Test Your Water at Pools of Fun
Algae running rampant when you peel off the cover of your pool in the spring? It’s vital to stay ahead of this problem in the fall, as chemically balancing your pool ahead of cold weather is essential to maintaining a cleaner pool the weather turns warm.
If you didn’t pay attention in high school chemistry, the solution to your problem is elementary: call us at Pools of Fun! We’ll make it easy for you to properly get your water tested.
To start, take your water sample to one of our five conveniently placed stores around Indianapolis.
Getting the right sample.
Making sure you have the right water conditions is essential to covering your pool properly. To start, make sure you take the cover off of your pool for an hour before you get the sample. We suggest this to ensure you pool chemicals breathe before you grab your sample. Make sure when extracting the water, go at least elbow deep below the surface. This way we get a more accurate representation of your pool water, not just what’s gathered on top. Also, keep away from the return jets. Bring in about a cup of water to ensure the test sample is proper.
Pools of fun offers free testing for those who have purchased our chemical bundles, so stock up for next spring as well.
What We Test
pH levels — pH measures the hydrogen ion concentration of a solution, or simply put how acidic or basic a substance is right around 7.6 for vinyl liner pools, or slightly above neutral. High pH can cause calcium build-up, and algae growth. Low pH can cause staining, erosion of plaster, and more.
Total Alkalinity (TA) — This is a measure of how much alkaline substances are in your pool. Same as pH levels, unbalanced TA will damage your pool.
Calcium Hardness — This indicates all the dissolved calcium in the water. High calcium hardness causes scaling in many of your pools elements.
Chlorine — If your chlorine levels are low, one of you last tasks in closing your pool will be to shock it.
Stopping Algae Growth
Preventing and controlling algae are essential steps in closing your pools. Giving your pool one last thorough cleaning should eradicate algae before it spreads. Cleaning your filter, backwashing, brushing, vacuuming and shocking your pool before closing down in the winter is the first step. The second step is having a top of the line pool cover to deny entry for algae spores from entering your pool.
Pools of Fun is your reliable, local one-stop shop for ensuring your chemicals are perfectly balanced for winter.