PoolThoughts.com

Cleaning a salt generator

2011-08-24T16:32:00.000-07:00

If you own a swimming pool and own a salt generator, it is important to clean, or have your pool professional clean the salt cell.

If your wondering how often to clean your salt generator there is really no answer, every pool is different, certain pools with too much calcium require almost weekly cleaning, while others almost never require it.

The easiest way to clean a salt generator would actually start by purchasing one that is self cleaning in the first place, you will still need to clean it, just less often.

Search for salt generator cell

Never Mix Chemicals

2011-08-05T21:24:00.000-07:00

Never let any two or more swimming pool chemicals touch! NEVER, don't let them mix in the skimmer, don't mix them in a bucket, always add chemicals SEPARATELY, according to the directions. any chemicals that you think might be safe ARE NOT.

Liquid Chlorine

2011-04-11T17:42:00.000-07:00

Liquid Chlorine, often referred to as bleach, is actually sodium hypochlrite. Many service companies prefer the use of liquid chlorine because of it's lightning quick results, and because it is an economical sanitizer for swimming pools.

Types - Liquid chlorine is most often purchased in 1, 2.5, and 5 gallon containers usually averaging anywhere between $4 to $8 dollars per gallon.
It is important to realize that some chlorine are 6% strength whereas others may be 12.5%, this is where as a consumer you need to do some math.

Pros

fast acting
unstabilized, (only a pro if you have high stabilizer)
economical
ease of use
High PH

Cons

Must be handles with EXTREME care
Unstabilized, this means your actually going to use more chlorine in the long run as compared to a stabilized tablet.
Weak in comparison to many other types of chlorine

One solution to the stabilization product would be to buy some "cyanuric acid" at your local pool store, this usually only needs to be added once per year, you want your reading to be from 40ppm-70ppm, and that will lengthen the life of your liquid chlorine.

Another tip, and this is a big one! If you chlorinate after the sun goes down you will get much more kick for your buck! Always handle chemicals as instructed by manufacturers and professionals, they are ALL dangerous in there own way. NEVER MIX CHEMICALS!!!!!!!!!!!

Sand Filter Operation!

2011-03-09T17:44:00.000-08:00

SAND FILTERS

Sand is the filter medium for this filter. It utilizes a multi-port valve to operate the filter which can have 6 or 8 functions, depending upon the manufacturer. The functions are as follows:
Common settings on dial:

Filter: Use for normal filtration or vacuuming the pool, this is the setting that should be on minimum 8 hours a day, more if possible. Having a variable speed pump can make this much less expensive due to massive energy savings

Backwash: Use for cleaning the filter bed.After a heavy cleanup it is very alleviating to the sand to give it a good backwash.

Rinse: Use for resetting the filter bed after washing.

Waste/Drain: Use for vacuuming heavy concentrations of dirt directly to waste. This action bypasses the filter bed. It also can be used to lower the water level or drain the pool to the bottom of the skimmer.

Closed/Test: Use for shutting off the flow to the filter and pool. IMPORTANT: When using this function, the pump should be in the OFF position.

Recirculate/Whirlpool: Use for bypassing the filter bed. Useful during extended periods away from the pool. (i.e.. Several days vacation). This function permits automatic chlorinating systems to maintain proper chlorine levels while eliminating concern over pressure build-up in the filter.

IMPORTANT: Never move the M.P.V. handle unless the pump is off. The handle must be kept firmly depressed while being moved and in position before the pump is turned on.

IMPORTANT: Never move the M.P.V. handle unless the pump is off. The handle must be kept firmly depressed while being moved and in position before the pump is turned on.

Backwash: Back washing is cleaning the filter bed. The filter should be back washed, generally, when the pressure gauge reads 8-10 lbs (psi.) above normal. See your filter owner’s manual for mfg.’s recommended frequency of back washing. Olympic Pools recommends back washing your filter at least once a week, regardless of whether the pressure gauge indicates to do so or not. It is important to know your starting pressure.

