Owning a pool is a luxury and sometimes even a necessity in the Arizona heat—but one thing that’s not so luxurious is maintaining it. Proper pool care is essential to ensure your pool is free of germs and doesn’t have any major structural issues.
This post will cover the three Cs of pool care: circulation, cleaning and chemistry.
Circulation
If your pool water isn’t moving, your pump isn’t running or your filter isn’t filtering, your pool water will be stagnant and gross. Here’s how to ensure proper circulation:
- Run the pump: The pump is the heart of your pool because it draws water through the filtration system, where the water is cleaned of contaminants. The longer you run the pump, the cleaner your pool will be. Run your pump for at least eight hours a day for the cleanest-possible pool.
- Clean the skimmer basket: Your pump has to work harder to do its job as the filter and skimmer basket become clogged with debris. To reduce your pump’s workload, clean the skimmer basket at least once a week. All you need to do is shut off the pump and empty the removable basket under the skimmer lid.
- Angle the jets: An easy way to keep your water circulating (and clean) is to angle the jets away from the skimmer. Doing so allows the pool water to rotate and keep debris out of the skimmer. Also, point the jets downward to circulate the water near the bottom of the pool.
Cleaning
The next step for proper pool maintenance is weekly pool cleaning. Keep your pool pristine by following these cleaning steps:
- Brush: Scrub all pool walls with a pool brush to prevent any algae buildup and stains. Pay special attention to areas around steps, ladders and below the skimmer.
- Skim: Use a net or leaf rake to remove large debris floating on the water. This quick step keeps your skimmer debris free and ensures your pool doesn’t look unattractive to swimmers.
- Vacuum: Any debris on the pool floor makes your pool look dirty and can lead to nasty clogs. Vacuum the floor weekly to eliminate any debris that settled on the bottom of the pool.
Chemistry
You don’t need a chemistry degree to be a pool-care expert, but you’ll need to follow these scientific steps to keep your water safe:
- Balance chemicals: The most important parts of water chemistry are the pH levels, alkalinity and sanitizer levels. Test your water once a week with a home water-testing kit for these chemical levels, and adjust as necessary.
- Shock: Your sanitizer will need a little boost every once in a while, especially after a big storm or after a big pool party. Shock your pool by overloading it with sanitizer to kill off any bacteria. Performing this step every two weeks or so is good practice.
Consider bringing in the pros
Instead of wasting your time, money and energy tackling all of these steps above, hire our team at Arizona Pool & Pond Company. Our weekly pool cleaning services ensure your pool is safe to swim in and doesn’t have any structural or mechanical issues. Call us today to get your quote.