No matter where you live or how often you use your pool, maintenance is an important part of keeping it in good shape. Maintenance can include anything from cleaning out the pool to balancing the chemicals in the water to taking care of the pool’s equipment. Your pool requires attention. Even though you have a lot to do this weekend, cleaning and maintaining your swimming pool should be your top priority.
We’ve put together all the tips and tricks you need to know to make it easier to take care of your swimming pool, whether it’s in-ground or above-ground. We also point out the most common mistakes people make when taking care of their pools. Don’t do these things!
Here’s the deal…
MUST HAVE POOL MAINTENANCE PRODUCTS
At Kline Brothers Landscaping, we make it easy and quick to start taking care of your pool.
MAINTENANCE SCHEDULE WEEKLY
- Check the level of water to make sure the pump can work well.
- Check the pH of the water and change it if you need to.
- Check how much chlorine is in the pool water.
- Check and adjust the pH.
- Check the levels of oxidizer and stabilizer and make changes if necessary.
- Check the pool water to see if it is clear and if algae are growing.
- Remove leaves and other debris from the bottom of the pool, the skimmer basket, and the water’s surface.
- Add the right amount of chlorine once a week or oxidize the pool with 1/2 lb of E-Z POOL per 10,000 gallons of water.
- Check the pressure on the filter and backwash if you need to.
- When you use E-Z Pool + Revive! No chock should be needed once a week. If not, you should shock the pool at least once every two weeks to get rid of contaminants and make the water clear again.
MONTHLY
- Test and balance the pool as needed
- Check how hard the calcium is and make changes as needed.
- Check the amount of alkalinity
- Wash out the filter
- Check that equipment like a pump and a filter is working well.
- If your pool has a liner, check it for holes and tears and fix anything that needs to be fixed.
- Whether your pool is made of concrete, gunite, or fiberglass, look for cracks.
- Check all the other pool equipment, like ladders, handrails, diving boards, etc., to make sure nothing is loose and everything is working properly.
HOW TO DO A WATER TEST
Testing the water is one of the most important things to do when you own a pool. There are four important tests to do:
- pH
- Chlorine
- Total alkalinity
- Calcium hardness
Even though it’s unrealistic to think that most people will test their pool every day, you should at least do it once a week. This will help keep the water in your pool clean and healthy.
TEST STRIPS & KITS
The easiest, cheapest, and fastest way to check the water in your pool is with test strips.
- Dip the test strip into the pool and move it around for about 30 seconds.
- Then, compare the colors on the bottle and the test strip.
Even though these are the easiest to use, they are also usually the least accurate.
There are test kits for digital things. The health departments like these kits because they are easy to use. Even though they cost more, these kits are the most accurate way to test the water in your pool.
Lastly, there are Reagent test kits, which have reagents that you drop into a sample of water. The tester’s eye is used to make accurate color comparisons with these kits.
BALANCING PH
How acidic or alkaline the water is is measured by the pH. The human body has a pH of 7.2. This may be the last reason why this song is also good for the pool. When the pH of water falls below 7, it becomes acidic. Anything with a pH above 7 is alkaline.
- LOW pH PROBLEMS
- Low pH can cause your liner to dissolve, corrosion of all the metals in your pool (ladders, rails, pumps, filters, valves, etc.), stains from the metal corrosion, and rapid loss of chlorine, which means you have to use more and more, and dry, itchy skin.
- HIGH pH PROBLEMS
- High pH can lead to scaling or calcium buildup on the pool’s walls, waterline, and accessories, dull or cloudy water, clogged filter medium or elements, dry, itchy skin, and a drop in chlorine’s ability to kill algae.
- KEEPING pH BALANCED
- Use E-Z Pool + Refresh! Every week make sure the pH is right. If you use these products every week and don’t get a balanced pH when you test, call (800) 407-9964 or email [email protected].
POOL CLOSING AND OPENING
ANNUAL WINTER CLOSING
- Adjust the levels of pH, total alkalinity, and calcium hardness in the water.
- Run the filter for about 24 hours without stopping.
- E-Z Pool Winter Dosage: 1lb (2 scoops) for every 5,000 gallons. Run the pump for 30 minutes before closing for the best results.
- Make sure you’ve drained all of your pipes and pool plumbing, as the water expands when it freezes and can cause your pipes to burst. You can use a shop vac or backwash the pool filter to blow the water out of these plumbing lines.
- Lower the water level to keep it from freezing and blow out the lines to get rid of any extra water.
- Clean the pool well by vacuuming and taking out all the trash.
- Take away the skimmer baskets, ladders, and other pool equipment that is outside.
- Cover your pool with a winter cover or a safety cover.
- Use air pillows and a cover pump as needed to protect your pool’s walls.
ANNUAL SPRING OPENING
- Net the leaves and pump the water off the top of the pool.
