Gulf Coast Hurricane Pool Prep Guide
It doesn’t matter if you’ve weathered dozens of storms or think a spaghetti model is a fancy dinner, there’s things you need to do to protect your pool and home. Whether it’s a Tuesday afternoon downpour or the real deal, storms require pool owners to prep and we’ve got tips on how to keep your investment protected.
Hurricane season has its own choreography, and most of us could do it in our sleep. Fill up the car, the gas can, hope there is still bread and water (or beer) left at the Publix on Ninth, batteries, emergency radio, charged phones, hurricane shutters, etc. But somewhere between digging out the flashlight that never works and arguing about whether to evacuate, a lot of folks completely forget about the giant hole full of water sitting in the backyard.
Good news: your pool is tougher than you think.
Better news: a few simple moves are the difference between "rinse and rebalance" and "call the insurance company." Here's our pool prep guide sorted by how nasty it's looking out there.
First, the one thing everybody gets wrong
Do not drain your pool.
We're putting it in big letters because it's the mistake that costs the most.
When a big storm's coming, the instinct is to drain the pool so it won't overflow. Please don't. Your pool is held in the ground partly by the weight of its own water. When the soil around it gets saturated — and around here, it will — the water table rises and pushes up against the bottom of the shell. That's hydrostatic pressure, and an empty or low pool has nothing to push back with.
Pools will literally lift out of the ground, crack, and float. With Florida's high water table and sandy soil, this isn't a rare horror story. It's the number one storm mistake. A little rain overflow is a Tuesday. A popped pool is a five-figure problem. Leave the water in.
Level 1 · The Tuesday Afternoon Pop-Up Thunderstorm
This is your standard Gulf Coast summer afternoon — the sky goes black at three, dumps for forty-five minutes, then it's sunny again like nothing happened. Or a tropical depression that's really just a lot of rain.
Honestly? Not much to do. Make sure your pump's running so the water keeps circulating and your chemistry doesn't stall out. The rain'll dilute your chlorine a touch and wash in some debris, but nothing your filter can't handle. Skim out the leaves and acorns after, if you're the type. (We are.)
This is the kind of weather we work in, by the way. Light rain doesn't stop us. If your pool's on a service plan, your regular visit happens as scheduled and you don't have to think about any of this.
Level 2 · When The Storm’s Got a Name
Now it's real. There's a name on it, it's pointed somewhere near us, and you're staying put. This is where the actual prep list comes in. Give yourself an hour the day before it hits and knock these out:
Balance and shock the water. Get your chemistry right, then super-chlorinate. You won't be servicing the pool for a few days, and a storm washes in organic debris, contaminated runoff, and enough rain to crash your chlorine and turn things green fast. Extra chlorine going in means an easier recovery coming out.
Bring in anything that floats or flies. Toys, floats, skimmer poles, solar lights, the little side table — anything loose becomes a projectile in 60 mph wind. Heavy patio furniture that won't fit inside? You can lower a few pieces into the shallow end to keep them grounded. Just know metal and concrete can scuff a finish, so lay down a towel or be picky about what goes in.
Cut the power to your equipment. Shut off the pump, heater, and any automation at the breaker. Water and electricity are a bad combination, and a surge can fry your gear. Turn off the gas to the heater while you're at it.
Skip the cover. Counterintuitive, but leave the pool open. A cover won't survive flying branches, and a torn cover full of debris is a way bigger headache than open water you can just skim out.
Don't drain it. See above. We mean it.
That's the whole list. Twenty minutes if you hustle.
Level 3 · Major Hurricane aka The Real Deal
Cat 3 and up. Mandatory evacuation. The kind of storm that gets its own retrospective documentary. Do everything above, plus a couple of moves to protect your equipment and then let it go.
For a major storm with flooding potential, your pump motor and exposed electrical are the most vulnerable and expensive pieces in the whole setup.Wrap the motor and timer in heavy plastic and tape it down tight. If you've got the time and a dry place to put it, disconnecting the pump motor and storing it inside is even better. Move anything portable to higher ground.
And then, genuinely, stop worrying about the pool. We say this as the people whose entire job is your pool: it's the least fragile thing you own right now. The water's not going anywhere, the shell is built to take it, and the rest is replaceable. Get your family, your pets, and yourself somewhere safe. The pool will be sitting right there when you get back, looking like a swamp. A swamp is recoverable. You are the priority.
After · Once The Storm Clears
It's going to look bad, y'all. Branches, leaves, half the neighbor's oak tree, water the color of sweet tea. Resist the urge to drain it and start fresh — the water table is still high right after a storm, so that float risk we talked about is at its absolute peak. Leave the water in.
Walk through it like this:
Scoop out the big debris by hand, make sure your equipment is completely dry before you flip the breaker back on, then run the filter and pump to start clearing the water.
Shock it, and plan to rebalance the chemistry over a few days rather than all at once (a storm-trashed pool comes back gradually, not overnight).
If the water level dropped, top it off.
If your filter pressure's reading high, it's working hard on all that debris and probably needs a clean or backwash.
If something seems off with your equipment — it won't prime, it's making a noise it didn't used to, there's standing water where there shouldn't be — don't force it. That's a good time to call somebody who does this for a living, like us. ;)
