A pool is an investment. And like any investment, you want to keep it functioning for as long as possible. You wouldn’t let your car go without oil changes. Or let your pet go without grooming. Putting off pool maintenance can be just as harmful. With a little knowledge and some elbow grease, you can keep your pool clean and functioning for many years. If you don’t have the time to keep it clean, it’s important to hire a reliable pool cleaner who will do it for you, because swimming pool maintenance is important.
The Importance of Caring for Your Swimming Pool
Owning a swimming pool can be a lot of fun. On a hot summer day there is nothing more relaxing than a cool dip in the pool. A pool is also a gathering place. It’s a great place to have a party. You can invite your friends or invite the whole block. Many of us have fond memories of swimming as a child every summer. If you are the proud owner of your own swimming pool, you may be helping to build those lasting memories for the next generation of eager swimmers.
But like most fun things in life, keeping the fun going takes a little bit of work. Cleaning your pool doesn’t have to be a horrible chore, but it does mean taking a little time almost every day or every other day to do a little bit of upkeep. If you are keeping up with your pool’s maintenance on a regular basis, you shouldn’t run across too many problems. A well maintained pool can last for years with only minor repairs.
But if you let your maintenance schedule slip, or put off cleaning your pool for a while, you can run into trouble. A swimming pool can be a breeding ground for algae, bugs, and small animals. If you stop maintaining your pool you will quickly find that your pool has turned into a lagoon. Once you’ve gotten that far, it can be costly and time consuming to bring it back.
Another reason to maintain your pool is for the longevity of the pool itself. If you let your maintenance slip and don’t take proper care of your pool, you could be cutting its life in half or even to one quarter of its expected lifespan.
Different parts of your pool require different amounts of care. Here is an outline of some common types of pool maintenance and why they are so important to the health and longevity of your pool.
Water Balance
This can be the most confusing part of pool maintenance for the average homeowner. The water in a swimming pool needs to maintain a constant balance of chemicals to keep the water clean and safe to swim in. You don’t have to be a chemist to do it yourself, but buying a quality water testing kit and learning how to use it is one of the best things you can do for your pool. Everyone is familiar with chlorine in a pool. It keeps the water clean, safe, and clear. Unbalanced pH is what makes your eyes a little sore if you open them up underwater too long. And it’s what turned your hair a little green as child after a whole summer in the pool.
But chlorine is only one of the chemicals you will need to keep track of to keep your water balanced. The most important balancing job is to keep as close to a neutral pH balance as possible. Ideally, a pool should hover aroun a 7.4 pH level, since that is the pH of your eyes and mucous membranes. At that pH level you will feel almost no irritation from even hours of pool use.
Maintaining a constant pH is a balancing act between a number of different chemicals as well as the effects of nature and the weather. Direct sunlight can cause chlorine to dissipate more quickly, requiring more regular chlorine treatments. If it rains, your pool’s pH could drop (due to the acidity in most rain today). The reactions of various chemicals in the water, in your pool liner, and in the chemicals you add to the water can all affect pH.
Don’t Give Up on Balancing Your Pool Water
If you don’t think you have the time or the skills to regularly check and balance your pool water, it’s absolutely necessary to hire a trustworthy pool company like The Pool Butler to do it for you. If you don’t do it yourself or get someone else to do it, your pool will quickly become a murky health hazard unfit for swimming or any other use. Don’t let that happen to your pool. Contact The Pool Butler to set up an appointment and we’ll come take the maintenance of your hands.
Maintaining Your Pool Hardware
Besides keeping your water clean and balanced, there are plenty of pieces of hardware and machinery that need more or less upkeep to ensure that they are working and last as long as possible. Like any mechanical devices, pool equipment undergoes a variety of stresses and will eventually need to be repaired or replaced. But you can extend the useful life of your equipment just by performing regular maintenance, BEFORE it becomes a problem.
You pools filter is one of the most important pieces of pool equipment. It helps to keep your pool water clean and free of debris and small particles. But it’s important to keep your filter and all of its connected parts in good working order. Otherwise, your water quality can suffer and you could be infor more extensive and expensive damage.
One important part of keeping your filter working is keeping out large debris. You pool filter is meant to deal with small articles, not large debris like fallen leaves and branches. Make it a daily habit to spend a few minutes skimming your pool for large debris. Another option is an automatic skimmer, though that itself requires some maintenance. Make sure that your filter basket is working to keep larger object out of your filter. Always make sure the pump on your filter is working, too. A weak or broken pool filter pump can leave you with dirty water.
Keep Your Pool and Deck Clean
This seems like an obvious thing to do, but many pool owners overlook it. Your swimming pool has lots of human gunk dissolved in it. Sweat, hair gel, sunscreen, deodorant, and anything else people have on their bodies all ends up in your pool water. All of these chemicals can leave a thin film on your pool liner. If left untreated, you could build up layers of filth that are hard to clean and eat away at your pool liner. Taking the time to wipe down your pool liner on a regular basis will extend the life of your pool.
Keeping your deck clean is another no-brainer that people still forget about. You may spend time every day skimming your pool for leaves, twigs, and other debris. You also check and empty your filter basket and your skimmer. But if you are not sweeping clear your pool deck on a regular basis, you are just inviting more junk into your pool. Sweep your deck. It will save you time in the end.
It’s also important to clean your pool tiles on a regular basis. Just like your pool’s liner, the tiles can build up a film of yucky slime, made up of human leftovers and maybe a little bit of algae. Regularly wiping down your pool’s tiles will keep them from building up hard, dried on layers of dirt. It will also save you from damage to the grout, which could end up costing you a lot to repair.
If You Don’t Have the Time, Hire Someone
Pool maintenance is very important to the life of your pool. If you don’t have the time for it, make sure that you get a reputable and experienced pool maintenance company to do it for you. The experts at The Pool Butler offer white glove service. That means that everything with do is top-notch, including our customer service. Don’t wait for you pool to turn green! Contact The Pool Butler today.