text: The 3 Basic Principles of Water Care - King Pool and Spa Services
  (Company name) King Pool and Spa Services
  About King Pool & Spa
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  The 3 Basic Principles of Water Care
  King Pool & Spa Services
  Customer: "Hi, I've recently purchased a house with a pool and don't know anything about how to maintain it, is it possible to have someone come on site and walk us through everything?"
  This is a common question we receive during the summer months. People look for a home with a pool, then don't necessarily understand what is involved in the upkeep and maintenance of their investment. Some have even admitted that they had assumed that all they had to do was keep a puck or two in the skimmer/chlorinator at all times. Although this is required, it's only a portion of what it takes to maintain a pool.
  Many people are familiar with the fire triangle diagram, where you remove one of the elements, and the fire can no longer be sustained. Well that diagram can be modified to display the 3 basic principles of water care, and much like the fire triangle, if any of these is neglected, than the water can go south fast.
  The most important of these principles is the water's circulation and filtration. This has to do with ensuring that you've got the right type of pump to push the water through the system at a rate that ensures everything circulates through the filter at least a couple times a day. The filter itself should be maintained at about 10psi, sand replaced every 5 years, or if cartridges are used, cleaned at the end of every season (or more often if required) and replaced as necessary (usually every few years). Lastly, return jets should be positioned so that they stir up the water at the bottom of the pool and create a circular vortex ensuring that dead zones throughout the pool are kept to a minimum.
  The next part of the triangle is water balancing. As it was mentioned at the beginning of the article, some people think that they can get away with just keeping chlorine in the pool. Not so. There are a number of other parameters that one must keep in mind for balancing (which will be elaborated on in more detail in another post). Chlorine and bromine are the most common sanitizers used. In addition to the sanitizer, the waters pH must be maintained between 7.2-7.8 to keep the sanitizer doing its job efficiently. You must also test the water's alkalinity, as that acts as a buffer to the pH, reducing the fluctuations. It is also important to make sure that your calcium level is properly managed. Too low and you could see liner wrinkling or concrete pitting, too high and you could see calcium scaling, which can damage equipment.
  A proper maintenance program is key to the upkeep of your water. A very basic guideline would be as follows:
  – Water chemistry should be checked with a strip regularly, and every few weeks a water sample should be brought in for testing at King Pool and Spa.
  – Sanitation should be kept up 24/7. Once a week, an oxidizer should be used to eliminate the killed bacteria and organic wastes.
  – The full chemical balancing should be done on a weekly basis, the day chosen to oxidize would be idea, as it takes some time after doing so to be able to use the pool or hot tub anyway.
  Click here for more information on our maintenance program. By Mike
  Pool party season is upon us…
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