Above Ground Swimming Pool Blog

Chlorine is going to fade a liner’s pattern over time, but you have the control to minimize this fade by how you use your chlorine. Follow these steps to prevent excessive fading:

• Don’t throw your chlorine straight into the water – even if the manufacturer says that you can. Chlorine is bleach and if you throw it straight into the water and it settles on the pool’s floor it will bleach the liner in those spots. Some chlorine that is considered quick dissolving chlorine tells you that you can throw it straight into the water, which you can, but it would be better not to. (If you don’t stand by the fire, you can’t get burnt)
• If you pre-dissolve your chlorine before throwing it into the water, make sure that it is completely dissolved and pour it over the water flow that comes out of the return while the pump is running to help disperse the chlorine and dissolve any remaining chlorine before it hits the bottom of the liner and sits and bleaches the pattern.
• Try to keep for over chlorinating the pool’s water. Sometimes when the pool turns green or some kind of algae appears, the only way to clean the water is to over-chlorinate the water. This is fine and sometimes your only choice to clear your pool’s water, but doing this several times a year is bad for the liner and will fade the liner quicker. Keep up with your water maintenance to keep the pool from getting algae to begin with.
• Use a mineral system. Mineral systems greatly reduce the amount of chlorine you are required to use in your pool’s water. Henceforth, reducing the chemical that fades the liner.

Using chlorine is going to fade a liner over time, but these suggestions can greatly reduce the speed of this process and keep your liner looking good for longer.

Initially I would answer this question with a definite yes, however, as the years go, we have seen more and more counties NOT requiring a permit for an above ground pool. I believe that this has to do with the fact that counties have always treated above ground pools and in ground pools as the same thing, though these two pools are very different. In ground pools are a permanent structure where above grounds are temporary. In grounds are built where above ground pools are assembled. In ground pools are dug into the ground and above grounds sit on top of the ground.

The moral of this blog is that you are going to have to contact your county or city and find out the details. Do you need a permit or not will not be answered by me, but by your local government agency. Look up the phone number for your building permit department and ask them if a permit is needed.

The cost for permits are relatively inexpensive. I have been use to costs around $50 to $125.

If a permit is required, I have seen potential requirements as follows:

• Rules for keeping the pool a certain distance from your property lines
• Rules for keeping the pool a certain distance from your house
• Rules for keeping the pool a certain distance from your septic tank
• Do you need a fence around the pool or not
• And so on.

A quick call to your building department can save you a lot of trouble before you start the project of installing a new above ground swimming pool.

This is a common question that is asked of me daily by customers searching for a new liner for their above ground pool and the answer is…this is not really an accurate question.

The vinyl is the same for every one of these liners. The thickness can be the same. The durability can be the same. The life of the liner can be the same. The difference of these liners is not in any of these aspects of the liner, but in the way that the liner is installed. Overlap, Beaded, and Uni-bead liners are installed differently, but there vinyl can be all the same. I recommend if you are replacing a liner then use the same kind of liner that you had before. This will ensure you that the new liner that you buy will be adept with the pool that you have now.

First of all, above ground swimming pools are made of steel. Even if the pool has resin materials with it, it will still have a steel wall and steel that is outside rusts. Rust will occur at some level within the first 3 to 5 years of a pool’s life. For there to be some signs of rust on the pool at this point is normal; however, it should not be severe at this point by any means. The reason that I write this blog on rust is that I have noticed that customers become very worried when they see rust beginning on their pool in the first 5 years. If you find a spot or two of rust within this time, do not be worried for this is normal. Also, inside of the pool where the liner is against the pool wall is where moisture will collect and stay most of the time. Rust will always be greater on the inside of the wall than the outside. If you find rust very severe on the outside of the pool, then keep in mind that the inside wall will surely be two to three times greater with rust. This is a very good barometer for you to use to determine when your pool may be near the end of its life. If the rust is very severe on the outside, then the pool is surely in its last few years. The moral of the story is if you notice rust on your steel structured pool during its life, don’t be worried. This is normal for any metal structure that is outside under the elements. If the rust becomes severe on the outside, then on your next liner change be sure to examine the inside of the wall once the liner has been cut out to see what level of rust the pool has on the inside of the wall.

Initially I would answer this question with a definite yes, however, as the years go, we have seen more and more counties NOT requiring a permit for an above ground pool. I believe that this has to do with the fact that counties have always treated above ground pools and in ground pools as the same thing, though these two pools are very different. In ground pools are a permanent structure where above grounds are temporary. In grounds are built where above ground pools are assembled. In ground pools are dug into the ground and above grounds sit on top of the ground.

