Pool Care FAQs - Summer & Winter Pool Care Tips

Find Answers to Common Questions

FAQ

SUMMER TIPS

Check your water level

Dry, hot days, and splashing causes water loss. Nothing will ruin equipment faster than a lack of water. Pumps cannot function and water can’t circulate without water. We evaporate 10 feet of water per year in Arizona.

Take toys out of the pool

Toys will find skimmer and pool cleaners, causing blockage and restricting water flow.

Clean filters and clean cartridges

Keep your equipment clean by giving these items an annual acid wash and scrub down. Suntan lotion, baby oils, and dirt clog filters. If your filter is dirty, your pool will not circulate enough air and algae will form. We recommend annual cleaning for D.E. and card cartridge filters.

Make sure to run you pump

Pools need to circulate and filter much more in the summer months. Timers should be set to run 8-12 hours a day in the summer and 4-8 hours a day in the winter.

Keep the dogs out

Dogs just zap chlorine from pools and dog hair clogs drains, skimmers, pumps, and filters.

WINTER TIPS

Make sure to drain your pool periodically

Due to the desert heat, we evaporate 10 feet of water per year in Arizona. The water leaves the pool, but the minerals stay behind. Excess mineral buildup in pool water plays havoc on pumps, filters, and water chemistry. It also causes severe staining on pool surfaces. We recommend draining your pool completely every two to three years.

Run your timer about half of the time in the winter

Pools don’t need to circulate as much in the winter because algae doesn’t like cold water. Save some money and turn your timers down. Run your timer between four and eight hours every day, unless you’re heating your pool.

Acid washes

These are generally appropriate between October and March 1, weather permitting. We drain and acid wash pools in the winter to keep extremely hot weather from causing pool surfaces to peel, pop, or blister.