Swimming pools and summer; they just go together. It is where people go to relax, exercise, make memories and cool off. But, as the summer winds down and we enter into fall it is important to remember that swimming pools require maintenance all year long. You can certainly hire a professional service to maintain your pool but these are some basic guidelines to follow if you choose to maintain your swimming pool.
The easiest way to ensure you are properly maintaining your swimming pool is to create a maintenance schedule. During the summer when your pool is experiencing its most heavy use, your maintenance schedule will be a bit busier.
Some basic tips for everyday use of your pool are skim, vacuum, clean and chlorinate. You will want to skim the surface of your pool and also remove any debris from the skimmer basket. Pods can easily become filled with leaves, branches, dust, hair and insects or more and no one wants to swim around in that. But more than an unsightly and unpleasant swimming environment, debris left uncleaned can create algae and bacteria which are difficult to remove.
Vacuuming your pool is also an important part of maintenance. Vacuuming picks up dust and algae. Frequency varies anywhere from a few times per week to a few times each month. One of the most important parts of swimming pool maintenance is to ensure the pools pH level is correct.
Checking the pH balance of your pool should be done a few times each week as it is incredibly important to ensure your swimming pool water is safe for swimming. As summer changes to fall and you are not swimming as often, or at all, you will want to prepare your pool for the change in season. You may want to do a shock treatment on your pool to help prevent algae from growing.
In cooler climates you may want to drain or cover pools but in warmer climates this is not necessary. In warmer climates you do not need to cover your pool but doing so will help prevent debris buildup.
During the off season for swimming it is still important to check the pH levels in your pool. You will also still want to use chlorine and occasionally do shock treatments if necessary to prevent any issues from arising.
You will still want to skim the pool and clean out the skimmer basket often as well as vacuum once per month to ensure no debris builds up. By doing these simple steps you can ensure your swimming pool stays pristine all year long and avoid costly and frustrating problems that could prevent you from enjoying your beautiful swimming pool.