How to Clean Your Swimming Pool After a Heavy Rain Storm

Swimming pool maintenance and cleanliness is very essential if you want enjoy good long service from your pool. However during the rainy season, things can get a bit messy especially when the rains are stormy. Storms cause a lot of problems to the environment and manmade structures alike and swimming pools are no exception. In this post we will be sharing some important tips on how to clean your swimming pool after a heavy rain storm.

Effects of heavy rain storms on swimming pools

Even though your pool water might look clear after a heavy rain, the chemistry of your pool is not really at the required levels. You therefore need to get it back to where it’s supposed to be.

1. Lowers the PH and alkalinity- rain water is slightly acidic in nature and as a results it messes up with the chemistry of pool water. This leads to pool water becoming acidic(low PH levels). The consequences of low PH is that the pool surface will start deteriorating and eat up pool equipment. Repairing and replacing what has been messed up can be very costly.
2. Debris on the water surface and pool floor- heavy storms can cause damage to trees and if it’s accompanied by stormy winds can drop debris in the pool. If left unremoved they can lead to damage on the pool surface and pool equipment not to mention difficulty in swimming.

• Staining the pool walls and floor- heavy rains can introduce runoff water from your house gutter or other sources. They can also introduce foreign material that can discolour and make pool water color look greenish, cloudy, yellowish etc.

1. Damage pool filter- heavy rains can introduce debris that might be sucked in by the filter and cause serious damage to the filter.

How to clean your swimming pool after a heavy rain storm

1. Remove the debris- the first thing is to remove any debris that might have fallen in the pool. These might be floating things like plastics, leaves, twigs etc. or those that have sunk to the bottom like heavier twigs, sand & stones etc. To clean the pool use a pool skimmer, a pool brush and a pool vacuum.
2. Clean the walls, deck and steps with a brush- use the right brush to clean these areas. Be sure to scrub them well to ensure no stains remain that could attract formation of algae.
3. Drain off the excess water- most pools have skimmer openings and when draining excess water, make sure it doesn’t go below these skimmer openings. This is to protect the pump from damage.
4. Clean the filter- cleaning the filter ensures it’s functioning well and prevent the water from become green or cloudy.
5. Check your water chemistry- check if the PH and alkalinity levels are to the required levels. After determining their levels adjust accordingly. Just put in mind that PH levels should be between 7.2-7.4 and the most ideal middle ground is 7.4.
6. Shock your pool- after adjusting the alkaline and PH to the recommended levels, you can then shock your pool using the recommended pool shock chemical mixed to the right ratio. Please follow manufacturers recommended method of shocking the pool. The chemical packaging should contain this information.
7. Recheck your pool water chemistry- after 24hrs since you shocked your pool, recheck the water chemistry and make any adjustments if necessary.

The guidelines above will help you know How to Clean Your Swimming Pool After a Heavy Rain Storm. However you should always ask an expert whenever possible to get more insight.

Swimming pool construction services

Watertech is a leading contractor of swimming pools in Kenya. We offer the most affordable rates for building swimming pools in the country. If you would like to get more information or a quotation of how much it would cost to build a swimming pool please get in touch with us today.