Scorching hot summer days make you bless your swimming pool and long to share it with family, friends and even neighbors. But pool maintenance is not simply filling a hole and hoping it takes care of itself like a natural body of water. There are things you need to do and things you need to avoid as a pool owner to make sure your pool is both safe and healthy to swim in. Here are some don’ts.
It’s All About Shock
Shock is a chlorine-based chemical that kills the pathogens attacking your pool water. At best, this product is unpleasant, and, at worst, it’s unsafe to swim in. The thing with shock is that it needs to be applied the right way. Here are things not to do when it comes to shock.
Don’t Dump Shock Right Into the Water
There’s a way to prepare shock before you add it to your pool. Dumping it in before you prepare it can etch the shell and hurt the vinyl lining of your pool.
Don’t Just Use Trichlor Tablets
Trichlor tablets, as their name suggests, are made of chlorine, cyanuric acid and binders. They’re supposed to be used in rotation with liquid chlorine. Keep in mind, though, that cyanuric acid is a stabilizer. If there’s too much of it in your pool water, the chlorine won’t work.
Don’t Shock the Pool Every Week
There are things you need to do every week for your pool, but shocking it isn’t one of them. You should only shock your pool before a pool party, a thunderstorm, if you see algae blooming or there’s a special pool event coming up.
Other Things Not to Do: Not Letting the Pump Run
Yes, running your pool pump adds to your energy bill, but if you don’t run your pump enough, it will encourage the growth of some nasty microorganisms. To keep your pool water clean, run your pump for at least eight hours a day or the temperature of the water divided by six. If your water temperature is 80 degrees Fahrenheit, that means you should run the pump for about 13 hours every day.
Not Checking the Chemistry
This might be a job you want to hand over to a pool expert, as this is a task that needs to be performed every week. Checking your pool’s chemistry means checking the pH, the free chlorine and other markers.
Avoiding mistakes makes sure your pool is fit to swim in. Plus, the right maintenance keeps swimmers happy and healthy all season. When you need pool maintenance services in Palm Beach, FL, contact PB Pool Doc.