While having an outdoor pool in Minnesota presents the opportunity for lots of fun in the sun during the warmer months, there’s a lot of maintenance that goes into keeping an outdoor pool clean. Here are some important tips you should follow to keep your pool clean and in good working order.
Essential Pool Maintenance Tips
1. Keep Your Water at the Right Level – Obviously, you need to fill your outdoor pool with water. The question is, how much water do you need? The ideal water level is halfway up your pool’s skimmer plate. This will allow your pool to properly filter out bacteria and debris. If your pool is overfilled, which commonly happens if a pool is left uncovered during a rainstorm, debris floating on the surface will not be sucked into your pool’s skimmer and they will contaminate the quality of your water. If this happens, use a pump to drain your pool to the appropriate level. If your outdoor pool is underfilled, your filter will suck in air, which can lead to overheating and damage. Fortunately, if this happens, it’s simple enough to just fill your pool up with the garden hose.
2. Monitor Your Chemical Levels – Pool water will allow bacteria and algae to accumulate quickly, unless you treat it with the proper blend of chemicals to prevent this from happening. Chlorine can be used to eliminate bacteria and other contaminants found in outdoor pool water, while also adding oxygen to your pool. However, direct sunlight dissipates chlorine, so you’ll also want to add cyanuric acid to your outdoor pool to preserve the chlorine. While you’re at it, you’ll also need to maintain a pH level between 7.3 and 7.8. A pH level above 7.8 will leave you with cloudy water that’s ideal for bacteria and algae growth, while a pH level below 7.3 will irritate your eyes and skin while corroding hardware within the pool. Last but not least, you need to maintain calcium hardness in the range of 220-350 to prevent damage to your plaster. When all these chemicals are balanced properly, your water should be clean and clear without causing bodily irritation. If you need help with the complicated process of balancing these chemicals, there’s no shame in employing a trained pool cleaning service in Minnesota.
3. Prepare for Winter – Keeping your outdoor pool clean and in good condition is simple enough during the summer but it becomes much tougher in winter when your outdoor pool isn’t being used. Even when your pool isn’t going to be used for 6 months, it’s important to make sure the chemicals in your water are balanced. You should also drain some of your water so that it falls below your jets but you should not completely drain your pool in the winter. However, you should make sure that all water has been blown out of your pipes to prevent expensive damages from wet pipes freezing and cracking in the middle of winter. You should also make sure to invest in a durable cover for your pool to keep it from filling with fallen leaves and snow during the winter.
Professional Pool Cleaning Services in the Twin Cities
Keeping your pool clean and functional can be quite the chore, which is why it’s a good idea to let the experts lend a hand. Give Poolside a call today for high-quality pool cleaning and maintenance services in the greater Twin Cities area!
