What Pool Professionals Want You to Know About Opening Your Pool

What Pool Professionals Want You to Know About Opening Your Pool

With the winter season finally coming to an end, you’re likely looking forward to spending some quality time with your pool. All that’s standing between you and days of soaking up the sun is one pesky thing — actually opening the pool.

While this may seem like a simple enough task you can handle on your own, there are some key steps you need to take into account before rushing off and opening your pool for the new season. Here’s what the pool professionals want you to know.

Remove and Clean Pool Cover

The first step in any pool opening is to remove your pool cover, then clean, sanitize and store it for next season. After the long off-season, your pool cover is probably covered in some pretty grimy debris, from leaves, to tree branches, animal refuse and (hopefully not) dead animals — all of which could contaminate your pool if the cover is removed improperly. 

A properly trained pool professional will remove the cover, rid it of any of the above, then sanitize it so mildew or mold doesn’t damage the cover while it’s in storage.

Does Your Equipment Work? 

Opening the pool for the season also entails starting back up your pool operation system. Pumps, filters and any lights installed in the pool need to be properly evaluated to ensure they’re in working order. Everything needs to be cleaned and your filter might have to be primed if you notice it isn’t pulling in water as it should.

This can be a complicated process that can really grind your opening to a halt if any of your equipment suffered damage during the winter months. A pool professional can ensure that any damages are repaired on the spot or schedule a time to get your system working again before swimming season kicks off.

Refilling the Pool 

Odds are your pool lost some water, either during the winterization process or due to natural evaporation. Your first step after opening the pool is to take stock of how low your water level is, then to test the water to make sure it’s clean. If you find the water to be in poor condition, you might be stuck with a situation where you’re unsure if you should either remove the water from your pool completely and start over, or instead fill the pool then begin the hard work of mixing chemicals together to clean your dirty water. Which leads us to our next point…

Properly Balanced Water Chemistry 

Achieving the proper chemical balance in your pool can be tricky for anyone, especially if your water quality is less than ideal after opening. While keeping a pool’s chemicals at the proper levels throughout the summer isn’t necessarily challenging, the opening mix can be difficult to manage between chlorine, achieving the right pH balance and sanitizing the pool. 

If any of the above sounds like something you’d be uncomfortable carrying out yourself, don’t worry: we’re here to help. AAA Pool Service will get your pool open in time for the warm season quickly, efficiently and best of all, without causing you any unnecessary stress. Give us a call at 847-499-6040 to learn more.