With Summer just around the corner visions of hot days spent cooling down in a sparkling blue pool are crowding our minds. You may be preparing to either refill your pool again or dust off the cover and start preparing your pool water to be suitable to swim in when those scorching summer days roll around. At the start of summer it’s so easy to enjoy that newly cleaned pristine water but as the weeks go by there’s a good chance that water will start to turn slightly green and when stepping out on a bright day the water that may by this time be covered with leaves and bugs suddenly doesn’t look so inviting anymore. With family vacations and days trips away it can be hard to keep up your pool maintenance or even think about it when there is so much else going on, but if you follow these Seven Simple Tips bellow then you can be rest assured to have a long summer of sparkling blue water ahead of you.
1. Pool Scoop Nets
There is a lot to be said for the simple hand help pool net. The cheapest bit of pool cleaning equipment you can get but very effective. This is an easy job to get your teens to do every few days. Just by walking around the pool with the long net and picking up any floating leaves or bugs you are assisting the skimmer with its hard work and assuring that the filter won’t get blocked or clogged as easily.
2. Cleaning Out Your Skimmer Basket
Your skimmer basket usually sits on the side of your pool and is what helps filter the water and the capture floating debris on the surface of your pool. If you do not have a reliable skimmer then it’s best to get a new one installed, which will save you time in the long run. The skimmer sends the debris into a fine mesh basket that can be taken out and emptied. Making emptying your skimmer basket a once a week job can work wonders in keeping your pool clean and clear.
3. Cleaning Your Pool Filter
Working alongside your pool skimmer is your filter, the mechanism that is constantly cycling your water and filtering out the nasties. A good pool filter may only need to be cleaned two or three times a year but it is still important to keep on top of it especially if there has been excessive rainfall or any kind of storm in your area. The best way to clean out your filters is to have two element sets that you can switch out while you soak one set in a cleaning solution like Trisodium Phosphate or muriatic acid. Your local pool store will give you the correct percentages you should use to mix them with water. Try cleaning out your filter at the start of summer, midway through and then at the end before you put it to rest for the colder months. This way you will be sure to stay on top of your pool filtration and if you mark your cleaning times on your calendar it will be easy to remember!
4. Checking Your Pool Chemistry
Summers here and schools so why would I want to be doing chemistry? you must be asking! Well, your pool runs on a very delicate chemical balance and so it’s important to keep that in check so your water is safe to swim in and doesn’t develop things like algae. This should be done at least two times a week during the summer months when you are using your pool more. Making sure your pH and Chlorine levels are right is just vital. You can head to your local pool store and get a chart for your pool in case you haven’t already got one to make sure you are getting your levels right.
5. Pool Covers
The most effective way to keep debris out and your levels right are by having a pool cover. Pool covers can be cumbersome things and you may only have a big heavy one used for winter that you have no desire to roll up day in day out over summer, but times are changing and you can now get incredibly user-friendly pool covers. Check out these great pool cover reviews to help direct you to the right one to fit your pool. You don’t have to keep it over your pool any time you are not using it, but it can be great to pull over you cover each night to help keep lovely heat in and annoying leaves and bugs out, saving you cleaning time.
6. Pool Vacuums
A pool Vacuum or ‘creepy crawly’ as they are often referred to, is the way to go to keep the sides and the bottom of your pool clean. These work automatically and just need to be put in the pool and then turned on at a certain time during the week. This will help clean the debris that has fallen to the bottom and not been caught by the filter or your hand scoop net.
7. Always Shower Before You Swim
This may seem like the simplest advice and not really something that would make a difference, why get wet before jumping in the pool right? But our skin stores on it it’s own chemicals and things it has picked up during the day, dirt, sand and dust or if we’ve been working in the shed, paint or oil or even fertilizer from working in the garden or on your lawn. All of these things can upset the pH levels in our pool, so for the sake of an extra minute have a quick shower and rinse off with soap. If you don’t already have an outdoor shower by you pool then it could be a fun summer DIY project to get going.
So there you have it, easy steps that will make pool maintenance a breeze. If you are able to keep on top of it you’ll have more time for relaxing in your pool! If you think you’ll struggle to remember these tips or if life is seeming to always just get in the way then you can even try printing off your own checklist and roster to help you to remember the weekly jobs and by breaking down the jobs into a checklist you are bound to find it easier to tick each box off instead of just trying to remember.