Swimming Pool Cleaning: The Right Way to Clean Your Pool

pool cleaning

Your dream of floating on your own pool, frozen pina colada in hand, can become a nightmare if you don’t know how to maintain it. When you are planning and envisioning your dream pool you never even think about pool cleaning.

After all, chores are no fun. But, in order to keep this investment crystal blue and ready to keep you and your family cool, cleaning is a necessity. Here we walk you through how to clean a dirty pool and the steps to take to keep your pool clean.

Swimming Pool Cleaning: The Right Way to Clean Your Pool

You finally have a pool in your backyard! You’re so excited about swimming that pool cleaning never even came to mind. Where do you start? We got you covered.

Let’s go over the right way to clean your pool, step-by-step, and how to keep your pool clean once you’ve finished the job. It all starts, like most things, with gathering proper supplies.

How To Clean A Pool, The Right Way

Before you begin you’ll want to make sure you have all your supplies ready to go. While you might want to read more here first, you should make sure you have everything the job requires.

What tools do you need to clean your pool?

  • A telescopic pole that accepts multiple attachments
  • A skimmer net
  • A pool brush
  • A pool vacuum
  • Water tester
  • Chlorine
  • Pool Shock
  • A garden hose

You should be able to get all of these, at a reasonable price, at your local pool store. Talk to the associate in the store about the type of pool you have and they can lead you to the best options for the job. Once you’ve collected your supplies then you can begin.

Collect/Skim All Debris and Clean Out The Skimmer Basket

This is the first logical step when you try to figure out how to clean a swimming pool. You will use your skimmer net attachment and run it slowly over the surface of the water.

This will catch any large debris (leaves, sticks, bugs, etc.) that are floating on the pool surface. Now that you’ve skimmed the surface of the pool, locate your skimmer filter.

This usually has a plastic cover on it near the edge of the pool. Remove the lid and then pull out the basket. Empty it of all debris and hose it down to get it good and clean.

Make sure nothing has collected in the skimmer itself. Sometimes small leaves and other things can sneak in below the basket. Give it a good once over and pull out anything inside. You could even hit this with the hose too which will shake anything you missed free.

Once the skimmer is clean, replace the basket and the lid and move onto step two.

Brush The Sides and Ladder of the Pool

The next step in keeping swimming pools clean is using the brush attachment. Brush down the sides of the pool and the ladder or stairs.

Make sure to pay attention to the area right underneath the edge of the pool. This is where algae and bacteria can collect.

Once you have done a thorough brush down of all the spaces you can reach, move on to the heavy machinery, the pool vacuum.

Vacuum the Pool

Your next step in how to keep a pool clean is vacuuming the pool. No, don’t bring your Bissel out from the cleaning closet in the house. You’ll need a special pool vacuum for this job.

There are different kinds of vacuums. Some are hands-free and do all the work themselves once you attach them. You can also get models that require you to vacuum manually.

For the first good clean you want to make sure you go over every nook and cranny of the pool. You can do this with either type just make sure to guide the hands-free version to make sure you don’t miss anything.

Maintaining Your Pristine Playplace – How to Keep Your Pool Clean

To keep your pool sparkling all year long you need to maintain the water levels. You’ll want to test the water PH levels at least once a week to make sure your chemical levels are good.

If your water test shows that the PH levels are off you need to add more chemicals. If you’re dealing with a very dirty pool consider adding pool shock before continuing the normal routine of adding chlorine tablets regularly.

There are devices that can hold the chlorine tablets so that you can safely swim without coming into contact with them. Also, you should put chlorine tablets in the skimmer basket to keep it clean.

If your water is being stubborn and is not getting better after trying these methods, consult a pool expert. Your local pool store should be able to give you some great suggestions on other things to try.

Your Pool is an Investment – Take Care of It

While pool cleaning isn’t very fun it needs to be part of the regular maintenance of your property. Making sure the water is good and clean protects everyone who swims in it.

Keeping a clean pool also makes sure the pool will remain beautiful for years to come. Letting a pool get dirty and not handling it can break down the coating on the walls and floor of the pool. Repairing this damage can get expensive so it’s best to avoid it at all costs.

A pool adds great equity to your home by providing a vacation oasis in your own backyard. Treat the pool with the same respect you treat everything in your home. Test it weekly, add chemicals regularly, and give it a good deep clean once every season.

Looking for more ways to spruce up your backyard space? Check out our top patio trends here.

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