The moral of this blog is that you are going to have to contact your county or city and find out the details. Do you need a permit or not will not be answered by me, but by your local government agency. Look up the phone number for your building permit department and ask them if a permit is needed.

The cost for permits are relatively inexpensive. I have been use to costs around $50 to $125.

If a permit is required, I have seen potential requirements as follows:

• Rules for keeping the pool a certain distance from your property lines
• Rules for keeping the pool a certain distance from your house
• Rules for keeping the pool a certain distance from your septic tank
• Do you need a fence around the pool or not
• And so on.

A quick call to your building department can save you a lot of trouble before you start the project of installing a new above ground swimming pool.

There are so many components to a pool and each component has its own differing properties and manufactures and trying to understand which is which and which is better is difficult to say the least. One company has a “24’ pool kit” while another company has a “24’ pool kit”. Seems the same, right? However, one customer struggles to keep his pool clean while the other customer has no problem or one customer’s pool lasts for 25 years and the other customer’s pool lasts for 5 years. So what’s the difference? This is where we need to compare apples with apples…not apples to oranges.

So let’s go through the pool’s components and compare apples to apples:

• Pool Framework: The frameworks of above ground pools can give you some idea about their quality. For instance, a higher warranty usually speaks of a frameworks added rust protection. The higher the warranty, the more and better rust protection. Also, the larger a top seat on the pool’s framework the stouter the quality of the framework will be. However, some frameworks have a large top seat and a thin vertical post. Compare the width and depth of the verticals and top seats to judge which framework will be the sturdiest and take the most abuse.
• Liners: Possibly the most important element on the pool. I like to judge liners by mils and not gauge. Mil is a thousandths of an inch, an actual thickness measurement and much more accurate for determining quality.

1. 20 gauge = 10- 14 mils thick
2. 25 gauge = 15-19 mils thick
3. 30 gauge = 19-22 mils thick
4. 20 mils = 20 mils thick
5. 25 mils = 25 mils thick ( the thickest liner available for above ground pools without being a custom liner)

• Pumps: Judge this by comparing horse power. More horsepower, more water will be turned. Also, I recommend going with a highly known manufacturer so that parts will be more available if needed. I have seen everybody and their brother makes pumps now a days, so getting a reputable manufacture (Pentair, Sta-Rite, Hayward, Waterway, to name a few) will prevent you from buying a pump that will only last a year or two. Many off brand pumps makers use aluminum in their pumps that will heat up and break down very quickly.
• Filters: Again, go with a well-known manufacture (Pentair, Sta-Rite, Hayward, Waterway, to name a few) because off brand manufactures use cheaper parts that result in a shorter life span of the filter.
• Ladders and Steps: Usually the quality of a ladder or step may be judged by looking at the product and seeing which is sturdier or not. Every ladder and step also has an estimated weight requirement that will help you decide which ladder or step is right for you.
• Skimmers: There are two types of skimmers, standard and widemouth. Most customers believe that a widemouth skimmer is better than a standard skimmer because of its wider opening; however, a widemouth skimmer is a standard skimmer with a widemouth attachment. What this means is that a widemouth skimmer and a standard skimmer pull the exact same amount of water into the filter system making them completely equal in their ability to skim the water’s surface.
• Accessories: There are many accessories that can come with a pool kit and make your life that much easier. Be sure to research the different accessories and see which are better and which pool kits come with these accessories and which do not. For instance, if one pool kit comes with a chlorinator and the other does not, then the pool kit that has the chlorinator is of more value, as this kit will help lower your maintenance.

The moral of the story is that every pool kit has its elements of the kit and their individual characteristics. Make sure that when you are deciding on which kit to purchase, that you compare the kits and judge each individual item as apples to apples so that you can make the most intelligent decision on the price of the kits vs. their value.