BACKWASH CHECKLIST:

1. Turn pump off.
2. Place M.P.V. is in the closed position.
3. Clean debris from the skimmer basket. Rinse or replace, if necessary.
4. Clean debris in the hair & lint strainer. Rinse or replace, if necessary.
5. Place M.P.V. in the backwash position.
6. Turn pump on.

IMPORTANT: Backwash time should be at least 4 minutes or until the water in the sight glass runs clear.

COMPLETE BACK WASHING BY:

7. Turning off the pump.
8. Putting the M.P.V. in the rinse position and turning on the pump, again, for at least 30 seconds or until the water in the sight glass runs clean.
9. Turn the pump off.
10. Put the M.P.V. back in the filter position.
11. Turn on the pump, again.

Vacuuming: Vacuuming cleans the horizontal and vertical angular surfaces of the pool. Vacuuming is at the discretion of the owner.

VACUUM CHECKLIST:

1. Turn the pump off.
2. Place the M.P.V. in the closed position.
3. Remove all debris from the skimmer and the hair & lint baskets. Rinse or replace, if necessary.
4. Affix the swivel end(you should be able to twist one end) of the vacuum hose to the vacuum head.
5. Affix the stationary end of the vacuum hose to the vacuum plate.
6. Fill the vac hose with water by hand feeding the vac hose into the pool. This is done in a hand-over-hand motion. (I cheat and stick the hose ion front of the return(jet blowing into pool)
7. Put the vac plate in the skimmer, placing it over the skimmer basket. DO NOT REMOVE THE BASKET WHILE VACUUMING! You may need to check if it's clogged every so often, but not using may create a terrible clog!
8. Turn the M.P.V. to the filter position.
9. Turn on the pump.

IMPORTANT: Vacuum pool surfaces utilizing a geometric pattern, to clean all necessary surfaces. When vacuuming is complete, the filter should be back washed, although optional. Then, continue as follows:

10. Turn the pump off.
11. Put the M.P.V. in the closed position.
12. Remove all vacuuming appliances.
13. Empty all the debris from the skimmer and hair & lint baskets. Rinse and replace, if necessary.
14. Place the M.P.V. in the filter position.
15. Turn the pump on.Off topic, i received one of these as a gift today, and if you enjoy reading it's a

Off topic, but I bought one of these today, amazon's new kindle, and I have to recommend it, $139 is worth it in my book, if your into reading, which I really am, this is a treat.

The amazon kindle has an easy to read simple display, and is so simple to use even an adult can do it!
I'm not trying to trick or convince you to buy it, just giving you the opportunity to check out something that I think is cool.

I plan on doing this every once and a while in order to fund my hobby for blogging, I'm not here to rip anyone off, or pressure you, but If I think something is worth talking about, I'll review it, and if you do buy it, hopefully you buy it from me! :)

Promote your Swimming Pool Store

2010-09-03T21:05:00.000-07:00

Poolthoughts.com is reaching many readers these days, looking for information, some are learning how to buy a pool, others where to purchase accessories. Tell us about your pool store, send us a story, provide us all with some sort of value. If you send a 500 word or less article to poolthoughts@live.com we will review your article and if it is found to be appropriate, we will feature it
This is beneficial to your business in many ways

Any positive exposure enhances your reputation
More and more shoppers are using the Internet!
You get to speak, uninterrupted, in the perfect conditions to a potential customer
Your helping customer with your knowledge, or your beautifull creations!

How much masonary sand do i need to install a pool?

2010-09-03T18:15:00.000-07:00

Although the answer to this question varies, depending on the slope, and or situation of your yard, there is a basic rule of thumb for each size. They are as follows.

Sand is measured in yards, tons and lbs. most suppliers will have tonnage measurements, some will sell by the yard(a measure of volume

a ton is 2000 lbs.
a yard is about 2600lbs. or 1.3 tons

12' Round 3 tons(2.2 yards)
15' Round 3 tons(2.2 yards)
18' Round 4 tons(2.6 yards)
21' Round 4.5 tons(3 yards)
24' Round 5 tons(3.3 yards)
27' Round 6.5 tons(4 yards)
30' Round 8 tons(5.5 yards)

12' x 24' Oval 4 tons(2.6 yards)

15' x 24' Oval 4.5 tons(3 yards)
15' x 30' Oval 5 tons(3.3 yards)
18' x 33' Oval 6.5 tons(4 yards)
18' x 45' Oval 8 tons(5.5 yards)

These tonnage weights assume that the sand is fairly dry, obviously if it is very moist you would need less tonnage, but yardage would stay the same because it is actually a measure of volume, not weight.

