َA clean pool means safety and hygiene when swimming and playing. Maintaining the cleanliness of the water and the pool’s interior is essential. It is best done by professionals, so you might wonder how long it takes a company to service your pool.
It takes a company 20 to 45 minutes to service your pool. However, if the pool has been neglected and the water has turned green, it can take up to 3 to 4 days to make it up to par again. Maintaining a pool between services will keep the time a company spends down.
In this article, I will talk more about the process of cleaning the pool. I will also show you what you can do on your own to keep your pool a pristine oasis for your family and friends.
Servicing Your Pool
Servicing a swimming pool requires a service technician, a pool and spa service professional that installs and repairs your pool equipment like pumps, filters, and all the other pool accompaniments.
They also take care of the electrical components like heating, lighting, and automation system, keeping your pool a safe environment for your sunny day leisure swimming.
The service technician’s job also includes maintaining the pH, chlorine, and salt levels and ensuring your water is up to the highest standards.
The Steps for Cleaning and Maintaining Your Pool
Depending on the technician’s recommendations, pool maintenance is done once or twice a week. It would be best if you did it more frequently in summer because the heat promotes algae growth and the chlorine that is added to kill germs dissipates in sunlight.
Here are the steps the technician will take to clean your pool:
- Skim off debris from the surface of the pool. This will take care of leaves, flowers, hair, and insects. Skimming off debris keeps your water clear and prevents clogs in your filtration system. (Time: up to 5 minutes.)
- Scrub the sediment off of the surfaces of the pool. This includes the bottom, walls, steps, and ladders. Scrubbing will take care of algae and smaller bits of debris. (Time: up to 10 minutes.)
- Clean out the skimmer. This keeps the skimmer working efficiently and catching the bulk of the debris in your pool. (Time: up to 5 minutes.)
- Make sure the pump and the filters are working correctly. Doing so makes sure your water is filtering properly. The technician might also backwash your filters. Backwashing is done to dislodge waste and pollutants from the filters. (Time: up to 5 minutes.)
- Check the water’s pH levels and balancing the chemicals. You need a strip test for this step, and depending on the result, acids or alkalis are added into the water. Pool water’s pH level should always be between 7.2 and 7.8. (Time: up to 15 seconds to get the result on the pH strip.)
- Shock your pool if needed. If the water isn’t crystal clear and is starting to look greenish, that means you have algae growth in your pool. Algae not only make the water look unappealing, but they are also a slipping hazard.
Other Steps Technicians Take
To get rid of the algae, the technician will do something called superchlorination, also called shocking the pool. It is a process which involves adding large amounts of chlorine to your pool water in a short period of time to kill algae and microorganisms, eliminate slime and destroy any unpleasant odors.
Time: the actual process takes about half an hour, but you shouldn’t use the pool for at least 8 to 12 hours after
The pool maintenance technician is also a great help when preparing your pool for the swimming season and closing it at the end of it.
They will clear your pool cover and remove your ice compensators and winter pool plugs if you have them. They will clean your pool and add water, make sure all the equipment is in working condition and reinstall all the amenities.
The Things You Can Do To Keep Your Pool Pristine
- Buy an automatic pool cleaner. This will keep your pool spotless until the next pool service day. I recommend this Zodiac G3 Automatic Suction-Side Pool Cleaner Vacuum on Amazon.com. This compact and quiet pool suction vacuum is scratch resistant and suitable for cleaning all pool surfaces. With its self-regulating flow control valve, it does all the work while you enjoy relaxing in the sun.
- Install a shower by the pool. This will allow you to shower before getting in the pool. Showering helps prevent introducing dirt and germs to your pool, keeping the water clean for longer.
- Use oil-absorbing sponges. These Parts Scumballs Surface Oil Absorber (available on Amazon.com) are hydrophobic, meaning they are great for absorbing body oils from your pool without soaking up any water. Just drop them in the skimmer or leave them free floating on the surface, and stop worrying about what that fresh layer of sunscreen will do to your pool.
- Clean the pool cover. If you are in the habit of keeping your pool covered during the night, take some time to clean the cover before removing it. Using a leaf blower is an excellent hack for cleaning the cover very fast.
Also, think about investing in a solar pool cover. It might seem expensive, but considering solar covers help to trap heat during the day and keep the pool warm at night, they actually save you money on energy costs by 50% to 70% in the long run.
Conclusion
The pool is often our own private sanctuary, which provides instant relaxation and lets us put aside our problems. Unfortunately, the pool can easily get filled with all kinds of impurities due to the environment and the influence of the wind – even our bathing suits introduce various contaminants. To prevent that, maintaining a regular pool cleaning schedule is essential.
Although you can choose to do that yourself, a pool maintenance company will do the work in a much shorter time and more efficiently, allowing you to spend your precious downtime on more enjoyable things.