Over the last 26 years, I’ve seen that the most common occurrence of green water in pools comes after pool owners return from vacation.  So how do you prepare your pool so that you will have a nice clean pool when you get back from the beach?  Here’s how:

1. First of all, backwash or clean your filter.  Your filter is going to pick up debris and clog while you are away, so clean it good before you go.
2. Clean out baskets in your skimmer and your pump.  These baskets will be catching debris while you are gone, so clean them good before you leave.
3. Make sure that your water level is where it should be.  If it is not then fill it to the desired level.  Water will evaporate while you are gone and you don’t want it to drop so far that your pump will be running without water in it.  If this happens you will come home finding that you need to replace your pump.
4. Check your pH and adjust as necessary.  This will protect the pool water from getting out of hand while you are gone.
5. Shock your pool with a double dose.  This will raise the chlorine level of the water fairly high.  The good thing about this is that if it rains the entire time you are gone and the pool gets filled with bacteria that can turn the water green, your pool will stay safe and clean.  The chlorine content level should be back to normal when you return.
6. Vacuum the pool out.  Chlorine gets used up by trying to dissolve the physical debris.  If you vacuum the pool before you leave, all your available chlorine in the water will be available to kill contamination.
7. Set your pump timer to turn your pump on and off, or if you do not have a timer, then run your pump for 24 hours a day while you are gone.  This is a “better to be safe than sorry” decision.

Then go on vacation and know that when you return, you will have a sparkly clean pool.

One question that I get quite a bit from customers is “how long should my liner last”.  The answer to this question is a mystery.  The answer has a lot to do with the quality of liner that you have in your pool.  Liners appear to be getting thinner and thinner as competition over liner sales on the internet becomes greater.  Start with the best liner that you can afford to put in your pool.  The liner is the heart of the swimming pool and the main component that holds the water.  In theory, the rest of the structure of the pool is designed to support the liner holding water.  There are 6 things that you can do as a pool owner that can help your liner last to its full potential and here they are:

1. Balance Your Water at the Beginning of Every Season:  Chemicals play a huge role in the life of your liner.  By skipping the water balance chemicals, you end up leaving your liner vulnerable to deterioration and chemical damage.  If a liner dies of old age (seeing as though nothing else kills it) it will be determined by your chemical use in the water.  The balance chemicals help protect your liner from the harsh effects that chlorine can have on it.  Keep in mind that chlorine uses O₂ to “burn” contaminates out of the water and in turn “burning” the liner over time.  Protect your liner with proper balance chemical levels.
2. Do Not Drain the Pool:  A liner is slightly undercut for the pool size, meaning the liner is a little smaller than the pool so that it may stretch into the pool and be wrinkle free.  Over time the vinyl becomes hard and when the water that is holding the liner in place is removed, the liner will shrink to its original size and will not stretch out again once the pool is filled.  This will leave you forced to replace your liner.
3. Check Your Vacuum Head and Brushes for Sharp Edges:  I am seen an increase with customers using their vacuum and brushes to clean the pool and in turn the sharp edges of the vacuum and brushes rubbing up against the sides of the liners wall creating slashes and hole within the liner.  Check your vacuum and brushes for sharp edges.
4. DO NOT Throw Chlorine Straight into the Water if it is Not Designed to do so:  Some chlorine shock is designed to throw straight into the water and some is not.  Be sure that you are aware if the chlorine you are purchasing is able to be thrown straight in or if it should be pre-dissolved or ran through the skimmer.  The chlorine that is able to be thrown straight in is a more expensive chlorine, because the chlorine mixture is more pure and clean.  When the chlorine sits on the bottom of the pool, the oxidation process stresses the vinyl and will cause what I call “varicose vein wrinkles” within the pool floor. 
5. Let the Sharpest Thing That Gets in Your Pool be Your Toe Nails:  Enough said.
6. Treat for Ants and Termites around the Pool:  Ants and termites are liner killers.  Ants have mandibles on their faces that they use as we would use our hands.  As the ants burrow underneath of the pool they will puncture your liner with these mandibles, creating hole after hole.  With the holes being so small, you may have 30 ant holes in your liner before you even notice a water loss, but then by the time you notice a water loss, you may have 100 more.  This makes it time to replace your liner.  Termites will eat at the liner as they do wood.  Have your exterminator treat for termites.  You can purchase ant poison yourself and sprinkle it around the outside of the pool, which in turn will make a barrier that will keep the ants from your pool.  You are not necessarily trying to kill the ants, but just trying to keep them away from the pool.  Treat your pool for these insects throughout the season or as recommended by your exterminator.

With these 6 steps being taken care of, an ruling out any acts of God, you will be allowing your liner to live as long as it possibly can.   

I love above ground swimming pool steps.  Most customers I know with steps love them, as well.  However, there is one issue that step owners seem to all run across:  the steps do not sit firm in the pool.