Winterizing your pool

2010-08-17T20:11:00.000-07:00

We have closed many pools in our years here at PoolThoughts.com...., but never went through the trouble of making a video about closing a swimming pool!!!!

From Winter chemicals, to gizmos, this video actually covers the basics very well, and although, I'm not overly impressed with the swimming pool products available at Lowes, they do seem to have made a good video here!

Closing a pool should not be difficult, and will get easier every year!

Winterizing pools always has slight variations, and is BEST done by your local pool store, but this is a decent point of reference!

Personally, I always blow the lines out with a shop-vac in reverse in order to clear the lines, but that's preference.

Any questions, feel free to ask

Robotic Cleaners

2010-07-23T23:17:00.000-07:00

Need a cleaner that climbs the walls???NO YOU DON"T, this is a much too common misconception!

buy a less expensive robotic cleaner that spends its time on the floor, WHERE THE DIRT IS!

Why pay $1500, or $1000 dollars, or even $800 dollars, if you know where to look you can get a high quality cleaner for $700 or EVEN LESS.

Check out the quality bottom vacuum for 500-800 dollars before you even look at one for 1000, or higher.

Ever see a pool with a dirty side? Usually not unless there is algae, and or bacteria growth, trust me a vacuum cleaner won't help at this point, unfortunately chemicals are the only solution, usually involving a sanitizer, and possible other balancing agents, and maybe a good algaecide to prevent future algae blooms.

Cleaners are made to clean debris, debris either sinks to the bottom, or stays on the surface, it normally doesn't stick to the wall.

Parts..

2010-07-22T18:02:00.000-07:00

parts, parts, parts!!!

Want to save money as a customer? Understand Parts!
Want to make money as a dealer?? Have Parts!

It's easy, parts make people happy.
If a part is needed, it's usually needed immediately, I can't say this enough!

Don't open the door to your competition and force someone to shop elsewhere, have common parts at ALL times.(dealer)

On the consumer end having copies of parts breakdowns is very valuable, most swimming pool parts are mechanical, rather than digital like televisions, blu ray players, etc. making the ability to fix or have fixed less complicated!

Need a part?

Just Ask

Be prepared for your new above ground pool!

2007-03-03T15:00:00.000-08:00

Though I'd share a few thoughts:

1. Check with your local municipality for zoning regulations, select a site in your backyard where the pool will be installed. An area that will recieve the most sunlight is ideal, also make sure the site can accomodate the size of your pool plus the zoning area requirements.

2. There are certain situations which you must be aware of. Your pool cannot be installed over or under electrical service lines and cannot be installed over a septic system. Also be cautious of installing your pool over underground water lines, sewer lines etc.

3. Your pool is not intended to be installed in the ground. Installing your pool in the ground MAY void your manufacturer's warranty. If you must backfill around your pool take your soil to a local greenhouse to have your soil's ph level tested.

4. Do not use any lawn or garden fertilizers near or around your pool. Many have chemicals that can deteriorate your pool wall.

5. Obtain a building permit and be sure to check municipalities for electrical and fencing requirements.

6.Purchase pool base sand or washed masonry sand that is absolutely stone free, the quality of the sand is very important because it lies directly below the pool liner. Poor sand may damage the pool liner and wouldn't be covered under the warranty.

Swimming Pool

Shocking the pool

2007-03-03T10:44:00.000-08:00

By making this post I am in no way excepting liability for actions that may occur, I always reccomend having an expert treat your pool with chemicals, regardless....

