If you just moved into your new home, or you just built a pool for your home, this blog post is for you. You are looking forward to owning a pool for the first time. Welcome to the world of pool ownership! A world full of pool parties and relaxing evenings.
For all these happy moments, you need a clean and safe pool. Most pool owners want to know how to take care of their pool. We will try to explain to you what is needed to make your pool sparkling clear!
Key Takeaways
- Start with a pool school to understand your equipment and learn the basics of water levels and chemical balancing.
- You’ll need essential tools and professional-grade chemicals to keep your pool clean, safe, and well-maintained year-round.
- Stick to a weekly maintenance routine for cleaning, chemical balancing, and scheduled filter care to avoid bigger problems down the line.
- Never store pool chemicals in your garage—they can cause damage and pose serious safety risks
Pool School: Learn the Ropes
Before you start maintaining the pool yourself, we recommend starting with a pool school so you can:
- Make sure that your equipment is working and labelled
- Familiarize yourself with your equipment (automation, pump, filter, heater, blower, valves, chlorinator, autofill, auto-cleaner (Polaris))
- Understand the basics of water level
- Understand how to test and balance chemicals for your pool
Essential Pool Maintenance & Cleaning Tools
Once you are familiar with the pool equipment operations, you need to buy equipment to take care of your pool.Here’s what we recommend, all available for sale and delivery from Aqua Clear Pool Care:
- a pole
- a net
- a brush
- a vacuum head
- a vacuum hose
- a DE scoop (if you have a DE filter (Diatomaceous Earth))
- a Taylor Test Kit or Test Stripes
- a mask and gloves
- a floating chlorinator (as a back up to your main source of chlorine)
- spare skimmer baskets
- spare pump baskets
Key Pool Chemicals for a Clean & Safe Pool
With your equipment ready, it’s time to acquire the necessary pool chemicals to make sure that your pool is clean and safe. All the chemicals listed below are professional-grade and available for delivery from Aqua Clear Pool Care:
- Chlorine Tablets (increase chlorine, decrease PH, increase CYA) – great from spring to fall to maintain a good chlorine level in the pool (expect to use 2 to 4 tablets a week)
- Liquid Chlorine (increase chlorine, increase PH) – great in the fall and winter to keep a good level of chlorine, while not adding to your CYA (1 gallon of liquid chlorine = 2 chlorine tabs from a chlorine standpoint)
- Cal-Hypo or Shock (increase chlorine, increase PH) – great to raise the level of chlorine fast
- Sodium Bi-Carb (increase alkalinity) – Increases alkalinity, which helps maintain your pH level.
- Muriatic Acid (decrease PH) – muriatic acid is a must have to keep your PH in range and clean your salt cell (for salt pools only)
- Chlorine stabilizer, also called pool conditioner (increase CYA (Cyanuric Acid))
- Salt for Salt Pools – sold in 40 lbs bags, keep 2 to 3 bags
- Diatomaceous Earth – mandatory for pools with DE filters only. DE needs to be added after each backwash.
- Algaecide – copper-based solution to kill algae. We recommend Swimtrine or PoolRX.
- Phosphate remover – Phosphate acts as fertilizer for algae. Treating your pool for phosphate will help prevent algae formation.
A Regular Schedule & Proper Storage are Key
Taking care of your pool will be simpler if you set a regular schedule. This includes cleaning it and balance the chemicals. We recommend doing cleaning the pool and balancing the chemicals at least once a week. Keep a log of what you have been adding to make it simpler for you. You can also use help from the Orenda mobile app to help you balance the chemicals. The best method is to set a day for pool maintenance and stick with it.
For your DE or Sand filter, maintain a schedule of backwashing to make sure that your filter is working properly. At Aqua Clear Pool Care, we backwash all our customer filters at least once a month the first week of the month. Easy to remember.
For DE and Cartridge filters, you will need to maintain a schedule of filter cleaning. The filter cleaning or filter breakdown consists of opening the filter and cleaning the inside of it (cartridges, grids, manifold). It also includes inspecting the parts to identify repairs or replacement. At Aqua Clear Pool Care, we recommend to clean cartridge filters once every 3 months and DE filters once every 4 months. Single cartridge filters will need to cleaned more frequently (once a month ideally).
Important Chemical Storage Guidelines
It is important to note that pool chemicals should not be stored in your garage. Chlorine, even in buckets, will oxidize metals. You will soon see rust on your bikes or cars. Before deciding to take care of your pool yourself, make sure to have appropriate storage in a safe place away from children, pets, and other loved ones. Keeping chemicals in small quantities will also avoid accidents. As a residential pool owners, you do not need 50 lbs of chlorine tablets or CAL-Hypo. There is no need to create a fire hazard to save a few dollars on chlorine tablets.
Get Your Pool Supplies Delivered!
To explore your options for chemical delivery, simply request a quote from us. Aqua Clear Pool Care can provide you with professional grade chemicals at a cost better than retail prices. Welcome to pool ownership!
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