When opening your pool, there are a few things you need to know about and a few chemicals that will make your life a lot easier when starting your season.
Opening the pool is more than just getting the pump running and checking for leaks. Pumps and filters should have o-rings and gaskets lubed before turning on equipment. Equipment should be inspected for leaks or damage, including hoses and connections. Winter plugs should be carefully removed, covers folded and deck anchors screwed in, and a visual inspection of the liner or pool finish for problems such as tears, stains, or bubbles from the return jets (which may indicate a cracked pipe). Cartridges should be cleaned or replaced, sand filters should be backwashed, the walls should be brushed, the bottom should be vacuumed and ladders and rails installed.
Your pool has sat idle for months and the water needs to be refreshed with proper treatment. and the water needs a good punch of shock and startup chemicals.
First things first: after all the equipment is up and running, check your pH, alkalinity, and stabilizer readings and adjust accordingly. Do this before adding anything else. After these 3 are adjusted and good to go:
*Per 10k gallons, I recommend 2lbs of shock to hit it hard. If there is algae present, use 3lbs per 10k. (If its somewhere in between good and not so good, use 3lbs anyway). If you can, Check for combined chlorine. Also, I suggest a bottle of stain and scale per 20k gallons to help with any staining. Of course, you will need to add tabs to a floater or feeder to keep your chlorine level up for a while.
*For cartridge filters, add 90 day algaecide or Algae 50. If algae is already present, follow the directions on the bottle
*For sand filters or DE filters, add 2 to 3oz of Copper Algaecide per 10k gallons. If algae is present, follow the directions on the bottle.
*For saltwater pools, do everything above, then add the appropriate level of salt to bring your pool back to 3000 to 3300ppm of salt. Make sure your salt cell is clean and you are not getting any warning codes on your power box or cell.
If you follow these simple instructions, you are well on your way to having a great pool season. A week later, I suggest you bring a sample of water into the store for testing to make sure everything is good to go.
I wish you all a very happy summer filled with sun and fun by the pool 🙂
Comentários