I'm always being asked how much shock to use in an A.G. pool because of the various sizes.
I'll make it easy
15' pool 1-2 lbs

12x24 pool 2-3 lbs

18' pool 2-3 lbs

15x24 pool 2-3 lbs

21' pool 3-4 lbs

15x30 pool 3-4 lbs

24' pool 3-4 lbs

18x33 pool 4-5 lbs

27' pool 4-5 lbs

18x45 pool 6-7 lbs

30' pool 6-7 lbs

21x41 pool 7-8 lbs

33' pool 9-10 lbs

Recommendation: Do not add shock directly to the water.
Either dissolve in a pail of water or add slowly through the skimmer.

Note: Do not mix shock with Trichloro-s-triazinetrione (stabilized chlorine tablets). An explosion may occur!!

Note: Biguanide treated pools will require different chemical treatments.

Shock

Ideal chemical ranges

2007-03-03T10:36:00.000-08:00

In case anyone isn't sure: PPM means Parts Per Million

Chlorine-1.5-3.0 Low Chlor-.5-1.0

PH-7.2-7.6 ppm

Alkalinity-80-120 ppm

Calcium Hardness-200-500 ppm

Cyanuric Acid-30-50 ppm

Copper-0.00 ppm

Iron-0.00 ppm

Wondering about salt pools, check out this site about salt pools

Ideal Ranges

Water Chemistry problems

2007-03-03T10:12:00.000-08:00

Total alkalinity problems
Pool water problem - total alkalinity
Total alkalinity is a measure of the total alkaline substances found in the pool water. For swimming pool purposes we usually determine the carbonate content of the water by measuring the level of calcium carbonate.

Total Alkalinity, or TA, should usually be kept at 80 - 120 ppm, though in high alkalinity waters this is often hard to achieve without resulting in an abnormally low pH.

Low Total Alkalinity

The results of a low TA may be one or more of the following:

1.etching of the plaster, marbelite, marcite or tile grouting
2.corrosion of metal parts
3.staining of the pool's surfaces
4.green water
5.burning eyes and itchy skin
6.pH bounce (rapid fluctuations in pH)

Raising low total alkalinity

Sodium bicarbonate (bicarb) will raise the TA without excessively raising the pH. Regular pH-up will raise the pH as well as the TA and should not be used. Care should be taken to increase the TA over a period of time, adding a maximum of 1 pound of bicarb for each 6,000 gallons of water. The bicarb can be added at this rate every 4 days, until the required level is reached.

High Total Alkalinity

The results of high TA may be one or more of the following:

1. pH keeps going up despite regular addition of pH-down
2. cloudy water
3. burning eyes and itchy skin
4. reduced chlorine efficiency resulting in algae growth.

Lowering high total alkalinity

Regular small "acid shocks" with pH-down will reduce the pH while lowering the TA. This can be an extremely slow process and it may take weeks or longer to reduce high TA. One suggested method is as follows:

turn off the pumps and allowing the water to settle;
slowly add the pH-reducer into one spot in the deep end of the pool;
allow the chemicals to "burn off" some of the alkalinity for 15 - 30 minutes (You may notice some bubbles rising to the surface. This is carbon dioxide and is indicative of the destruction of excess alkalinity.);
turn the pumps back on and allow the water to mix thoroughly.
The above method should be used only when the pH is high and your pool requires pH-reducer. If the pH is normal, adding a shock will reduce the pH to undesirable levels resulting in further pool problems.

Care should be taken not to let the pH-reducer sit for too long as it will begin etching and softening the plaster, marbelite, marcite or tile grouting. It is also recommended to dilute the pH reducer in a bucket of water before adding to the pool to prevent this problem from occuring.

Total Alkalinity

Dressing up an above ground pool?

2007-02-25T11:56:00.001-08:00

Many times an above ground pool can become an eye sore, and a home ownere may want to hide it, or dress it up. We have been gathering ideas from many above ground pool owners about ways to increase the beauty of their yard, and hide, or diguise an above ground pool.
This seems like a daunting task....
with an abnormally large grey cylinder sticking out of the ground. There are some ways to improve the aesthetic value of this mammoth!
To get started, let's try some simple landscaping, maybe some shrubs or even flowers, this will help to hide the equipment and possibly even make the pool look inviting.

