Today, I decided to take a break and give some attention to the list of questions that you send through the comments section here on the Blog and I came across the question in the title. André Henriques asked:
IN THE WINTER, OR EVEN IN MONTHS WHEN THE POOL IS NOT USED, WHAT MAINTENANCE IS NECESSARY?
I apologize for the delay in responding to this and all other comments. I finished my undergraduate course 🙂 and I am very busy at Agência Sete Clave. That’s why it’s been difficult to give attention to PoolPiscina, but we’re still trying to balance everything…
But let’s get to it… If you want to know what to do when you’re not using the pool, or even what treatment is necessary for unused pools, today we’re talking directly to you!
Pool cleaning
The pool cleaning is not only done so we can swim and have fun safely.
Cleaning the pool is also a matter of health and safety for those who don’t even use the pool in their homes. It’s important even for those who don’t live in your house!
An abandoned pool is certainly a breeding ground for dengue fever, and you probably know how big of a problem it is. And that’s just one of the problems!
In addition to being a breeding ground for insects and other animals, neglecting the pool can mean a big problem for the equipment in the pump room.
The pump deserves special attention when it comes to the maintenance of an unused pool because, in most installations throughout Brazil, it’s installed in a very humid location.
And everyone knows what happens when we put a ferrous component in contact with humidity: rust for sure!
This is just one of the problems of not treating an unused pool.
If your pool doesn’t have a protective cover, it can pose a huge risk to small animals like rats, rabbits, cats, and dogs. Depending on where you live, we can include horses, cattle, and several others on that list…
But then, what needs to be done for the maintenance of an unused pool?
Cleaning an unused pool
Cleaning an infrequently or unused pool is necessary to prevent diseases from spreading in stagnant water and to maintain the safety of the area and equipment.
With this in mind, we can list some actions that would make it easier to keep the pool clean with minimal effort, simply because no one is swimming or planning to swim during a certain period:
Maintaining a minimum chlorine level
One of the things that an unused pool needs is a minimum level of disinfection.
About 0.5PPM of chlorine is enough to keep the water crystal clear regardless of how long it remains unused.
But then you may ask me:
But if I don’t use the pool, I don’t want to have to add chlorine every day either!
If the time without using the pool is relatively short, it is possible to achieve this chlorine level with the help of a chlorine feeder or a floating chlorinator.
If you’re going to be without using the pool for a long time and without the possibility of replenishing the chlorine feeder or floating chlorinator, the ideal is to automate the disinfection or chlorine addition.
It’s worth noting that the use of floating chlorinators, or “chlorine floaters” as they’re called here, is not recommended in vinyl or fiberglass pools as they can cause stains due to the concentrated chlorine action on a specific area of the pool.
Today, you can count on an ozone generator, an ultraviolet disinfection system, or even an automatic chlorine generator.
There are several options available and solutions that probably meet everyone’s preferences (and budgets).
Maintaining filtration? Maybe…
If your pump room is extremely humid, keeping the motor running periodically can help prevent it from completely seizing up.
Read more about pool pump maintenance.
But it’s important to note that keeping it running doesn’t solve the problem!
It’s necessary to build a minimally efficient ventilation system so that the pump and filter installation location remains dry and well-ventilated.
Covering the pool with a protective cover
Attention! We didn’t say “any” cover! Only the protective cover is effective here!
Thermal covers are not designed to prevent external elements from coming into contact with the water.
Covering the pool with a good protective cover can prevent animals from accidentally falling into the pool and also prevent the dengue mosquito from coming into contact with the water and turning your pool into its new home.
Our suggestion for pausing pool use
If your pool is being used infrequently, it is best to treat it normally as if it were being used regularly, after all, someone occasionally passes by, doesn’t it?
For pools that are not being used, we have written an article where we explain step-by-step the procedure for pausing pool use.
To learn more, visit: Pausing pool use – How to hibernate your pool.
Our suggestion for you who uses the pool little is to invest in automation. The possibility of leaving home and being absent for a month without having later problems with the pool is one of the positive points of automating the pool and its treatment.
And believe it or not, making your pool an intelligent and automated system is not expensive. Nowadays, there are several solutions that allow you to control everything from a remote control or even activate an autonomous operating mode ideal for periods when you are traveling, etc.
If you have any questions regarding the necessary treatment for little or never used pools, use the comments section below to start the conversation! The community is always willing to help!
Big hug and see you next time!
