How To Clean Swimming Pool

How To Clean Your Own Pool

This article was co-authored by Rob Litman. Rob Litman is a Landscaper, General Contractor, and the CEO of Vitoli Inc., a landscaping, hardscaping, ecoscaping, and swimming pool design company in Los Angeles, California. With over 20 years of experience in construction, Rob specializes in energy-efficient and drought-tolerant landscaping. He holds General Building Contractor and Registered Pool/Spa Contractor Licenses. In 2007, Rob won House of the Year in Gardena, California.wikiHow marks an article as reader-approved once it receives enough positive feedback. This article received 12 testimonials and 80% of readers who voted found it helpful, earning it our reader-approved status. This article has been viewed 396,096 times.

If you have your own swimming pool, you may want to save money by cleaning the pool yourself. It takes quite a bit of work to clean a swimming pool and you’ll have to monitor chemical levels at least three times a week. However, it’s worth it to keep your pool clean and safe for use.

Daily: Check Sanitiser Levels And Run Filtration Systems

When it comes to swimming pool maintenance, a few daily checks are essential to keep your pools water fresh and hygienic especially during the peak swimming season.

Firstly, youll need to check water levels as its important to maintain the level at least half way up the skimmer box opening. Next, youll need to operate the filtration system for 6-8 hours a day. This can happen on a timer, so you can put that task on auto-pilot.

Its also a good idea to check sanitiser levels, ideally on a daily basis.

Pool cleaning tip: regularly clear debris and scoop out leaves. Picture: Swimart

Shock Your Pool Water

Shocking is a term that means adding a concentrated amount of chlorine or other chemicals to your pool to destroy the chloramines that have built up in your pool. Shocking is also known as super-chlorination, and essentially means you are super-chlorinating your pool when needed.

You only need to shock your pool water if it hasnt been maintained well enough or adequately treated with the right amount of chemicals. Your water could need a shock treatment solely for excess use of your pool. Too many people in a pool can cause products and chemicals from suntan lotion, sunscreen, face cream, makeup, hairspray, oils from your hair and skin, to be added to your pool. These unnatural additives can quickly lead to excess bacteria and other chemicals that can cause algae buildup and can cause your pool to become unbalanced.

Testing your pool for chlorine and chloramine can help you decide whether or not it needs a shock treatment. Shock treatments might be necessary every week or hardly ever depending on how well you maintain your pool and how often it is used.

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Gather Required Cleaning Products

Its always a good practice to gather required tools that youd use when cleaning swimming pool. For instance, when we provide swimming pool cleaning services in Dubai, we always have a list or required tools to go about the whole procedure. If you do not own all of the cleaning tools, check with your local hardware store where you possible can buy them. Get yourself a pole, leaf net and never ever forget about the scrubbing tool kit for cleaning pools walls and floor tiles.

Start With Swimming Pool Surf

After when youve check the cleanliness of your pools water, it is time to capture those items that are dwelling on the surface. If you live in a place filled with trees or have kids in your home, youd end up seeing plethora of different items that might prove a serious issue. So pick up the leaf net for capturing these problematic items and free your pool surface from the risk of clogging up. Be very calm when catching small items as they may slip away from the net and make sure you picked every item that was visible on the surface.

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How Do You Clean A Stagnant Pool

Use a filter cleaner, or change the sand or cartridge if its not been done in many years. Use clarifier to help coagulate suspended particles or use flocculant to drop particles to the bottom. Fill the pool high with water and vacuum the pool to waste, by setting a multiport filter valve to waste .

Can I Use Baking Soda In My Pool

Baking soda, also known as sodium bicarbonate is naturally alkaline, with a pH of 8. When you add baking soda to your pool water, you will raise both the pH and the alkalinity, improving stability and clarity. Many commercial pool products for raising alkalinity utilize baking soda as their main active ingredient.

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Draining Some Of The Water

While draining all of the water seems like the logical first step for cleaning a pool, never do this. If you do this, the pool can pop out of the ground, like this one. This is caused by the pressure of the water table under the pool: it can be prevented by leaving some water in the pool.

