Why has my pool turned green? Your pool will only turn green for one reason - lack of chlorine.
What you really need to be asking is why is there no chlorine in your
pool? The answer could be one or more of the following;
Low salt level
Faulty or dirty chlorinator
Low stabiliser level,
Insufficient running hours on the timer
Reduced water flow due to dirty filter or baskets
If you have a chlorine pool then the reason could simply be that
you are not adding enough chlorine each day.
The best solution is to give Steve's Pool Services a call to
inspect and test your pool and get it back to top condition.
How long should my pump run for? Your pump and filter system has been matched to
the size of your pool so that the total water volume is recirculated
roughly twice a day. In most cases this means running the pump for
about 6 hours during the winter and about 8 hours during the summer.
What is the best time to run my pump? In a saltwater pool the chlorine is manufactured by the chlorinator
as the pump is running, providing a "trickle feed" into your pool.
Since chlorine is affected by UV light it can disappear as quickly
as it is made if the pump is running during the day. For this reason
it is generally recommended that the pump is set to run in the early
mornings and late afternoons when the sunlight is not as strong. I
usually set the timer to 3-4 hours from 6am and another 3-4 hours
from 4pm.
How often should I have my pool serviced? The answer to this is of course going to depend very much on the
individual circumstances, but as general guide, for units and other
high-use pools, at least once a week. For private pools with average
use and any sort of vegetation nearby, once a fortnight should be OK.
For pools that are relatively new, have little use and no trees nearby,
then once every four weeks may be the go. During the wet no pool
should go any more than two weeks without at least having a water
test. Why not call Steve's Pool Services for a free quote?
Is my pool leaking? Evaporation rates in Cairns can be very high, especially during
the dry season when they can reach up to 8 or 9mm per day
(or 2½ in. per week). As the dry season gets into full swing
people are often alarmed at how quickly the water level drops, but
in most cases it is just evaporation. A simple test can answer the
question for you:- fill the pool to the correct level and then make
a mark with a pencil inside your skimmer box at the water line. Check
this mark each day over the next few days and measure the drop in water
level. If it is more than the current evaporation rate then there may
be a leak, and you will need to call someone like Steve's Pool Services
to find and fix it. Funny how I never get asked this question during
the wet season, it may have something to do with the metre or so of
rain that we get...
Is there too much chlorine in the pool? If there is a strong smell of chlorine around your pool then
there is probably not enough chlorine in there. Insufficient
chlorine levels result in compounds called chloramines being formed
which is what you can smell. The way to get rid of them is to
superchlorinate or "bomb" the pool with chlorine. Speak to Steve's
Pool Services about the correct dosage for your pool.
What is causing my kids eyes to sting? The most likely cause of this is an incorrectly adjusted pH level.
Whilst a very high chlorine level could be at fault it is very
unlikely that the chlorine could climb high enough to be a problem.
Take a water sample to a pool shop for analysis, or call Steve's
Pool Services to do a full checkup and balance of your pool.
Remember too that opening your eyes under water for any length of time,
no matter how good the water, is going to irritate the eyes.
Should I drain the pool if it is overfull? During the dry season, definitely not. If we get enough rain at this
time of year to overfill the pool you can rest assured it will not last
and within a very short space of time the water will evaporate off again.
During the wet season I only recommend you drain the pool if it is going
to overflow to somewhere that you don't want the water to be (like your
lounge room!) or if there are lots of leaves in the pool that need to be
skimmed off.
If you must drain the pool, remember these two things:
Use the "waste" position on the valve, NOT "backwash", and
The pump is making a noise. This could be a number of things. What sort of noise is it? If it is
a gurgling kind of sound then the water in the pool is most likely too
low and you will need to fill it up. If however the sound is a loud
whining or screeching then most likely the pump will need to have the
bearings and/or seal replaced.
Should I take any special action with the pool if there is a cyclone coming? If you are likely to experience destructive winds, then unplug the
electrical equipment (pumps, chlorinators, blowers, etc) as you make
your general cyclone preparations. This will prevent electrical fusion
and costly repair bills. After the cyclone has passed, and the
electricity has come back on, switch on the gear and check it is all
running OK; it would be a good idea to get 20lt of chlorine to "bomb"
the pool with, or better still call Steve's Pool Services to
clean up the mess!
If you have any plastic outdoor furniture, an ideal place to store
it during the cyclone is in the pool (this is also a good way to clean
the furniture at any time - pop it in overnight and in the morning it's
nice and white again!)
