau de votre piscine
If you have a cartridge filter, fit new cartridges.
Now it’s the pool’s turn. Using your usual equipment (robot, brushes, a brush, and a net), clean all the walls, the waterline and the water’s surface to remove all debris. If you have a tiled pool, now is the time to give your tiles a thorough clean using a high-pressure hose, such as a Kärcher. It is also important to clean the area around your pool (edging, decking), which can be a source of water contamination, not forgetting to clean the cover, paying particular attention to the gaps between the slats.
Once the pool is clean, put back the accessories (ladder, diving board,...)
Once the water in your pool has been levelled and filtered to oxygenate it, it's time to analyse the water quality. You need to test the pH, ORP (disinfectant level), TAC (water alkalinity) and TH (water hardness). See the paragraph below on analysing pool water at the start of the season.
The first objective is to achieve a balanced pH (7.2 for chlorine treatment and 7.5 for bromine treatment), by adding pH+ or pH - in small quantities. Make sure you spread the product evenly throughout the pool to ensure it works more quickly.
Some professionals recommend systematic shock treatment, even if you've used a winterizing product. It's true that shock treatment is radical in killing bacteria, but it's a powerful chemical that comes at a cost. It's not an obligation, therefore, when passive wintering has been carried out according to the rules of the art, and it allows you to consume products more responsibly.
Run your filtration for about 48 hours to ensure that your water is healthy and crystal clear. Then, readjust the daily filtration time according to the temperature of your pool.
If the outside temperatures are still cool, don't hesitate to cover your pool: this step is not compulsory, but it also protects the water from external pollution such as pollen, insects...
During your active wintering period, you should have continued to filter your pool water for a few hours a day and treated it regularly to maintain its quality. Now it's time to resume more active filtration after a good cleaning.
If you have used equipment such as a winter cover or antifreeze floats, clean and dry them before storing them for the season in a clean place.
If necessary, adjust the water level up to ¾ of the skimmers. To keep your water healthy, we recommend changing 1/3 of your pool water every year to eliminate micro-organisms and traces of chemicals. But if you've been cleaning your pool regularly throughout the winter, this isn't necessary.
In the Pool House, change filters (cartridge, sand, etc.) and pre-filter if necessary, to guarantee the quality of your filtration system for the summer.
Start by cleaning all the walls, the water line and the water surface to remove all residues. Don't forget to clean the area around your pool that could contaminate the water, as well as the roller shutter, insisting on cleaning between the slats.
Once the pool is clean, put back the accessories (ladders, diving board,...)
Now is the time to measure the quality of your pool water. Here are the parameters to analyse: pH, TAC, TH. See the paragraph below on water analysis.
Depending on the pH, add pH+ or pH- in small quantities. Also adjust the TAC.
Shock treatment of your pool after active wintering is only necessary in the event of green water or the presence of green algae. It rapidly destroys organisms, fungi and bacteria. If this is the case, make sure you distribute the product evenly throughout the pool, so that it acts quickly and effectively. If you have an automatic electrolysis treatment system, adjust the salt level before restarting the unit.
Run your filtration for about 48 hours to ensure that your water is healthy and crystal clear. Then, readjust the daily filtration time according to the temperature of your pool.
If the outside temperature is still cool, you can cover your pond with a bubble cover or your roller shutter. This also prevents the water from cooling down too much at night, allowing it to gradually rise in temperature. This allows the water to warm up slowly, while protecting water quality.
Idéalement, l’eau de votre piscine doit avoir un pH compris entre 7,0 et 7,4 pour un traitement au chlore et au sel, entre 7,2 et 7,6 pour un traitement au brome. Il s’agit des valeurs optimales pour la désinfection de l’eau. Corriger le pH avec en ajoutant du pH+ ou pH- en respectant les consignes de dosage du fabricant.
See the pH guide: Everything you need to know about pH measurements
Le TAC stabilise le PH et indique la capacité de l’eau à absorber les fluctuations du pH. L’unité de mesure du TAC est la ppm (partie par million) ou le degré français (°f) et it should optimally range between 80 and 150 mg/l. By regulating the TAC level of your water (TAC+ or TAC-) you can do what is called "buffering your water".
See the TAC guide: All about water alkalinity (TAC)
The TH indicates the hardness of the water. It is measured in French degrees (°F) or in ppm. TH TH is between 10 and 20°F (100 or 200 mg/l or ppm). The higher the TH, the harder and more calcareous the water becomes. On the other hand, the lower the TH, the softer the water.
See the TH guide: All about water hardness (TH)
ORP (oxidation-reduction potential) is a measure of disinfection quality. Measuring ORP allows the effectiveness of water disinfection to be assessed. The higher the ORP value, the more effective the water is at eliminating harmful microorganisms, thereby ensuring better water quality for public health. Now a regulatory standard in many countries, ORP is considered more reliable than simply measuring chlorine or bromine levels. It must be between 650 and 750 mV, regardless of whether the pool is treated with chlorine, bromine or salt electrolysis.
See the ORP guide: All about the ORP
| pH | 7.0 to 7.4 for a chlorine and salt treatment, 7.2 to 7.6 for bromine treatment |
| TAC | 80 to 150 mg/l |
| TH | 10 to 20°F (or 100 to 200 mg/l or ppm) |
| ORP | 650 to 750 mV |
All these measurements can be taken using test strips, which are convenient but less reliable. To measure pH and ORP, you can also use electronic testers with manual readings or connected water analysers, such as ICO pool, which provide automatic readings.
ICO Pool is a smart water analyser that:
ICO Pool V2 Essential+ includes a calibration kit.
If you have winterized your ICO Pool, it also needs to be restarted in spring. See our support page for instructions on how to reactivate ICO, calibrate the sensors and start water analysis for the season.
Follow the guide: Restarting the ICO after winter storage
This is common if the system is restarted too late or if the balance and filtration do not return to normal quickly enough. The method for rectifying the situation depends on your circumstances, but the key is to act quickly (filtration, brushing, adjustments).
See the Green Water Guide How to treat green water in your swimming pool
This problem with cloudy water is often linked to water balance (pH/total hardness) and filtration.
See the Guide to Turbid Water: Everything you need to know about cloudy swimming pool/spa water
When the water temperature is between 12°C and 15°C.
When the water reaches 15°C, to prevent damage to the electrolyser’s electrodes.
Some professionals recommend carrying out a shock treatment as a matter of routine, but point out that this is not essential if the pond has been properly prepared for winter. In the case of active winter maintenance, a shock treatment is considered necessary, particularly if there is green water or algae.
The following must be checked: pH, TAC, TH and ORP
The filtration system must be run continuously for approximately 48 hours.
For a pool: ICO Pool V2 Essential+ (calibration kit included).
For a hot tub: ICO Spa V2 Essential+ (kit de calibration inclus)