Cleaning Your Pool To Keep It Clear This Summer: What You Need To Know

26 July 2018

It's the time for summer fun, for barbecues and pool parties. If your pool is dirty or green it can ruin your pool party and your summer fun, not to mention it can be unsightly. Don't let a dirty pool ruin your summer or your yard. Read on for instructions to clean your pool this summer.

Tools And Materials For The Job:

• Extension pole
• Vacuum head
• Hose (long enough to get across the entire pool)
• Pump and filter
• Chlorine (liquid and tablets)

Instructions:

1. To start, you're going to need a pump and a filter. If your pool doesn't have either of these, you may want to invest in these for your pool. The pump helps suck in the water and debris to be circulated in through the filter and cleaned, then finally sent back into the pool. It can be difficult to clean your pool without these items.
2. If you already have the pump and filter in place and turned on, blow the air out of the hose by attaching the head of the vacuum to the extension pole and the vacuum hose to the head. Place the vacuum head in the pool. Blow the air out by placing the opening near the eyeball return. Allow the water to blow out the air in the hose.
3. With the hose still under the water (to prevent air from entering), hook up the hose to the skimmer (some go directly inside the skimmer basket while others are attached below the skimmer opening). 
4. Turn the filter/pump off, then back on again once you place the skimmer lid down into the skimmer basket to help with suction.
5. Now you can begin vacuuming your pool. Use the extension pole to slowly vacuum the bottom of your pool. Move the pole in straight lines so you get the entire pool and don't miss any spots at all.
6. If need be, scrub at areas that are a little more difficult to remove.
7. When you're finished vacuuming, turn the pool pump/filter off and remove the hose. Remove the skimmer lid and set the filter to backwash and backwash the dirty water from your pool.
8. Turn it back to the normal filter setting when finished.
9. Test the chemical levels in your pool and add any necessary chemicals. If your chlorine levels are low, add tablets to be circulated around in the pool in a floating tablet holder and add liquid chlorine or other chemicals in the evening after the sun goes down to prevent the sun from "eating" the chemicals.

Repeat this cleaning schedule weekly or twice per week depending on how many trees are around your pool and how dirty it gets. Hire a professional pool cleaning company for help with this if keeping up with type of cleaning schedule is too difficult for you.