Only drain off as much of the water as you need to access your pool, even if its flooded.

Keep Your Pump Running

Your pool’s circulation system includes the skimmer, pump, pump strainer, drains and filter. The system helps chemicals work effectively and ensures that water is properly filtered.

Run your pump long enough each day to make sure the water is properly filtered and each item in the circulation system is clean and in good condition.

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Test And Adjust Chemical Levels

Before you clean the bottom of the pool, which you probably cant even see due to the greenish color of the water, youll need to clean the water itself. Check the pH level and adjust the chemicals until it is within the safe range.

The adjustment will likely take a few days as you would be going back and forth with the pH increaser and reducer just to get the pH level right. You may even have to add an alkalinity increaser to reach a good pH level of 7.5 to 7.8.

How Often Should I Shock My Pool

How Often Should I Shock My Pool? Shocking your pool regularly will help to keep the water clean and free of contaminants. You should aim to shock your pool about once a week, with the additional shock after heavy use. Some tell-tale signs that your pool needs to be shocked are cloudy, foamy, green, or odourous water.

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Check Filter And Backwash As Needed

The three most popular types of filters – sand, cartridge and vertical grid DE – screen out debris and particles from your pool water. You should clean and maintain your filter according to the manufacturer’s directions.

Check your pool filter weekly, removing any debris that has gathered within.

Backwash the pool filter as needed .

S On How To Clean Swimming Pools After A Storm Or Flood

• Probably the most important thing you will read today, DO NOT DRAIN YOUR POOL as this can cause thousands of $$$$ in damage!
• The second most important thing your will read today, DO NOT DRAIN YOUR POOL.

Now that we have those two very important guidelines out of the way, let’s go on to the rest of the steps on how to clean your pool after a storm or flood.

• Scoop out as much debris as possible with a good leaf rake or leaf shovel. A leaf skimmer is fine, but if you want to save time and getting as much debris out of your pool as possible then a leaf rake or leaf shovel is the way to go.

• After getting as much debris out from your pool as possible, clean and empty out your skimmer baskets and pump baskets. Don’t forget the check your main drains as well for any stuck leaves or debris.
• Reset your breaker to get your pumps ready for operation. In the event that your breaker doesn’t reset, call a licensed electrician or your pool service provider.
• Turn on your pumps and check the pressure on your pool’s filters, if they’re high, give your sand filter a good backwashor clean your filter cartridgesbefore continuing. We’re going to need them in tip-top condition to deal with a stormed out or flooded pool!
• Take the opportunity to scrub out scum lines on your water levels when your pool is flooded! Since the water is already there, take a brush and scrub where your water level usually is.

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Keep Your Swimming Pool Algae

When you own your own swimming pool, the aim is to have crystal clear water. Unfortunately, this is not always the case!

During a daily inspection, you might notice a little algae growth or slightly cloudy water. If you have been away from your pool for a few days or weeks, then you’ll probably return to see it full of algae.

I hope this article will help you manage any water clarity issues, fix a green or cloudy pool, and prevent any future problems.

S To Keep The Swimming Pool Water Clean

A swimming pool can be a great addition to your home not just to enhance the look for your property but also to have fun with your family and friends in the soaring hot summer months. However, maintaining a pool is not an easy task, especially if you want to keep the water crystal clear throughout the year.

If you neglect pool water maintenance, it could turn hazy, cloudy, or maybe green due to the build-up of algae. However, if you follow a few easy steps to keep your swimming pool water clean, you and your family/friends can always be ready to jump into your pool.

But before discussing steps on how to keep a pool clean, lets find out some more important things about swimming pool cleaning.

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Pool Cleaning Tools You Need

The right tools for cleaning a swimming pool will make all of the difference in how easy, and how fast you get the job done. When purchasing pool maintenance tools be sure to consider that quality is better than being frugal.

Tools you will need to effectively clean your swimming pool:

• Telescopic Pool Pole 8 / 14
• Nylon Pool Brush 18 Length
• Stainless Steel Wire Brush 9 Length
• Vacuum Head Standard Size

You may also want a trashcan that you can place leaves and other debris into.

