So you want to clean your own pool
What is your free time worth?
Having time for yourself, to do what you want, is valuable! That’s why most people choose to hire out for services that would suck up their free time. What if I could show you that hiring out for pool service is financially more productive than trying to save-a-buck and do it yourself. Would you spend two minutes reading to find out how? Have you ever watched a professional wiz through a job, making it look quick and easy? In fact if they really know what they’re doing, you begin to think… hey, that was too quick or way too easy… I should just do the work myself! So, you decide to be the service person with your own supplies and equipment. Sounds smart right? Well, you’re motivated so you trek down to your local home improvement or discount store. You find yourself staring at a variety of chemicals and brand choices… not always confident you know what they do or whether you’ll need them. If you want to save time, you buy a few of them so you won’t have to come back if you find you need them later on. You feel good about your decisions and you don’t seem to mind forking out the initial investment. If you don’t have cleaning equipment your bill quickly adds up to a few hundred dollars but you figure it’s always good to have the stuff on hand even if you have pool service in the future. So far, you’re only out some bucks and time. If you’ve made this a special trip with a sole purpose of getting chemicals and supplies, you’re eating into your time… even if you were able to get this shopping done while you were out running errands, it’s still costing you time. You’ve lost track of the fact that this is when you’re supposed to be relaxing and recover from work. But, you figure, hey it’s only one time, it’ll pay off in the end… I’m sure I’ll save time and money. When you return home, you head to the backyard and begin reading the instructions if you’re wise, because these are caustic dangerous chemicals that deserve your respect. One little mistake could mean a trip to the emergency room for you or a family member. By now you’ve delved into learning chemistry, some by trial and error, hoping you don’t mess up the color of the plaster or create stains on the pool walls. You pull out your vacuum and spend quite a bit of time trying to prime the pump so it will suck. Then you spend about 45 minutes vacuuming the pool. It took a little longer than you expected… after all the pro was only there for 20-30 minutes including netting and chemical balancing. You know you’ll get faster with time. But what you don’t know is that you don’t have the pro’s years of experience with all the tricks-of-the-trade that make his or her job so efficient. After netting the debris for 20 minutes you’re a little discouraged because you can’t get all the stuff and it’s time to wrap it up. So you put away all your purchases and call it a day. A few days later, your pool starts to look a little cloudy or perhaps even has some green fur sticking to the sides. You know you need help here so this time you head to a pool supply store and seek advice from a knowledgeable person. Since they can’t tell what’s happening with your water chemistry, you agree to return with a vial of your pool water, so you head back home, find a container, get a pool water sample and return to have the water tested.
Not knowing enough about pool water chemistry There’s a lot to know about getting your pool water balanced and which chemicals to use. The pH of your water determines how effective the chlorine will be. When pH is too high, chlorine becomes less effective at killing algae and bacteria. If your pH is too low, chlorine will be more effective BUT you will most likely stain your plaster (a costly mistake). There are different types of sanitizers such as chlorine which will address a variety of problems. For example, liquid chlorine is best for yellow algae while other sanitizers are more effective at attacking bacteria and black algae. If you don’t choose the correct chemical for your situation you could end up with a green pool, unhealthy water, stained plaster or just spend too much money on ineffective, unnecessary products.
Not running the equipment effectively If you run your equipment too little, you won’t get enough water circulation or filtering and your water will become cloudy as bacteria growth increases. Trying to save money by reducing your equipment run time can create unhealthy, unfiltered water and could put your family and guests at risk. On the other hand, if you run your equipment too long, you waste money on electricity and your equipment’s longevity is reduced. When your pool water is balanced and the chemicals are right, your pool equipment does not need to be on as long to do its job. Get advice from a pool professional to find the balance your equipment needs.
Not draining the water regularly Have you ever noticed white calcium on your glass shower enclosures, at the base of your faucets or on your pool tile? Tap water on the west coast is hard. That means the water has minerals in it, most of which is calcium. When the sun evaporates water from your pool, the calcium does not evaporate, it stays. Even though you might add fresh water to refill your pool, over time you might notice your water isn’t as clear and sparkly as pictures in advertisements or your neighbors new pool. What you don’t see is that inside your plumbing and equipment, calcium deposits are building up, inhibiting water flow, and damaging equipment. Hard water eventually becomes unhealthy water because the sanitizers used to keep bacteria from growing become less effective even when more chemicals are added more often. Your $30,000 pool is filled with about $400 worth of water. Draining your pool every few years will keep your water clean, clear and safe while extending the life of your equipment. You wouldn’t swim in dirty bath water would you? Then trade your used water for fresh!
