Category Archives: Pool and Spa Maintenance

Pool and Spa Maintenance, Pool Opening

Spring Pool Improvements: Pool Liners

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Today, we continue with part three of our pool improvement series: pool liners. Swimming pool liners can make a dramatic difference in the look of your swimming pool. If you have had your pool for an extended period of time, your liner may be weak and brittle. Constant exposure to sun light and chemicals can cause the liner to thin and eventually break. This can not only cause ugly discoloration, but also pool leaks or collapse. If you notice excessive fading or cracking of your liner, it needs to be replaced. With the variety of beautiful pool liner options available, this can also provide a totally new look for your pool. Pictured above (left to right), Monteray, Rolling Rock, Sunlight, and Dolphina are only a few of the many eye-catching liners available to improve your swimming pool.

Pool and Spa Equipment, Pool and Spa Maintenance, Pool and Spa Safety, Pool Opening

Spring Pool Improvements: Pool Steps and Ladders

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Swimming Pool Steps
In today’s second installment of our spring pool improvement series, we will talk about pool steps and ladders. Adding new steps or a new ladder to your pool can definitely add style, but it can do so much more. Replacing these worn parts can also prevent a safety hazard. Old steps and ladders that have been exposed to years of harsh sunlight and chemicals can become brittle, leading to cracks and breaks. This makes their surfaces unstable and prone to accidents. Keep the entrance and exit to your pool safe and attractive. We offer high quality steps and ladders for in ground and above ground pools. They are all classy, practical, and above all safe. Some models even feature added safety features, such as slip up and roll guard protected steps to prevent unauthorized entry into your pool. New steps and ladders are a great way to improve your pool this spring.

Pool and Spa Chemicals, Pool and Spa Maintenance, Pool Opening

Cheat Sheet for Ideal Pool Chemical Levels

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Pool season is close! Most pool owners know how to chlorinate their pool or treat for algae if needed at opening. Balancing the other key elements in your pool chemistry, such as pH, stabilizer, calcium hardness, and total alkalinity levels, can be more confusing. Here are the instructions that you need to make sure that your pool water is sparkling clear. Testing and correcting your pool water at home has never been easier.

  • If your total alkalinity is low, you will need to add sodium bicarbonate to your water to get it to the ideal range of 80-100 ppm. You can find complete sodium bicarbonate dosage instructions here.
  • If your total alkalinity is high, you will need to add muriatic acid to lower your alkalinity to the idea range of 80-100 ppm. You can find muriatic acid dosage instructions here.
  • If you need to raise the pH level in your pool water, you need to add sodium carbonate (soda ash). Here are complete instructions for raising your pool’s pH with sodium carbonate.
  • If you need to lower the pH level in your pool water, you will use the same muriatic acid mentioned for lowering your total alkalinity, but in different dosage amounts. Here are the complete instructions for muriatic acid dosage when trying to lower pH.
  • To raise the stabilizer level in your pool, you will need to add Cyanuric Acid in the dosages recommended in these instructions: cyanuric acid dosage chart. If the stabilizer level is too high, you must drain and refill the pool. There is no chemical corrector.
  • To raise the calcium hardness in your pool, add calcium chloride. You can find the exact calcium chloride dosage here. If your calcium hardness level is too high, you must drain and refill the pool. There is no chemical corrector for this problem.
Pool and Spa Chemicals, Pool and Spa Maintenance, Pool and Spa Safety

Poop Happens — How Long Before It’s Safe to Swim Again?

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Pool Chemicals for Clean Pools

We love our kids and pets, but they often find the most curious ways to make more work for the adults in their lives.  Take the backyard swimming pool, for example.  We spend countless hours every month ensuring that the pool stays clean and safe for our family and friends.  We clean the filters, we test the chemical balance in the water and adjust the pool chemicals as needed, we scrub the sides and bottom of the pool regularly to remove dirt and debris, and more.  So, when one of our beloved children (furry or otherwise) decides to use the pool as the drop zone for their poop, we understandably freak out.  What now?

