Guess what? Spring is finally here, although it is not off to as fast a start as last season have no doubt that the warm weather is coming. If your thinking right now to wait until the warm weather hits to open you in-ground pool then you will be too late. As we have said time and time again on this blog opening early before the temperatures get too warm is the best way to ensure a clean algae free pool opening.
Before we move ahead I want to mention that today’s blog post is sort of a follow up to a post made by our friend Marcus Sheridan over at River Pools and Spas recently titled 5 Reasons Your Pool Should Be Open Already – Its ok go on over and give ti a quick read then come back here and we will talk about those points some more.
Let me start off here by removing the idea that running your pool right now is not worth the electrical costs. Right now in New England the weather is well, cold. Therefore we do not need to leave the pool pump cranking 12-24 hours a day. We want a good turn over rate at all times but right now we can sacrifice a little bit because the water temperature is low enough that algae won’t grow take hold very easily. What I tell my customer opening their pools now is to just run their pool pump 4-6 hours in the middle of the day like say 10am-3pm. This makes sure the water is flowing when the sun is at its warmest.
The other thing to consider which Marcus brings up in his article is the use of a variable speed pool pump. By switching to a 2 speed or variable speed pump you can run the pool pump at a lower speed turning the water over constantly while keeping your electric costs low.
Whether you have a variable speed pump or not the cost to run your pool this time of year is not too significant.
Prevent Algae Growth Instead of Fight Algae Growth
The biggest reason we try to convince our customers to open the pool early is algae growth. Last spring was a nightmare for those who waited to open their pool in mid to late May as temperatures shot up into the 80’s and 90’s on some days rather early in the season. With temperatures like that if your pool isn’t circulating than you can expect some significant algae growth. Algae is a plant, it needs sunlight to grow, also warm water temperatures encourage this growth. Mesh safety covers allow sunlight to pass through into the water and most in-ground pools out there have a mesh safety cover, getting that cover off and the water moving before the heat is the only real way to ensure a clean pool when its time to jump in.
Now also when we finally get that first 80 degree day won’t you want to jump in the pool and have clean and ready to go? It always amazes me when we get that first week of warm weather how many people come in to get their pool opening supplies and talk about how green the water is. If only they opened in April they could be swimming in the pool instead of working on their pool.
Could Opening You Pool Late Cost You Money?
YES! If you wait to pop the cover off your pool because you want to save on the electric or you think it is now worth it you might just be setting yourself up for an even bigger expense. You see the thing about pool chemicals is, they aren’t cheap and when your pool opens up and looks like a great resting place for SwampThing you will need to shell out a few bucks to clear it up. There is not only the cost of chlorine, shock, algaecide, balancers, and other chemicals but what kind of value do you put on your time?
With a super green algae invested pool you have to make sure you are constantly keeping an eye on your filter pressure as the debris in the water will clog it up fast. Lots of times pools that open that dirty need to be backwashed and cleaned multiple times a day. Now you could pay a pool cleaning service like us to come out and do those things for you but the cost could be hundreds of dollars before it is all said and done.
All that time and money can be saved simply by opening your pool early and spending an extra $25-$40 to run your pool pump and extra month or so. This isn’t a blog post based on trying to sell you an early pool opening because in all honesty if more people open late to a green pool we probably make more money, but have very unhappy customers, I do not like unhappy pool customers, pools are meant to be fun!
So this spring get on that pool opening list early or head down to your local pools store and get your opening supplies and have a nice clean easy to maintain pool this spring.
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