Swimming Pool Cleaning and Maintenance

Sadly, pool closing time is just around the corner and you are headed for one final swimming pool cleaning and maintenance before you close off the pool at the end of the season. What are the dos and don’ts in this regard? Should you drain out the water entirely? Should you shock the pool? What should the water chemistry be like at close of season? Should you leave in the accessories or remove them? Swimming pool cleaning and maintenance at the close of the pool season will require you to attend to all these queries and more.

The good news is that it takes only half the time to close your pool at the end of the pool season as it does to open it at the beginning of the season. A final check to leave your pool in good condition in the off-season is to test the water chemistry one last time. Closing the pool with optimum level of chemicals would ensure that you have an easier time at re-opening. The ideal thing to do is to test and adjust chemical levels to the optimum level for: total alkalinity which should fall in the range of 80 to 120 parts per million, pH should be between 7.2 to 7.6, calcium should be 180 to 200 ppm, while chlorine is to be added only after a final shock treatment and should be adjusted to between 1 and 3 ppm.

While shocking the pool your pool pump should be made to run continuously for around eight hours. Adding an algaecide will keep your pool free from developing stains and algae blooms. The next step is to remove all accessories from the pool; clean, service and repair them as needed. Remove handrails, ladders, skimmers, and any other accessory. Make sure all insertion points are clean and rust free. Stow away all the accessories safely.

Reduce the water level by about two feet using a submersible pump to drain out the water. You should not drain out your pool completely as the pool liner would become susceptible to cracking and damage due to the pressure of surrounding groundwater. Leaving around 75% of your pool filled will protect and preserve the pool liner. As the water level goes down and the side walls become exposed, wash these with a pressure hose to dislodge dirt and debris.

The pool pump, filter, heater, chlorinator etc. should be drained, cleaned and dried. Special care should be taken to remove all water from the pool pump. You could use a hairdryer to remove all traces of moisture that could otherwise corrode or promote mold in the pump. Clean out the filter unit thoroughly by giving it a good wash and dry it completely. Store all equipment away from moisture.

With the final swimming pool cleaning and maintenance schedule completed to ensure that your pool remains problem free during the off-season, you can be at peace with the knowledge that when it is time to reopen your pool, you will not face any unpleasant shocks!

Swimming Pool Cleaning and Maintenance
A guide on keeping a clean swimming pool.