The first steps are probably obvious — clear all the swimmers out of the pool and then remove the offending poop from the water.  But, then what?  How long will it take before it’s safe to go back into the water?  Well, it depends on what’s in the poop.  Poop can contain the E. coli bacterium, the Hepatitis A virus, the Giardia parasite, and/or the super nasty Cryptosporidium parasite.  Not many private pool owners have the desire or ability to test the poop to find out what kind of contaminants it contains, but it is important to note that the disinfection time varies greatly depending on the contaminants that the poop introduced into the pool water.

The best approach is to take the most cautious route in case water is contaminated with the hard-to-kill and chlorine-resistant parasite Cryptosporidium.  Disinfecting means hyperchlorinating the pool water by increasing free chlorine to either 10 parts per million (ppm) or 20 ppm.  The difference comes with the amount of time you’ll have to wait before it’s safe to swim again.  According to the Centers for Disease Control and Prevention (CDC), increasing free chlorine to 10 ppm means you’ll have to wait approximately 26 hours before swimming again.  At 20 ppm, swimming can resume after about 13 hours.  If you’re using a chlorine stabilizer, though, the game changes a bit.

For full details about what to do when you’ve had poop in your pool, read the CDC’s instruction sheet on “Hyperchlorination to kill Cryptosporidium.”  Additionally, instituting a mandatory pre-pool time potty visit for both kids and pets can help prevent future accidents.

 

 

Pool and Spa Maintenance

Tips for Pinpointing a Swimming Pool Leak

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Diver Looking For Leaks in Pool

Do you suspect that your pool has a leak?  Have you noticed a larger than average drop in your in ground or above ground swimming pool‘s water level? Determining whether there truly is a leak and then locating the source of the leak can present a challenge.

If your swimming pool uses an automatic fill system that keeps the water at a constant level, you may suspect a leak if you spot any of the following situations:

  • An out-of-the-ordinary increase in your water bill
  • Cracks in the pool deck as a result of settling earth
  • Existance of water puddles outside the pool that cannot be easily explained
  • An increase in your pool chemical usage

First, turn off your pool’s automatic fill system for at least 24 hours and keep track of the water level. If the level drops significantly within that time, your suspicions may be right, and you may have a leak in your pool.

Another sign that your pool may be leaking is if there is air in your pump that is being blown into the pool. A leak in the suction side plumbing (from skimmers and main drains to equipment), may pull air into the lines where it will show up in the pump or be blown back into the pool through the returns. This condition can also be caused by an obstruction or blockage in the suction lines. Either situation requires immediate professional attention to prevent mechanical damage to your pool equipment.

Looking for Leaks

Before calling a pool leak detection professional, you can follow a few easy steps to determine if you have a pool leak and narrow the possibilities for where it is located. Here are some of the more common areas where leaks can occur:

  • In and around the pool equipment (heater, filter, pump, etc.)
  • At fittings (lights, returns, skimmers, etc.)
  • In the liner or shell of the swimming pool
  • In the pool’s underground plumbing system

Any leaks in the underground plumbing will require professional attention, but you may be able to find obvious leaks in other parts of the pool using simple visual inspection techniques.

Check for drips or other signs of moisture around the pool equipment. Also check to make sure that your multi-port valve is not positioned to allow water loss.

Underwater leaks in the pool fittings or shell can be identified with a dye test. You can make your own dye tester by using dark food coloring and a turkey baster or a plastic syringe. If using a turkey baster, slowly depress the bulb to allow a slow, steady stream of the dye to be injected into the pool. Place a small amount of dye near the suspected leak. Liquid follows the path of least resistance, so dye will be drawn out of the pool where a leak is present. Test areas where potential leaks may occur, such as cracks in the plaster or tile, and places where skimmers, return fittings, or stairs join to the pool shell. Much of this testing can be done from the pool deck; however, you will eventually have to get into the pool with a dive mask to completely inspect the pool’s structure.

Don’t feel discouraged if you are not able to find the leak; most leaks are not visibly obvious, or they may be in parts of the pool that are not accessible, such as in the underground plumbing system. A qualified pool leak professional uses specialized equipment to find leaks. This process can take as little as an hour or two, but more complicated jobs may take longer.