CLEAN YOUR POOL BEFORE THE SUMMER BEGINS

Clean your pool before the summer begins.

Winter is slowly leaving the island, almonds begin to bloom, which meansthat the swimming season is not far off. It's time to check if your pool isready for it, and, if necessary, adjust the measures for its care.

The cold months are no excuse to let up on pool maintenance. Even if you extend the season with a pool heater, you need to make sure you keep the proper chemicalbalance. If you don’t, it will cost you more in products and time in the spring, and could lead tostaining or damage to your equipment or finish.

In order to properly maintain your pool during this time, you should reducethe pump operation time from 9:00 am to dark. In addition to this, you should test the pool waterat home at least once a week.

For more in-depth analysis, bring a water sample to your local Pinch a Penny store about once a month. Here are our recommendations for water balance during the winter months:

• Chlorine. Use enough tablets and a low setting on the chlorinator to keepa reading of 2 to 4 ppm. This will provide a consistent amount of chlorine.

• pH. Maintain your pH at around 7.4. Very high pH will promote the buildupof scale, while low pH is  corrosive onthe finish of most pool surfaces and equipment. Neither is good!

• Alkalinity. To help buffer your pH, keep the alkalinity normal, in the 80-120 ppm range.

• Calcium Hardness. It is still important to protect your pool surfaces andfinishes in the Winter. When the calcium is too low, it can attack pool plaster resulting in staining and etching. Too high and it will lead to deposits andstains. Maintain a minimum of 200ppm.

• Conditioner/Stabilizer. Maintain at least 40 ppm to reduce UV degradationof your chlorine. The winter sun is not as strong as the summer sun, so you can operate at thelower end of the range.

But, of course, it is always safer and more efficient to entrust your poolto professionals. We are always looking forward for your inquiries and willgladly select a qualified specialist for you.