CHECKLISTS – Emerald

POOL OPENING CHECKLIST( GENERAL INFORMATION)

Remove Debris from Cover: Remove any leaves, snow, or other debris from the winter cover.
Remove any water from the cover: Use a winter cover pump or larger submersible pump
Remove and Clean the Cover: Remove the winter cover, power wash or hose clean it, let it dry, and store it properly.
Reconnect Equipment: Reconnect the pump, filter, and heater. Replace any worn or damaged parts such as the o-ring clamps, hoses or nozzles. If your filter seems to not be working as well as it did in the past, think of replacing the filter sand, or cartridges before starting the season. For DE filters, the “fingers” would need to be cleaned prior to reinstalling (usually) being soaked in muriatic acid. This helps remove any caked on DE powder or debris. please be aware the fingers are covered in a mesh that can rip or tear this will cause DE powder to go into the pool creating cloudy water or De material on the floor of the pool. This can be a costly repair so take care as to not damage the fingers when cleaning. NO METAL TOOLS SHOULD BE USED ON THEM
Remove Winter Plugs or Plate: Remove any winter plugs from the skimmer and return lines.
Fill the Pool: Fill the pool back to the normal water level.
Test and Balance Water Chemistry: Test and adjust alkalinity, Ph, and Chorine levels in that order
Shock the Pool: Use a pool shock treatment to kill any remaining bacteria and algae.
Brush and Vacuum: Brush and vacuum the pool to remove any accumulated debris.
Run the Filtration System: Run the filtration system to clean the water.
Add Algaecide: Add an algaecide to prevent algae growth after balancing the water chemistry The algaecide is not a algae killer if your pool is green. Its a preventer if used properly.
If your pool is green, check alkalinity, Ph, chlorine and hardness. If everything is in good order- Super shock the pool by adding more than the normal amount. liquid chlorine is also effective
Add Metal out, Stabilizer, Hardness (Calcium), Phosphate remover or Clarifier, if required. Shock- Some shocks are metal based and can lead to a green hue so Metal Out or similar products help remove that through filtration.
Stabilizer helps maintain chlorine levels longer.
Phosphate remover is designed to eliminate high levels of phosphates, which act as “algae food”, preventing algae growth and promoting a clear, enjoyable pool environment.
Clarifier helps clear up a cloudy pool by binding smaller debris into larger forms for the filter to remove. Some chemistry will not seem to work if the hardness level is off.
Calcium hardness is the measure of how hard or soft your pool water is, and measures the amount of dissolved calcium and magnesium in your swimming pool. Just like pH and total alkalinity, it’s important to keep the calcium hardness balanced to prevent your pool water from becoming corrosive or scaling.
Balancing the chemistry is also important to maintaining your liner health.

Pool Winterizing Checklist:

Clean and Vacuum: Thoroughly clean and vacuum the pool to remove debris and algae. how you close the pool for above grounds is how it will open up. Cleaner the better. In-grounds, depending on the cover, will allow light through causing algae growth and will allow small debris in the pool. This can be unavoidable.
Balance Water Chemistry: Test and adjust pH, alkalinity, and calcium hardness levels.
Shock the Pool: Use a good liquid Chlorine or pool shock treatment to kill bacteria and algae.
Add Algaecide: Add an algaecide to prevent algae growth during the winter months.
Lower Water Level: Reduce the water level to below the skimmer to prevent freezing damage
Add a inner tube to the middle of the above ground pools and secure it so the rope is slightly loose allowing some movement to the innertube
In-grounds do need to be lowered but do not require a inner tube. .
Winterize Equipment: Drain and store the pump and filter head indoors unless its hard piped in place. For any heater left outside, place steel wool into the heater openings to prevent any mice or other animals from creating a nest inside.
Cover the Pool: Securely cover the pool with a winter cover for above grounds and safety cover for in-grounds, and consider using cover clips or water bags to hold it in place. Some in-grounds are just covered with a tarp so waterbags or other weights will be required to hold the cover in place over the winter.
Turn off the Power: Turn off the circuit breaker for the pool pump and heater.
In-grounds require the lines to be blown out and antifreeze put in the lines Some homeowners do not do this thinking the lines are clear of water. It’s your preference but we recommend adding RV antifreeze to the skimmer and return lines
If your filter seems to not be working as well as it did in the past, think of replacing the filter sand, or cartridges before starting the next season. For DE filters, the “fingers” would need to be cleaned prior to reinstalling (usually) being soaked in muriatic acid. This helps remove any caked on DE powder or debris. please be aware the fingers are covered in a mesh that can rip or tear this will cause DE powder to go into the pool creating cloudy water or De material on the floor of the pool. This can be a costly repair so take care as to not damage the fingers when cleaning. NO METAL TOOLS SHOULD BE USED ON THEM

WEEKLY POOL MAINTENANCE- OR DAILY IF YOU SO DESIRE

Clean all debris out of the pool as best you can. Any organic debris will mess with pool chemistry.
Brush the pool walls to make sure any algae growth is stirred up or any scaling is removed
Vacuum the pool and make sure to remove all visible debris. Several backwashing of the filter or changing cartridges may be required. Make sure to keep an eye on your water levels when cleaning. If the water gets too low the filter will not work and the pump will lose prime
TEST the pool chemistry adjusting alkalinity, PH, Chlorine, Hardness in that order. Some chemicals like chlorine and algaecide can not be added at the same time due to a foamy reaction. Adjusting chemistry is not an immediate adjustment. Chemistry balancing may take a little time and patience. Add additional chemicals if needed including phosphate remover, clarifier, or metal out. Additional chlorine tablets should be added to a floater in the pool.
We do not recommend any chlorine pucks in the skimmer area. The pump requires a lot of water so by adding the pucks it decreases the amount of water the pump receives. Sometimes prime is lost if too many are added to the skimmer. We also find in above grounds that the pucks prematurely deteriorate the wall and paint leading to rust and the demise of the pool prematurely.
Clean any water toys or floats and remove any debris around your pool that can be blown in by wind.
If your pool is next to trees and bushes the leaves will travel quite a distance and end up in your pool. Roots will also gravitate towards water so keep an eye out for roots growing into the bottom pool or rails. You may also consider a pool mesh cover to help keep the leaves out of the pool. A solar cover would work as well but you may have to skim the leaves off before removing the solar cover
Be careful to clean any automatic robotic cleaners especially in-grounds The rollers have a tendency to pick up and hold small debris and rocks and can create stress lines in your pool as well as holes.
Also make sure your skimmer pole end is covered with some sort of rubber or duct tape. the skimmer pole used can also cause holes to be put in the liner without the person knowing. You will know you have a possible hole, when the water level decreases If this happens we do know a diver that can come in a test your pool for leaks and patch them.
The more attention you give to keeping your pool clean and balanced, the longer the pool and liner will last.

Please feel free to call Emerald Trust at 607-201-6102 if you need your pool opened or closed, pool parts, chemicals or any other pool related equipment we can help you with. We can order almost any product and also install it.

ENJOY YOUR SEASON!!

Emerald Tr