- Take off the cover from the pool. Before putting it away, clean and fold the pool cover.
- Add E-Z-Pool according to the dose on the bucket.
- Fill the pool with water and turn on the pump.
- Start the pool pump when the water in the pool is 3/4 of the way up the skimmer opening. Your pool filter’s multi-port position should be on “rinse” for about 30 seconds before you switch it to “filter.”
- Net any leaves or other things that fall into the pool. If the pool is dirty, you should also vacuum it.
- Brush the walls and floor of the pool.
- Add Revive! instead of a shock to the swimming pool.
- Turn on the pool pump and let it run for 24 to 48 hours. – Keep the pump running so that all the water in the pool goes through the filter. This cleans the water of any bacteria and makes it safe to swim in.
- Now that the water has gone around the pool, vacuum it if you need to.
- Check the pH of the pool water. Use test strips to check the pH of the pool water and make any necessary changes (use baking soda to raise the total alkalinity).
- Follow the instructions to backwash the sand filter or clean the DE or cartridge filter.
COMMON MAINTENANCE MISTAKES
MISTAKE #1: DRAINING THE WATER
Don’t take out more than a third of the pool’s water. When you drain a pool with a vinyl liner, the liner can dry out or shrink. This would cause a lot more problems than it would solve, and you would probably have to replace the liner. It might seem like a good idea to drain your vinyl liner pool when you open it for the summer, but you can still clean and maintain it with the water inside. Just put your Revive to use!
MISTAKE #2: NOT MONITORING THROUGHOUT THE SEASON
So you did everything you needed to do to get your pool ready for the summer, but you haven’t checked the water in it in two months. Water testing is an important part of keeping a pool in good shape, but you have to do it at least once a week. If your pool is used almost every day, you should check the water twice a week. Depending on your pool, you may need to add more chlorine or E-Z Pool + Revive Weekly and make sure the pH is right. Having regular water tests done on your pool water will keep the water clean and clear all season.
MISTAKE #2: you turn off your pump.
When your pump is turned off and there is no water moving through your pool, bacteria can start to grow. When your pump is running and water is moving, your filter can do its job. Water doesn’t have a chance to settle, so bacteria can’t grow. Sunlight helps bacteria grow, so it is very important to keep the water moving, especially in the hot summer sun, so bacteria don’t have a chance to grow. If you want to save money where you can, leave the pump on for 7 to 8 hours a day (during the day) and closely watch the water to make sure bacteria isn’t growing and the water level stays the same. If there are problems with imbalances, you can make sure the water stays clean by going back to a 24-hour pump schedule. Or, you can save time and money by buying a pump timer, which pays for itself faster than you might think.
#4: Not paying attention to your filter
During the pool season, you must keep your filter clean. How often you clean will depend on the type of filter, how often you use the pool, and how many contaminants are in the area. A good rule of thumb is to clean or backwash the filter when the gauge on the filter goes up about 10 PSI from what it was when it was clean. When they are clean, different types of filters will have different PSI readings. Make a note of what your filter’s “clean” PSI reading is so you can clean or backwash it when it’s time.
BASIC SAND FILTER FUNCTIONS
No, everybody does not have a sand filter. But it’s the most-asked-about type of filter, so we wanted to talk about the pros and cons of having one.
A multi-port valve is used to run a sand filter, which gets rid of dirt, algae, and other visible contaminants that get into a swimming pool. To get rid of waste well, you must run the filter system for at least eight to twelve hours per day.
Use the filter to clean the water in the pool or to vacuum it.
Used to clean filter sand. Turn off the pump, set the multi-port valve to “backwash,” and turn the pump back on for a few minutes or until the water in the sight glass is clear. Rinse the filter. (see Rinse below).
To clean the water inside the filter tank. Turn off the pump, set the multi-port valve to the rinse position, turn on the pump again, and run clean water through the system for one minute. This step should also be taken whenever filter sand is added or taken out.
WASTE: Use to vacuum up a lot of dirt and send it straight to the trash. This step goes around the filter bed. It can also be used to lower the water level or drain the pool to the bottom of the skimmer.
Use this to stop the flow of water to the filter and pool. Make sure your pump is turned off before you use this feature.
WINTER: Used to close a pool in places where the water can freeze, especially. Make sure to take all of the drain plugs out of the pump and filter system. Winter plugs can be stored in a pump basket for safekeeping until spring. Pump and filter must be completely drained because water that expands can damage them, which is not covered by the warranty.
RE-USE: Use it to get around the filter tank. It helps when you are away from the pool for a long time. This feature lets automatic chlorinating systems keep the right amount of chlorine in the water without worrying about pressure building up in the filter. This is also a good way to fix a leaking or cracked sand filter tank.
WE ARE HERE TO HELP!
Explore our blog often to find a lot of information about owning a swimming pool.
