Preparing Your Pool for Hurricane Season in Southwest Florida

Hurricane season is simply part of owning a pool in Southwest Florida. A little preparation on the equipment pad and in the water itself goes a long way toward an easy recovery once the storm passes.

Before the storm: the equipment pad

• Shut off power to the pump, heater and any automation at the breaker, not just the timer, if a direct hit is expected.
• Secure or remove anything near the pad that could become airborne and damage equipment — furniture, umbrellas, potted plants.
• If your automation panel or salt cell isn't rated for direct water exposure, a simple waterproof cover can prevent a lot of after-storm trouble.

Before the storm: the water itself

Leave the pool full. An empty or partially empty pool can actually pop out of the ground from groundwater pressure during heavy rain — the weight of a full pool helps hold it in place. Balance the water and raise the chlorine level slightly beforehand so it has some buffer against the dilution and debris a storm brings.

Before the storm: loose items

Bring in ladders, skimmer poles, floats, solar covers, and anything else that could blow into the pool or become a projectile. It's a short list, but it's the one people forget most often in a last-minute scramble.

After the storm: what to check first

• Don't restore power to equipment until you've visually checked it for standing water or storm debris.
• Skim off heavy debris before running the filter, so leaves and branches don't clog it immediately.
• Retest water chemistry before assuming it's fine — heavy rain dilutes chlorine and can swing pH significantly.
• Check the equipment pad for anything that shifted, cracked, or got submerged.

If something doesn't come back on right

A pump or heater that got wet during a storm shouldn't just get powered back on and hoped for the best — a quick inspection first can prevent a small issue from becoming a bigger, more expensive one. We're a local team, and we're used to this exact situation throughout Estero, Bonita Springs, Naples, Fort Myers, Cape Coral, Marco Island and the rest of Southwest Florida.