Lately a lot of companies have been introducing new gadgets to offer the above ground consumer some options.

One that recently caught my eye was Smartpool's new underwater nightlighter light, it is an addition to their existing nightlighter line only it changes colors!! this light is automatic, I think it rotated in four colors, and also has an automatic 3 hour shut off, so if you leave it on don't worry!
If you visit their website they have a dealer locator so you can easily find this product at a local pool store.

Speaking of Smartpool they also have a product that will allow you to eliminate that ugly solar cover!, it's called the solar pill, you place it in the water once a month, it stops evaporation which is what makes your pool get cold!
The stuff works, if you get a steaming cup of coffee and add a couple drops it no longer steams!

Above ground swimming pools

Why buy from the local guy?

2007-02-24T20:00:00.000-08:00

Ok, you heard it here first!
This little article might just tick off a few bloggers
because I'm actually encouraging you to buy from brick and mortar pool stores
rather that ordering from the internet!
Wow, what a concept an internet guy telling you to avoid the internet?
Well not totally, but I at least advise you to think your purchases through a bit!

I guess in my opinion it all starts with service!
Say you buy a new pool pump from a shady website on the internet,
now lets assume you take it home, install it and it doesn't work,
I highly doubt the internet store is going to
come to your residence and provide the help you need!
On the other hand, your local mom, and pop shop
will be more than willing to come out and make the repairs that are necessary,
or at least send you in the right direction.
If you purchase it on the internet you will more than likely get stuck with the freight to send it back, if you get anywhere at all!

THIS DOESN'T JUST PERTAIN TO THE INTERNET!
What happens when you have a problem with your water,
no matter what you do you just can't get the pool crystal clear.
Well there are a couple of options, you can go to a department store and play a guessing game of what to add next, or
you can go to your local swimming pool dealer, get a professional test done, and... possibly even have them come clear the problem.
Often times consumers think that the local shop is more expensive,
partially this is due to cost of service,
but most importantly, what many people don't realize is that the concentration of the chemicals is often times stronger at the local pool shop.
Read the label, notice the concentration of sanitizers, inform yourself.

You may soon realize that the deal you thought a big box store was giving you really wasn't a deal at all.

All of these reasons arrive me to my current thinking, I always go to the local pool shop, I know what I'm getting, I am sure their advise is in my best interest. A good company is not off to rip a consumer off, they realize the importance of relationships.

Sorry if I seem to be getting off on a rant, but I keep this issue close to my heart, I feel we should all support privately owned business!

If it seems to good to be true, it probably is!
Pool Stores

Pool Chemical Safety

2007-02-24T10:37:00.000-08:00

Lately I have been hearing a lot of stories about accidents involving pool chemicals. This is really unfortunate! I feel that with a just a little bit of basic knowledge a lot of these accidents caould be avoided!

Here is a short list of steps that should be taken in order to help avoid unnecessary accidents. (I am in know way claiming to be an expert, these are just basics, please consult a professional for a full list of precautions)

1. Never mix chemicals together!

2. Always read the instructions

3. Avoid touching eyes after using any chemicals

4. Wear appropriate clothes

5. Never put granular chlorine in your chlorinator

6. Always ask which tablets are meant for the chlorinator before adding!!!!!!!

7. Always ask a professional first

8. Don't add too much to the pool, if anything start with too little.

These seem like simple things, and really for the most part should be common sense. I can't count how many times a customer has blown up his chlorinator by adding a granular chlorine to the tablets that are already in there. Doing something like this will undoubtedly result in injure, possible even death.

This is just a small part of the education that anyone taking care of a pool should receive, if you have any more specific questions don't be afraid to ask!

Welcome

2007-02-24T10:08:00.000-08:00

Hello, and welcome to the Poolquestion Blog! We are using this site to accompany and in away announce the birth of our new forum, Poolquestion.com! Here we will have short summaries that deal with major parts and problems involved with owning a swimming pool or a spa.

Every week I will post a different topic, sometimes two depending on how much time my extremely busy life allows. From purchasing a pool to getting it clean for a party, it's all going to be covered.

I encourage you to ask questions, and make comments, stay tuned!