Most step manufacturers recommend 100 lbs. or 150 lbs. of sand to be placed inside the molded steps when you install them.  I have noticed over the years of installing steps for customers that these numbers are not quite realistic.  Although this is enough weight to keep the step in the place that you install them, it is not enough weight to keep the steps FIRM in that place.  I recommend 200 lbs. of sand.  Every time I have used 200 lbs. of sand weighing the steps down, it has been successful.  I even use this amount in my own pool steps. 

Most steps out there are molded and the sand bags may be placed inside the step itself so you cannot see the bags of sand.  I recommend you go to a local hardware store and purchase some heavy quality trash bags to place the sand bags into, to prevent busting open a bag of sand in the pool.  Just place the bags of sand into the molded step and the weight will keep the steps firm.

Also, make sure that you mount the handrail of the steps to the deck.  This will not provide as much stability as the weight of sand in the steps, but it will certainly help.

Some of you may have steps that are not molded and you were instructed by your step manual to pour sand into the steps.  You were only able to place 50 or 100 lbs. of sand.  This is not enough for good stability.  A trick I have learned is to tie off bags of sand underneath the steps with rope that you can tie around the steps to give you more weight for stability.  Again, I recommend a total of 200 pounds.  This isn’t the most elegant way to add weight, but it is definitely a proven fix.

The moral of the story to having good, sturdy stairs is one thing:  WEIGHT.

Let me start with “yuck”…now let’s move on.  Unfortunately, this is a bridge that all pool owners will probably cross at some time or another and for whatever reason we have had many calls this season about this issue.  So here is what needs to be done:

• Remove the animal from the pool with your net and pole.  Remove the animal as soon as possible, because the longer the animal stays in the pool, the more bloated and decayed it will become until it starts to disinigrate (sorry for this graphic picture in your mind).
• Do what you will with this animal carcass (I’ll leave that up to you).
• To remove the bacteria from the water, the pool needs to get a good, heavy shocking.  Double or triple your weekly chlorine shock amount and put it into the pool water.  Chlorine is a fantastic bacteria killer, so have no fears about if the water will become safe again, because it will.
• Run your pump for the next 24 hours to circulate the water and allow the chlorine shock to kill all of the bacteria in the water.
• Keep out of the pool for 24 to 48 hours while the bacteria is being killed and your high chlorine content relaxes.

After these steps the water will be ready for swimming and you will be back to where you were before your unwelcomed visitor arrived.

Now enjoy the rest of your swimming season.

The first thing you will see on your pumps warranty card is that if you use an extension cord to run your pump, then it will void your warranty, but do not fear because this is why it says that:

An above ground swimming pool pump is 110 Volts, meaning you can plug it into a standard outlet with a 3-prong cord.  However, the pool pump pulls almost 15 amps of electricity.  This desire to pull 15 amps requires at least a 12 gauge cord to be able to handle the amount of power that the pump requires.  If an electrician were to bury wire in the ground and set you up a nice electrical box in the back yard for your pump, then he/she would use 12 gauge wire.

The reason that the pump manufacture states in their warranty that if you run the pump on an extension cord that it will void your warranty is because new pool owners will go out to the local hardware store and purchase an extension cord that is designed to hook up Christmas lights and it will not be heavy enough to handle the pumps amperage.  After about two weeks of the pump running and gaining heat because of its overworking, it will die and stop running.

So, can you run your pump on an extension cord?  Yes, but it must be at least a 12 gauge cord.  I ran a 100’ 12 gauge cord on my 30’ round pool for 7 years.  Now keep in mind that with electrical wire the smaller the number, the heavier the cord.  A 16 gauge cord is very thin and a 10 gauge cord is much thicker.

Keep in mind also, that the breaker in your breaker box should be at least a 20 amp breaker and you should not have a great deal of electrical appliances plugged into the same breaker as you will the pump.

We work with our customers replacing hundreds and hundreds of liners every season. Twenty percent of those liner replacements come from customers draining their pool and not knowing that they are not supposed to. Rule of thumb is not to ever drain a vinyl liner swimming pool and here is why:

When a liner is manufactured, it is undercut so that the liner will stretch a little to fit into the pool with no wrinkles. If the liner was too big for the pool then it would surely leave wrinkles in the pool. The liner contains plasticides that allow the liner to stretch when the sun beats down on the liner and warms it. After a short amount of time, which I have seen to be around 3 months or so, the plasticides become stiff and will not allow the liner to stretch again. When the pool is full of water the water weight holds the liner in place. When the water is removed, the sun beats down on the vinyl and causes it to shrink to its original cut (undersized for the pool). The longer the pool stays empty, the more it shrinks. When water is placed back into the pool for filling, the plasticides will not allow the liner to stretch and what ends up happening is either the liner tears or pulls off of the top of the pool wall, seeing as though the liner is now too small for the pool. The only avenue you will have now is to replace the liner.

