Winterizing Your Spa
First of all, I don’t understand why anyone would want to winterize a spa. Most of our customers find that using “their spa on a cold winters day, is just the thing their body needs to warm up the bones and take care of all of their aches and pains. The tough part of using the spa in the winter, is getting to the spa in the cold. Once you are in a spa, one could care less if there is a blizzard raging! Getting out is easy as well, the entire body is warm to the core and one barely feels the cold on the way back to the house. For those that are resolute on winterizing their spa, here are some tips.
Closing The Pool For The Season
Three recommendations:
1. Get any leaves out that are on the bottom. Some people say the heck with a few leaves in the pool. The fluids in the leaves can stain the liner. This is difficult to clean in the spring.
2. If you have an algae bloom, kill it before closing. Brush the liner real good, attack the algae with proper chemicals to kill it, and then close it up. You can always vac out the dead algae in the spring, but live algae will stain the liner too.
3. Do NOT winterize using strong doses of chlorine shock. A better choice is a specialty winterizing kit that does the work without hurting your cover. The problem with using shock to close is the elevated chlorine levels ‘gas-off’, weakening the seams of your cover and greatly reducing the life of the cover.
We will be glad to answer any questions you might have about winterizing your pool. Just call or stop in. –Max
Clean Your Skimmer Basket And Save Yourself Some $!
It’s simple. Leaves drop from the trees and the wind carries them to your pool. The filter does its job and sucks the leaves into the skimmer basket. They build and build, and water flow is reduced. The pressure from the motor cracks the skimmer basket and the leaves travel on their merry way to the basket on the front of the motor. The pressure re-builds and that basket cracks, allowing the leaves to get pulled into the impeller housing where they clog it. Now no water is going through the system and the motor continues to run.
What are you out? At the minimum, a basket or two. Pretty minor expense, but if the motor is allowed to run with little or no water going through it, you may burn out the motor. Big problem and big expense!
The solution: When leaves begin to drop, check your basket every morning and every evening and empty it. It only takes a minute but it could save you hundreds of dollars. –Max
Time To Change The Hot Tub Water
Why not? The fall season is upon us and after that comes winter. The last thing you want to do is try and change it in the heart of the winter when it is bitter cold. So let’s do the math. If you change it NOW, the next change would be due in late December to mid January while the weather and temperature is still manageable. After that comes the spring change—April to early May.
If you wait another month from now to change the water, the following change falls smack dab in the middle of February. Can you say five below zero! Plan now to avoid the February cold and freeze.
A little advance planning will allow you to enjoy the tub in water that still is fresh and balanced. –Max
Debunking An Aboveground Myth…#2
The vast majority of our customers that have shopped around for aboveground pools come in to the store looking for a resin pool because that is what they have heard is the best. Well, you won’t get that same endorsement here. The argument is always that resin won’t rust like steel. The question you should immediately ask at that point is why is the wall made of steel then? The reason…steel is stronger. The same applies for toprails and uprights. While it is true that resin doesn’t rust it does chalk, discolor, crack, and warp. If properly protected through hot dip galvanization, and other methods steel will provide you with a much more durable and long lasting pool than resin. Not all resin is bad, but gas assist injection molded resins are far more expensive to produce and that is not what you are going to get with pool “specials”. Our inground pool manufacturer uses the story of bridges to explain why steel is superior and I have to agree. You don’t often see bridges made of plastic. Consider the fact that we have installed over 3200 steel wall inground pools and never replaced a single panel in almost 32 years. If that isn’t validation, I don’t know what is.
Attention Goldline Users
Is your Goldline Aqua Rite going bad? Did you about fall over when the told you $800 for a new cell? Now is the time to start looking into a new unit backed by one of the best warranties in the industry. We can get you a Resilence Salt System made by American SPS installed for $1299 plus tax. The warranty is 5 years on the power center, 3 years full and pro rated for years 4 and 5. The cell carries a 5 year warranty, 1 year full and pro rated for years 2-5. Still not sure, stop in and see our display unit on our inground pool or call us and we can send some information out to you. – Tim
Another Use For Diatomaceous Earth
This morning I was watering my flowers and I noticed that a few of my Gerbera Diasies and Marigolds were being eaten pretty badly by slugs. A simple solution – sprinkle a little Diatomaceous Earth (DE) around the plants. It will kill the slugs. (Don’t overdue it as it will also kill healthy bugs too.) – Kathy
Have No Fear, Help Is Here!
Countless times each year we hear, “I just moved into a house with a pool or spa (or both), and I don’t know how to care for it.” If you have moved into a home with a pool or a spa, have no fear, we have helped many, many people over the years in this very situation, and we can probably help you too. To make it easier to help you, here are a few suggestions.
1. If the previous homeowner left any paperwork, including owner’s manuals or receipts, bring them with you when you stop by our store.
2. If you have a digital camera, take a few minutes and take some photos. Pictures of the actual pool or spa and pictures of the equipment (filter, pump, heater, etcetera) are a great help. If you see manufacturer’s names or specification labels on the equipment, get pictures of these or make some notes. This type of information is a true help.
3. Especially on swimming pools, measure the pool and write down the dimensions. If it is a round pool, you will need to measure the diameter. If it is an oval or a rectangular pool, you will want to measure the overall width and the length. On above ground pools, measure the wall height. (Usually 48″, 52″, or 54″) On inground pools, try to get an idea of the depth at both ends.
4. If the previous homeowner left any chemicals, take a few minutes to write down the product names and approximately how much is left in each container. There is no need to have you buy more of a product if it is already sitting in your garage or shed. (Since you may be unfamiliar with some of these items, use care in handling them until we can discuss what you have and how to properly and safely use them.)
While we will almost certainly have additional questions for you when you visit the store the first time or two, the more information from the above list that you can bring in, the quicker we can help you start enjoying your “new” pool or spa.
Is Your Swimming Pool Bubbling?
We get lots of phone calls from people telling us their return lines are bubbling and there is lots of air going into their pool. In most cases, it is not a serious problem but it can be an annoyance. Here are the likely causes. One, your water level is too low and the skimmer is pulling air into the plumbing. Two, you may have a hose clamp that needs tightened. Three, if your vacuum hose is attached, you may have a small pinhole in the hose. Four, there is a union or ball valve that is loose or needs to have an o-ring replaced. Lastly, and most likely, it is a deteriorated or pinched o-ring on the wet end of the motor, where the plastic basket is located. Look there first and see if there is a lot of air visible beneath the clear plastic lid. If there is, the air HAS to be pulling in from the skimmer to that basket-no doubt. If your water level is okay, the basket o-ring is your most likely culprit. Turn off the system and check to see if it is deteriorated, pinched, or if there is dirt on it. If it’s bad, when you rub your fingers across the o-ring, it will almost disintegrate and your fingers will get blackened. If you need a new one, we should have it here at the store. –Service
