Online Store
Being the proud owner of a swimming pool does not have to be synonymous with living through a hectic and stressed out summer. While your pool’s chemistry is extremely important to safe and enjoyable swimming, maintaining proper levels and balances is easier than you think. A truly great experience does require some basic knowledge of swimming pool maintenance, but the fundamentals are easy to understand. It all starts with gathering some general knowledge about proper pool chemistry.
The 5 Factors to Watch
In order to make the most of your swimming pool maintenance endeavours, you should teach yourself about the five main balancing factors and what they do.
- pH – determines the “acidity” of water, whether it is scale forming (basic) or corrosive (acidic). Proper pH protects pool equipment, allows sanitizer to work properly, and cuts down on skin / eye irritation in the water
- Free Chlorine (FC) – measured the sanitizer in the water and kills potentially harmful germs & bacteria
- Total Alkalinity (TA) – keeps pH levels balanced
- Cyanuric Acid (CYA) – helps to maintain the FC balance by protecting chlorine from rapid decay in direct sunlight
- Calcium Hardness (CH) – protects surfaces from becoming damaged
Once you know about each of these chemicals and you have gathered the appropriate equipment to treat the water in your pool, the next step is to know how to go about adding said chemicals in such a way that your water will be safe for swimming. You must also consider at the type of filter your pool has. Bring in a sample of water to the Purewater store and our experts would be happy to help guide you toward maintaining properly balanced and safe water.
Avoiding the Filter Fiasco While Adjusting Chemicals
A lot of today’s best pools use either a diatomaceous earth (DE) filter or a pleated cartridge. Depending on the type of filter you use, the chemical demands will reflect different needs. DE filters push contaminated water through a bag which needs to be cleaned out every other week or so. Cartridges on the other hand can last significantly longer without cleaning and only need to be washed off before reinsertion. Both DE filters and cartridges clean water without requiring much wasted water or chemical.
Adding Chemicals Proportionately
It is important to note that your swimming pool maintenance checklist should always begin with you testing the balance of your pool at least once per week while it is in use. Begin with the pH, which should stay around 7.4 to 7.6 ppm, and work your way through the others one-by-one. When adding chlorine, try to use a high concentration, pure product to prevent jarring the pH levels and to help cut back on residue.
For more information about proper swimming pool maintenance or to enlist the help of our friendly and professional maintenance team, give Purewater a call.