Use A Good Pool Vacuum Cleaner

There are many good pool cleaners on the market, as well as a variety of pool vacuums that can clean multiple areas of your pool. Some vacuums require you to manually position and clean the different areas of your pool, while others can work autonomously. Cleaning your pool thoroughly with a pool vacuum cleaner will help maintain cleanliness and avoid having to perform significant cleanings in the future.

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How To Clean A Green Pool

If your pool has been neglected for a length of time and the water has turned green and swampy, youâre likely to have an overload of algae and debris growing inside. You may need to consult a pool cleaning professional for advice, but hereâs what you should do if you want to try to resolve the problem yourself. Be sure to handle chemicals with care and always wear protective clothing and follow the safety instructions on the packaging:

• Make sure you have all the equipment you need.

• Establish a regular pool cleaning routine.

• Remove debris from the pool, and clean the walls and floor on a regular basis.

• Empty skimmer baskets and filters to maintain a clean flow of water.

• Make sure the chemical balance in your pool is correct and maintained.

Originally published

How Often To Brush Your Pool

At least twice a week, brush the walls, ladders, and corners of your pool. Be sure to get into every nook and cranny possible to brush away any lurking algae formations. Brushing will push the algae into the water, making it easier for chlorine or other sanitizers to kill it.

Note that if your pool has developed a serious algae problem, brushing isnt going to remedy it. Youll need to take more drastic steps to get rid of pool algae.

You could either memorize all this information, or you could take our handy Pool Care Handbook with you for the next pool cleaning session!

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Can You Vacuum To Waste With A Cartridge Filter

Yes, you can manually vacuum a swimming pool and have the water drawn up the vacuum hose pumped into the drain. All filtration systems will have a multiport valve in between the water inlet and filter that can be turned to the drain or waste setting. This is the recommended way to vacuum a pool especially when the bottom is covered with dirt and leaves. The vacuum sucks up the dirt and it is flushed into the drain. You dont want that dirt in your filter as it will clog the filter and you will need to clean the filter again.

Additional Pool Cleaning: Youre Not Done Yet

Cleaning the pool is only half the job. After you go to all the trouble to skim, brush, and vacuum your pool, whats the last thing you want? A bunch of leaves, dirt, and other debris to make its way into your water because you neglected to clean the deck and the filter. Dont let all your hard work go to waste.

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How To Keep A Pool Clean: Steps To Cleaning A Pool

If the water in your pool is looking a little less than clear, itâs probably time to give it a clean. These steps make for a super easy way to clean a swimming pool:

Balance Your Pool Water

Testing your pool water can help you decide to adjust your levels accordingly. But how do you regulate these levels? It happens by balancing the pool water chemistry. There are three crucial parts to your pool water chemistry.

Knowing these three levels is vital in balancing your water. There are chemicals you can add to your pool to create a safe balance of cleanliness in your water.

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How To Clean The Water In The Swimming Pool

Keeping the swimming pool clean means more than just cleaning the floor and the water line. You also have to filter the water sufficiently. In summer, we advise a minimum of 12 hours filtering per day. This will filter out all dirt particles as quickly as possible.

To keep the water quality healthy, you need to add maintenance products to the swimming pool. First ensure that the acidity or pH value is correct. To be able to swim in the pool, the pH should be between 7.0 and 7.6, with an ideal value of 7.2.

For this, you should test the water quality with a test kit. If necessary, add pH Plus or pH Min to the water.

The swimming pool also needs to be disinfected against bacteria. To do this, you can add chlorine to the water. The ideal chlorine value for an outdoor pool in the garden is 1mg/l. You can easily check this using your test kit.

You should easily be able to keep your swimming pool clean by following the tips set out above. If you still have a problem, please do not hesitate to contact us. Investing a bit of time every week in keeping your swimming pool clean means that youll never have that much work. Putting the maintenance off and only doing it once a month will cost you a lot more time in the end.