Keep in mind that if you ever find the need to drain the pool, then it should be done in the coolest weather possible (winter months or evenings), it should be done quickly (drain it out as quick as possible), and it should be refilled as quickly as possible. But even with these intelligent measures, you can still run the risk of ruining your liner. A tale tell sign that your liner has shrunk will be that you will see the liner has moved away from the wall of the pool, meaning if you tried to push the liner back up against the side of the wall, then it would be very far off of the wall. Another sign is that the floor of the pool will begin to have arched wrinkle running parallel with the wall of the pool. This is because the vinyl is shrinking and sliding into the center of the pool and this is how the arched wrinkles in the floor get created.

Moral of the story: DON'T DRAIN YOUR POOL, and if you have to, do it as we have showed you in this article...and cross your fingers.

Hi, We are replacing our above ground pool liner and were shocked to discover rust everywhere on our walls!  We gently sanded it off and painted with rustoleum.  There were a couple very small holes that my husband sealed with resin.  The sand under the liner is severely stained rust color.  Will this hurt our new liner or do you suggest we add sand or are we ok?

Thanks!

Nothing I can think of is more time consuming and more of a pain in the neck than removing the leaves from your above ground pool.  Many leaves fall in the winter months and lay on top of the winter cover.  If for any reason during the removal of the cover some leaves get in the water, the leaves need to be removed or the water will turn green on you pretty quick and the chlorine you place in the pool will be preoccupied on trying to burn out the leaves.

If you try to vacuum the leaves with a normal vacuum, then the vacuum will suck the leaves into the skimmer basket, which isn’t that big and doesn’t hold that many leaves, and the basket will clog very quickly and the vacuum suction will stop until the leaves are removed.  Then you will have to hook up your vacuum again and start the process over.  This is very time consuming and tedious.   If you have a tremendous amount of leaves in the pool, then this will possibly be a horrible experience for you.

I know no easier way to remove the leaves than using a Leaf Eater.  The Leaf Eater attaches to your vacuum pole and garden hose.  As you turn on the water in your garden hose, the pressure of the water coming through the Leaf Eater will cause an upward suction of water and the leaves than you roll over will jump inside the mesh bag that is attached to the Leaf Eater.  All you have to do at this point is remove the bag off of the Leaf Eater and empty the leaves and put the bag back on for another run.  The bag holds quite a bit of leaves so you can get a lot of the leaves out without having to stop and empty the Leaf Eater.

I would highly recommend that you go out and purchase a Leaf Eater if you are going to have to tackle removing an excessive amount of leaves from your pool.

 For years I have known of our customers using baking soda in their above ground swimming pool’s water to raise the water’s pH level.  The biggest reason for this is that the price of baking soda is very low and affordable to use in the water.  It is fine to use baking soda in the water, but it is not always used in the right way for the right reasons.  This article will clear up any misconceptions of using baking soda and direct you in the proper way to use it.

First of all, there are two chemicals that effect your pH level in your pool: alkalinity increaser (which is the exact same chemical as baking soda, sodium bicarbonate) and pH increaser and decreaser. 

·         Alkalinity Increaser (Baking Soda): the job of this chemical is to raise the alkalinity level of the water.  When your alkalinity level is correct, the water will maintain its pH level without lowering and raising the pH as much.  The proper alkalinity level holds the pH level in place, making it harder for the pH level to fluctuate, which is good.  Rain, perspiration, sun tan lotions, and kids doing what they do in pools all effect the pH of the water, lowering it or raising it.   If the pH level of the water is higher or lower than 7.4, then the chemicals in the water will not work at full potential (seeing as though they are designed to work at top efficiency at 7.4), the water will become acidic and burn your eyes, or the water will become corrosive and eat away at the pool’s metal components. 

·         pH Increaser or Decreaser: This chemical only effects the pH level and not the level of the alkalinity.

As a side effect of raising your alkalinity level, your pH rises, as well.  This is just a side effect.  The problem with using baking soda is that baking soda is used to raise the alkalinity level of the water, but it also raises the pH, as a side effect.  If every time your pH level gets low, you use baking soda to raise it, then you are also raising your alkalinity level.  Remember that alkalinity helps hold your pH at its proper range, so if your alkalinity levels get too high, then when a big rain comes, or you have a pool party with lots of people in the water and the pH fluctuates, then trying to get the pH back to its proper level will become darn near impossible.

