26 Jul Pool Maintenance 101
Pool maintenance doesn’t have to be a difficult or time-consuming chore. If you can regularly take care of the small things your pool needs, you will have minimal issues down the road. We want you to enjoy your pool as much as possible; that’s why we’re teaching you some pool maintenance 101.
While there are several things you should be doing to take care of your pool weekly or bi-weekly as you choose, everything included in maintaining your pool falls under three main categories.
- Taking Care of Your Water
- Cleaning Your Pool
- Checking on Your Equipment
If you can remember to keep on top of these three categories on a regular basis, then your pool maintenance will be a breeze. If we dig a bit deeper into each category, there are different areas of your pool to take care of. These are outlined below, as well as some helpful tips to make sure your pool is always safe to swim in.
Your Water
Taking care of your water may be the most important aspect of maintaining your pool. When you don’t properly care for your water, you may notice other areas of your pool also start to suffer. To make things simple to remember, we’re going to split up your pool water maintenance into two sections, keeping the water clear and keeping the water safe.
Keeping the Water Clear
When we talk about keeping your pool water clear, it’s exactly what it sounds like. It’s keeping debris like leaves and sticks out of the water and making sure your water is crystal clear and inviting.
The first thing you should be doing is skimming your pool (at least once a week, but preferably whenever you notice debris in the water). This action involves taking a skimmer and running it across the top of and through your pool water to get rid of all debris. Some people do not do this often enough, and that can cause issues. Things like leaves, hair, sticks, and other build-up can carry contaminants that throw off the balance of your pool water. By getting rid of this debris in your pool, you are helping keep your water clear and your chemical levels even.
Keeping the Water Safe
The second thing to do with your pool water is to check the chemical levels. Using a testing kit, find out your current chemical levels. Then, add any necessary chemicals to make sure everything is balanced. The top things to look for when balancing your chemical levels are your pH, alkalinity, and calcium. Pool testing kits should indicate these levels.
When you are not doing these things often enough, your pool will start to suffer. We know that you may not always have the free time to do this as much as is needed. That’s why we recommend you sign up for our pool maintenance service. Once you’re on our schedule, we stop by to take care of your pool water and balance your chemical levels. Find out more on our services page.
Your Pool
When we say your pool, you may be thinking, well … doesn’t that cover everything? Specifically what we’re talking about here is taking care of your actual pool shell or liner. No matter what your pool is made of, doing a few simple things regularly will help you avoid expensive repairs. Some of these tasks include:
- Vacuuming your pool floor
- Cleaning off stains
- Scrubbing and cleaning your tiles
- Checking for cracks and chipping
This is not a complete list and different types of pools require different upkeep. Your pool may need something different than your neighbor’s pool. No matter the pool type, you should be keeping up with your pool care frequently to avoid issues. Some of the main issues that may arise from neglecting pool maintenance are:
- Pool tile staining
- Green and foamy water
- Scratchy pool floors
- Bubbles and lumps in your vinyl liner
Some of these are simple repairs while others require professional equipment and help. The easiest thing to do is make sure that your pool is getting the regular care it needs.
Your Equipment
By checking your pool equipment, you can make sure that everything is working correctly in the background. Consider checking the following pieces of equipment on a schedule.
Filter
Filters can become backed up when they are not being checked frequently. This can lead to pollutants and contaminants in the water also getting backed up. Overall, this winds up costing you more money in chemicals and products to get your water clean and safe again.
Pump
Whether you have a single speed pump or a variable pump, it’s crucial that you make sure it is working correctly. When your pump is not running properly, your pool water will not be circulated correctly and that leads to other more serious problems.
Water Heater
Pool heaters or freeze protectors make sure that your pool is always at a comfortable temperature. What ends up happening when they break down is that your pool is heated solely by the outside temperature, and that can lead to further issues.
When you don’t check on your equipment often enough, you may find problems too late. The easiest thing to do is to make sure you are spending time every week to take care of your equipment to make sure everything is running as it should.
If you are not sure of the best ways to take care of your pool or what exactly is needed for your pool specifically, get in contact with us. Our CPO-certified team really knows the ins and outs of pool care and we’re always happy to help!
We can help you find exactly what you need to take care of your pool. On top of that, you can get signed up for regular pool maintenance with one of our skilled technicians. That means you get someone who knows exactly what needs to be done with your pool and your water to make sure that it’s always getting the care that it needs. Call us today to find out more. (404) 462-0777.