Congratulations! It’s a Pool!

Ok, you have a pool and or spa in your yard and you are not quite sure what to do with it. If you have not owned a pool or spa before you will need to either make a call to the local pool company or go in with a water sample and ask any questions that come to mind. Most pool stores or companies will be able to assist you in your quest for pool knowledge. If you let them know that you are new to pool ownership they will usually tell you what you will need to know. A lot of local pool companies offer a monthly pool maintenance service through their company. I would like to help you decide which route you would like to go. Is monthly pool service the way to go or do you want to tackle the service yourself? Now you will be able to make an informed decision. When an in ground pool is not maintained properly there is always a possibility that damage to the pool surface will be the result. A lot of people think a pool or spa will just sit there and wait until they have the time or inclination to do something with it. The exception is to drain a freestanding spa and leaving it empty. This is really the only realistic option when it comes to leaving a pool or spa empty. A Free Standing Spa means that it is not set into the ground. Make sure to clean out the spa and cover it to protect the surface from cracks due to direct sunlight. By draining an in ground pool and leaving it empty, you might be asking for trouble. You may get lucky and not have any problems with your pool just sitting empty, however, if someone forgets that it is empty and takes a dive off into an empty pool. Yes this really has happened. It can turn into a devastating situation. If the home is vacant, the empty pool is an attraction for the local kids to skate in. When a pool is empty you take the chance of the pool incurring structural damage. The worst-case scenario that I have seen was a few years ago we had a couple of severe storms with a lot of rainfall in the springtime. Two pools that I am aware of had the walls cave in and caused thousands of dollars worth of damage. The weight of the water is normally what holds the walls of the pool in place. I have seen a fiberglass shell pop out of the ground. Back pressure from too much water saturating the ground under and around the pool shell caused this to happen. I think most of us will agree pools are better with water in them. A lot more fun too! Your swimming pool can be your biggest luxury or your largest liability. If you have not installed an in ground pool and you are thinking about it, you might want to consider buying a medium size aboveground pool first that way you know what it takes to maintain a pool before making that large investment. For those of you who have a pool whether it is an in ground or an above ground pool I hope you will enjoy your pool and use it in good health. In this book I will try to cover everything you need to know about pool maintenance, from Information that pertains to Chemicals and Cleaning your swimming pool, Professional Pool Services, and equipment for in ground and above ground pools. I have researched a large amount of information to try to be as accurate as I can be. With all the information that is out there a lot of that information contradicts the information that I have received from certain sources. I have tried to confirm with more than one source to make sure the information here is accurate. I will be sure and let you know if I am speaking from experience and fact, or if it is just my opinion. I have taken more than a few classes and I have Twelve years of hands on experience with swimming pool and spa maintenance. I would like to share the benefit of my experience with you. Some of the information on the Internet is confusing to say the least. If I have trouble understanding it with my experience then I am sure it can be a lot more confusing to the general public. With all the information available on the Internet things can get a little confusing possibly dangerous to new pool owners. It is difficult to know if some of the advice is being given to sell a certain product. The only product I am going to sell you is the information you will gain from this book. I am going to give you very descriptive information and not all information will apply to every pool. So you should be able to find some things here that will help to make your pool maintenance experience much easier and less time consuming. These are products that I have recommended for years because of their quality and durability if used properly. Just remember good is not cheap and cheap is not good. I live by that phrase. I am always on the look out for a bargain. However if getting an inferior product is cheaper it will not be a bargain for long. Especially if you have to replace that product three days out of warranty and the warranty was only a year. I cannot stress enough to make sure that you do the math and make sure that the product is going to last long enough to justify the expense of the purchase.