The proper use of baking soda is to raise the alkalinity level of the water.  If your pH gets low after you have your proper alkalinity level, then use pH Increaser or pH decreaser to adjust the pH.

1.Keep correct water level in pool:

Generally, the correct water level for a pool level is the middle of the tile. Insufficient water level will cause the pump to suck air impeding the circulation and possibly lose prime thus shortening the life span of the motor and totally shut down the circulation/filtration of water in the pool.

2. Sufficient levels of chlorine & properly balance chemicals:

It’s extremely important (in my opinion) to keep it simple. I don’t recommend adding any extra additives to your water other than clarifiers, sodium bromide, phosphate remover, or “Pool Perfect” (if you have a dog that gets in the pool or use sun tan oils). The main levels to check regularly are free chlorine and PH. Total alkalinity, calcium, & stabilizer levels should not fluctuate other than build up over time. It is not necessary to check these levels weekly if they are set at proper levels and you are not losing water due to a leak in the pool or equipment. Generally, the proper levels are as follows: Free Chlorine 1.5 – 3ppm, total alkalinity 120ppm, PH 7.4 – 7.6, stabilizer 40ppm, calcium 175 – 225ppm

*these levels are recommended for gunite pools with regular plaster. Refer to your builder, tech for recommended levels with other surfaces.

3.Skimmer basket , pump basket, & pump impeller clean and free of debris:

Any one of these can impede the flow of water into the pump causing the pump to cavitate or lose prime thus interrupting the normal circulation of water throughout the pool.

4.Backwash D.E. filter once a month:

A filter full of debris can also impede the circulation of water flow throughout the pool and also contain particles of algae or bacteria that algae can feed on.

5.Run pump and filter 2 cycles per day in the summer and 1 cycle per day in the winter:

It is recommended that all the water in the pool and spa pass through the filter at least 2x a day in the hot months of the summer. For example: if your pool has 20,000 gallons and your pump is a 2 h.p. Pentair challenger, this particular pump pushes 100 gallons per minute through the filter. Here is what’s called the “turnover rate” (time it takes all the gallons of the pool/spa to pass 1x through the filter: 20,000 gallons/60 minutes = 333.333; 333.333/100 = 3.33 hours (turnover rate). It would be recommended to run your pump 6.66 hours a day during the summer months and 3.33 hours in the winter. The recommended time for the pump to run in the spring & fall varies depending on the amount of foliage that falls in the pool.

6.Point directional eyeballs of pool returns down towards pool floor:

If you use a floater to put the chlorine tabs in, the water towards the surface has higher levels of chlorine and needs to be circulated in areas below the surface in order to distribute evenly. If you have an automatic chlorine feeder, this will also ensure that the chlorine is distributed evenly throughout the pool. Remember, sunlight dissipates chlorine … the further away from the surface, the more refracted the sunlight minimizing loss of chlorine. If you do not have an automatic cleaner in the pool this will also minimize “dead spots” ( areas of the pool that do not get circulation.

7.Drain entire pool and spa every 5 – 10 years & refill with fresh water:

After a period of time, undissolved solids begin to accumulate in the water. Chlorine tablets contain stabilizer (cyanuric acid) which does not dissolve and will build up over time. Shock (calcium hypochlorite) contains calcium which also does not dissolve and will build up over time. Either one of these two can reach levels that will impede the killing power of the chlorine thus forcing you to keep high chlorine levels to keep algae from growing. In addition, either one of these two solids at high levels will cause your eyes to burn. However, draining the pool is a bit of a risk due to the fact that the sun can cause your liner to shrink and ruin the liner.  When you drain it, make sure it is in the winter months and you refill as soon as you are done draining.

8.Add 1lb. fast dissolving shock and a couple squirts of sodium bromide weekly during warm temperatures:

This will essentially re-ignite the stabilized chlorine that’s already in the water. The shock (calcium hypochlorite) turns “used up” chlorine into active, bacteria killing chlorine. It is not stabilized and will dissipate rather rapidly. The sodium bromide is a chlorine booster (makes it more effective) without raising the chlorine levels. “Free chlorine” is what you want and this step will turn your ineffective chlorine into effective chlorine.

