Your swimming pool is a fantastic aspect of your home, transforming your outdoor space into an enjoyable spot for everyone. That said, due to some simple pool cleaning mistakes, your pool becomes a safety and aesthetic issue. Thus, timely pool maintenance services will enhance your enjoyment of pool ownership. You can also be diligent yourself and go about cleaning your pool properly.
Read this guide to avoid common pool cleaning errors and make sure your pool looks great and is safe to swim in…consistently!
Pool Maintenance 101: Top Pool Cleaning Mistakes to Steer Clear Of
A clean pool is the answer to your health, safety, and fun concerns! Unfortunately, many pool owners make some simple yet weighty errors in their pool cleaning practices. Learn helpful tips for maintaining your pool effectively right from the experts. All swimmers in your pool deserve an enjoyable environment—and here’s how to go about ensuring it!
1. Cleaning After Long Breaks
One of the most common pool cleaning mistakes is delaying cleaning till the dirtiness becomes obvious. By that point, your pool is home to many harmful microorganisms—and you’ve been swimming in unhygienic water. Additionally, you increase the risk of clogged pool equipment, which leads to excessive costs and considerable downtime.
Why not be diligent about pool cleaning? Run the filter often, use a pool net to catch stray dead leaves and bugs every few days, and use a pool vacuum at least once a week for optimal pool care.
2. Not Addressing Pool Tiling
You’ve gotten rid of larger debris and run the filter. But, what about the interior surfaces? The grime and microbes that stick to your pool tiles are not gone yet. One of the common pool cleaning mistakes is zero or minimal tile upkeep!
If it has been a while since the last cleaning, then your pool needs professional maintenance by experts. Additionally, you can go for manual cleaning with a tile scrubbing brush or get a robotic pool vacuum that tackles tiling without manual intervention.
3. Running Pool Filter Insufficiently
There is such a thing as insufficient filtration when it comes to mistakes to avoid when cleaning your pool. Even standard small-sized swimming pools (both traditional pools and container pools) hold a fairly large quantity of water. Without running the filter system for plenty of time, you risk bacteria and other contaminants getting left behind.
Time your pool filtration system when you run it. According to experts, filter the pool for a minimum of 8 hours a day for satisfactory cleaning.
4. Ignoring Filter System Cleanup
The filtration system in your pool catches dirt, small and large debris, and even questionable gunky stuff. It’s what helps clean the pool—so don’t overlook the significance of filter maintenance in keeping your pool safe. ‘Backwashing’ is using pool water to clear out the filter through another valve to avoid clogging and re-contamination.
However, know that one of the other pool cleaning mistakes to avoid is excessive backwashing. Keep the filter system safe by backwashing only when the PSI (on the pressure gauge) is above 20. A PSI between 10 and 15 is perfectly fine.
5. Adding Too Much/Too Little Chlorine
As skeptical as you are about chlorine in the pool, know that it’s vital for safety. Thus, one of the mistakes to avoid in swimming pool disinfection is too little chlorine. Go for a sufficient amount of chorine that creates a hygienic source of swimming for adults, kids, and even pets!
That said, don’t add too much chlorine to the pool water. Excessive chlorine levels can make your skin and eyes extremely irritable. Test your pool water as you add chlorine to your pool or schedule pool maintenance services for accurate chlorine levels.
6. Overlooking Water Chemistry
A low pH in your pool means the water is acidic. While this aids in keeping your pool algae-free, low pH can harm the filter, pump, and other pool equipment. On the other hand, a high pH level lowers the effectiveness of chlorine and leads to skin and eye irritation.
Needless to say, maintain an ideal pool pH, which is 7 – 7.6 according to most experts. Inspect your pool’s water often and adjust pH and alkalinity. If you’re new to pool maintenance or are not sure about the chemical composition of the pool, go for expert help!
7. Not Using Shock Treatment
Shock treatment is super chlorination, a vital pool maintenance step to break down contaminants. Additionally, shocking helps remove chloramines. Surprisingly, many pool owners overlook regular shocking—which leads to algae blooms, and murky and stinky pool surfaces!
Thus, shock your pool weekly, or after heavy usage. If you are facing algae issues, the more reason to super-treat the pool water.
Note: Do not add your pool shock to the pool skimmer that already contains chlorine. It will damage your filtration system, and the close contact of pool cleaning substances may result in toxic reactions.
8. Shocking/Treating During Daytime
We’ve established that introducing a high amount of chlorine to pool water gets rid of a plethora of harmful particles. However, this process may not work if you add the shock treatment during the daytime, as the high heat from the sun may render the chemicals useless.
Avoid the common pool cleaning mistakes of adding chemicals, and shock your pool at night. The chemicals get the perfect atmosphere to act, thus also preventing chloramines from forming. You ensure a clean and clear pool—and a pleasant experience for your swimmers!
9. Not Testing Mineral Content Regularly
Calcium occurs naturally in water and is actually quite helpful in safeguarding pool-building materials like vinyl, concrete, and fiberglass. However, too much calcium content is damaging, leading to cloudy water and hard water deposits on pool equipment.
It’s best to own a pool inspection kit, but you can also turn to professional pool maintenance experts. The ideal levels of calcium are between 175 and 225 parts per million (ppm). Monitor calcium levels regularly and add a calcium hardness increaser if necessary.
10. Not Covering an Unused Pool
Pool covers are a fantastic invention. Do they require some effort? Yes. Do they help with cleaning the pool clean? Also, yes!
No cover when it’s the pool is not in use means leaves, dirt, and other materials get into the water. A lot of pool owners make the mistake of ignoring the convenience of covering their pools, resulting in hard work for upkeep. Thus, avoid poor pool water quality and exertion by getting a durable pool cover and using it regularly.
Let the Experts Guide You for Proper Pool Cleaning and Upkeep
Your pool is a source of endless fun, but it also needs you to commit to maintenance! And don’t fret if you don’t feel you’re going about cleaning properly—even seasoned careful pool owners make pool cleaning mistakes. Lucky for you, you don’t have to approach pool upkeep alone if cleaning becomes too much hassle. Contact Swim Box today at +971 50 509 6580 or send us a message to book a session with a certified and well-versed pool cleaning and maintenance team!