9.Pool equipment system free of air leaks:

An air leak in the suction side of the system will impede the circulation of water in the pool. It can also cause the pump to run hot or lose prime thus interrupting circulation and shorten the pump motor’s life span.

Myth #1: Chlorine will turn my beautiful blond hair green.

Chlorine is not the cause of blond hair turning green from swimming pool water. Copper in the water is the culprit of green hair. Copper can find its way into the water through mineral systems and copper based algaecides.

Myth #2: If I smell chlorine around the pool, then there is too much chlorine in the water.

A properly maintained chlorine pool has virtually no smell at all. The "chlorine odor" actually comes from combined chloramines (CCs). CCs are formed as the free chlorine is 'used up' by organics in the water. If you are only testing for 'total chlorine' you may think your chlorine levels are fine. But CCs are no good at sanitizing your water, and in fact you need to get rid of them. The sun also burns them off, but you need to bring your water up to shock level and hold it there until you have 0ppm CCs.

Myth #3: Burning eyes in the water is caused by too high of a chlorine level in the water.

Your tears have a pH level of 7.4. When the pH level significantly increases or decreases from this level, then the pH of your pool water has become too acidic and the acid level of the water is what is causing the irritation.

Myth #4: There is a chemical you can put in the pool that will turn the water blue if a child urinates in the water.

Unfortunately this is not true. This is a myth that people have come up with to scare children from peeing in the pool.

Myth #5: Wait one hour after eating before you swim or you will cramp up and potentially drown.

Not likely. As your food is digesting, more blood goes to the stomach and other digestive organs to speed the process along. This means there is less blood for your muscles. If you are using your muscles more than your body can handle, you can get a cramp. However, if you eat a sensible meal, and take it easy for a while after returning to the water, even the risk of a cramp is very low. Now, if you consume a seven-course meal fit for Henry VIII and immediately commence to swim a marathon, you could have a different result!

The Do’s and Don’ts of Landscaping

Landscaping around an above ground swimming pool is something that every pool owner will be faced with. Two important things to remember when deciding how to landscape around your above ground swimming pool are that the eventuality of all vinyl liners is that they will need to be replaced and so your pool will be empty at some point and water weight will not be there to balance the weight pushing into the pool from outside the wall; and that all vinyl liners are susceptible to intrusion from ants and or termites. With that in mind let’s look into the different options available for landscaping around an above ground swimming pool.

Pea gravel/rock: One of the most widely used landscaping materials, pea gravel or rock add a stark beauty to any backyard. The fact that an assortment of colors, shapes, and sizes are available puts these ground cover materials at the top of the homeowner’s list when landscaping. Personally I love the way an above ground swimming pool looks when landscaped with pea gravel or rocks. There is just one problem that occurs with rock: when it is time to replace the liner in your pool the water must be drained. This means that there is no water weight to balance the weight of the rocks around the outside of the pool. Without that water weight the rocks push the pool wall inward and in severe cases can collapse the pool wall. To prevent  this from happening make sure that when using pea gravel or rock to landscape around the pool that you do not use more than two inches of gravel or rock. Keeping this low depth of material will allow the liner to be replaced without the risk of damage to the pool.

Wood chips/pine bark: Wood chips and pine bark have been ground cover staples for landscapers for decades. While adding to the aesthetic quality of your pool these two types of landscaping materials may be hiding your pool’s worst enemy. As these materials decay they become hotspots for ants and termites to build their dwellings. Ants and termites account for 75% of the liner replacements that my company does each year. The ants and termites like to dig through the sand beneath the pool liner, presumably because the sand is much easier to dig through than dirt is. While doing this the mandibles put tiny pinholes into the pool liner. These holes in extreme cases number in the hundreds and cannot be sealed. The only option when dealing with a liner that has ant or termite damage is replacement. To combat ant and termite damage we strongly recommend that wood chips and pine bark are never used as landscaping material around an above ground swimming pool. You don’t want ant or termites around your pool so don’t provide them with a home and a food source as you are landscaping.

Pine straw: In the above ground swimming pool industry pine straw is as faithful as the sunrise. Though it’s most glaring drawback may be that it must be replaced every year or two, pine straw is one of the best ground cover materials when landscaping around your above ground swimming pool. Cheap and easy, pine straw provides an elegant look without the negative aspects of rock or wood chips.

Bottom line is that you can landscape around your above ground swimming pool with whatever material you desire, but make sure that you are aware of the pros and cons of each. Also, check your pool’s warranty information regarding how far up the pool wall you can place material. Oh yeah, and always, always treat for ants and termites.

Top 3 reasons why your above ground swimming pool may be sinking.

An above ground swimming pool could sink for many reasons, but over the course of the last twenty years I have seen that there are three reasons that outnumber all the rest.

The third most frequent cause of a sinking above ground swimming pool is sinkholes. Sinkholes beneath your pool could be caused by underground drainage, but most often are the result of buried trash piles. When homes are constructed, many times the builders will use construction debris and debris such as tree limbs and stumps to fill in low areas in a home’s yard. Over time as these materials shift and degrade what once was solid ground begins to sink. It is almost impossible to know if you have a buried trash pile until you see the results of the trash pile shifting. The results of a shifting or sinking trash pile are large, deep cracks that appear in the ground. There are two ways to fix this problem. One is to have your yard graded and the trash pile removed and the hole filled in with dirt. This is a very expensive route to take. The second, less expensive way is to fill the cracks that form on the top of the ground with concrete. This can be done with bagged concrete and is very effective.

The second most frequent cause of sinking is drainage from above the ground caused by rainwater. If you have areas in your yard that receive excessive amounts of water this flow of water can sink a pool two ways. One is by saturating the ground beneath the pool. A 24’ above ground swimming pool will have nearly 14,000 gallons of water. This equates to roughly 112,000 pounds of water weight. When the ground becomes too wet to support the weight a full pool sinking occurs. To combat this, our company pays close attention to drainage issues when we grade a pool site; making sure to direct water away from the pool. If your pool is already constructed another way to counteract ground saturation is to have French drain installed. Regardless of the route you take the idea is always the same: to funnel water away from the pool.

The number one most frequent reason for an above ground swimming pool sinking is that there are not blocks under the upright verticals around your pool. In the installation instructions for every above ground swimming pool specifically states that patio blocks must be installed under the uprights to maintain the warranty on the swimming pool. I have found that following this simple rule virtually eliminates all sinking. If your pool does not have blocks under each upright vertical then it was not properly installed. This is normally an easy fix. Blocks can be put under each upright without taking the pool down, however the pool would have to be drained so that blocks could be installed.

The truth is that with thorough planning, careful grading, and proper installation a sinking pool and the headaches that can accompany it can be avoided.

Over the year I have seen more and more hype involving warranties in the above ground swimming pool industry and warranties have become more of a sales gimmick than they are an actual protection for the customer.  Let me make clear what warranties cover and maybe help you from getting caught up in the sales hype of above ground swimming pool warranties.

First of all, every warranty in the above ground swimming pool industry, regardless of manufacture or product, protects the customer from manufacture defects and NOTHING ELSE.  These means if the manufacture built one of their products defectively, they will help reimburse the expense of that product.  For example, a liner has a 20 year warranty, if the seams in this liner where the machine welded the different parts of the liner together, splits or becomes open and water leaks out, the manufacture will replace the defective liner.  This does not mean that the liner is rated to last for 20 years or if one of your kids hopped into the pool with a knife in their pocket and punctured the liner that this would be covered under warranty.

Now the truth to warranties is this:  You are taking a sheet metal structure with a thin vinyl liner shell and filling it with THOUSANDS of pounds of water weight (a 24’ pool holds 96,000 lbs).  If something about this structure is defective you are going to find out in about 48 hours.  Normally, if the pool holds water for a week, then there are no defects and the pool components will never have an issue that will be covered under warranty.

Over the last 25 years of being in this business I have been a part of thousands of pool installations and liner replacements and only TWICE have I seen an issue with a pool framework or liner being covered under manufacture warranty after the first year of installation.  This is simply because all the warranties on an above ground pool are strictly manufacture defect warranties and only cover these manufacture defects and if there is a defect, it will show itself almost immediately after filling the pool.

My reason for writing this post is to explain these warranties and how they work, because I have seen more and more customers being sucked into the big 50 year and lifetime warranties on pools that they are looking to purchase and then finding, after their purchase, that these warranties are giving them false hope about the life expectancy of their pool and what they should expect from their pool’s warranty.  The pool’s that my company carries offer a 3 year full (not pro-rated) replacement cost warranty and that’s the best warranty I’ve come across in this business, because if the manufacture messed up in making the pool or liner it will show itself almost immediately. 

I hope this has helped explain how above ground swimming pool product warranties work and hopefully this post has kept you from being pulled into the false protection that many companies are using on their warranties. 

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