Maintenance
The purpose of this publication is to familiarize you with your pool's equipment and maintenance tools. Your pool has three pieces of equipment that are always in use while your pool is open. These are your skimmer, pump, and filter.
Your skimmer is the white box on the side of your pool wall that draws water in. Your pump is the part that moves your water. If you follow the hose from the bottom of the skimmer, it will lead you to the smaller strainer basket on the front of the pump. The last piece of equipment is your filter.
The filter is the large grey ball with many hoses running to and from it. One hose will run to the wall of the pool. This hose is connected to the Return Jet. The Return Jet pushes the clean water from your filter into your pool and circulates the water. Its important to know what is what because if you need help with anything, you can properly describe where the problem is.
Your skimmer is the white box on the side of your pool wall that draws water in. Your pump is the part that moves your water. If you follow the hose from the bottom of the skimmer, it will lead you to the smaller strainer basket on the front of the pump. The last piece of equipment is your filter.
The filter is the large grey ball with many hoses running to and from it. One hose will run to the wall of the pool. This hose is connected to the Return Jet. The Return Jet pushes the clean water from your filter into your pool and circulates the water. Its important to know what is what because if you need help with anything, you can properly describe where the problem is.
The Skimmer
There are 2 sets of screws along the side of your skimmer. These will help you gauge your water level. You want your water level to be just above the top set of screws.
Check the basket in the skimmer daily. The basket collects floating debris and if it gets too full, it will restrict the flow of water to your pump and filter and can cause a lot of wear and tear on both.
Always turn the pump off before you remove the basket. Leave the pump off until the basket is back in place. This will make the basket easier to remove and help keep the strainer basket on the pump clean.
Always turn the pump off before you remove the basket. Leave the pump off until the basket is back in place. This will make the basket easier to remove and help keep the strainer basket on the pump clean.
The Pump
Run your pump and filter 24 hours a day. This is best for your pool because running water doesn't like to turn green. Also, running the pump and filter 24 hours a day will extend the life of your pump. They are designed for constant use and the act of turning them off and back on adds more wear and tear then it would have received from running. If temperatures are below 80 degrees and you would like to shave your power bill down a little, you can run the pump and filter during the day and leave it off at night.
Check the strainer basket on the front of the pump once a month. If you have a lot of pine trees in your yard, you want to check the strainer once a week because pine needles will slip past the skimmer basket. To check the strainer basket;
Turn the pump off.
Set your filter on the "Closed" setting (More on this below).
Take out your skimmer basket and use a winter plug (Gizzmo) or a rag to plug the opening in the bottom. You have now stopped the flow of water to the pump.
You can now turn the pump lid and lift it off, providing access to the basket.
The Filter
Your filter has a small pressure gauge. Occasionally check it. The purpose of the pressure gauge, is to tell you when your filer needs to be backwashed. Your pressure should be between 10 - 15 PSI.
It's important to note your pools regular PSI because it can vary from pool to pool. If the PSI goes 5 pounds above it's normal reading, then you need to backwash your filter. If the gauge doesn't go to zero when the pump is turned off, the gauge is bad and needs to be replaced.
It's important to note your pools regular PSI because it can vary from pool to pool. If the PSI goes 5 pounds above it's normal reading, then you need to backwash your filter. If the gauge doesn't go to zero when the pump is turned off, the gauge is bad and needs to be replaced.
On the top of the filter, there is a handle that points to one of seven different settings. Always turn the pump off when changing the settings. These settings are used for different purposes and are described below;
Filter: This is the setting your pool will run on the majority of the time. This setting filters and circulates your water.
Waste: This setting is used to drain water from the pool. When running on this setting, your water bypasses the filter and sends the water pumped from the skimmer out the waste line. This setting is useful to drain excess water from the pool after a heavy rain.
Closed: This setting restricts the flow of water to and from the filter. DO NOT RUN THE PUMP ON THIS SETTING. It is typically used when checking the pump strainer basket or making repairs on the pump.
Recirculate: This setting bypasses the filter and only circulates the water. There are very few uses for this setting. It is only used for special procedures.
Backwash: This setting cleans your filter. When your pressure rises and your water flow has slowed, use this setting. When running on this setting you want to keep an eye on the clear sight glass beside the waste line. While backwashing, you will notice this sight glass filling with dirty water and a little sand. This is normal. Watch the sight glass until it flows with clean water. Once you see clean water in the sight glass, turn the pump off and switch the filter to the Rinse setting.
Rinse: This setting is used to clear the lines after backwashing. After you have run the backwash setting, run the pool on rinse for roughly 15 seconds. Water will come from your waste line just as it did on Backwash.
Winter: The Winter setting is only used when shutting the pool down for winter. After the pool is winterized, set the filter on the winter setting to protect the mechanism from damage due to cold temperatures.
Maintenance Tools
Telescoping Pole: The telescoping pole is used to attach other tools to.
Leaf Net: There are many different types of nets. Some are flat for skimming the surface. Others have a deep bag for collecting large quantities of debris.
Thermometer: Your thermometer lets you know the temperature in your pool. Think of it as a comfort meter.
Brush: Use this to scrub algae and stubborn debris from your liner. If you have green on your walls or floor, it's a great idea to brush it lose into the water before shocking.
Manual Vacuum: Your manual vacuum is made up of three parts. A vacuum head, a vacuum hose, and a skim-vac adapter. When vacuuming, your filter stays on the "Filter" setting. Instructions for using them is as follows:
- Attach the vac-head to your pole.
- Attach the vacuum hose to your vacuum head. If your hose has an end the swivels, that is the part which is supposed to go on the vacuum head. Put the skim-vac on the other end of the hose.
- Sink your vacuum head into the pool. Take the skim-vac on the end of the vacuum hose and hold it up to the return jet. Let the jet push all the air out of the hose. The vacuum head will rise off the floor a little as the bubbles are pushed out.
- Once the bubbles have stopped, keep the skim-vac under the water as much as possible and put it over the skimmer basket. Most skim-vacs will fit through the front of the skimmer, although sometimes you have to remove the flapper door. If it will not fit through the front, quickly lift the skim-vac up and put it through the top opening.
- While vacuuming, if you lose suction, you will need to backwash the filter and clean the skimmer basket. Turn the pump off, remove the skim-vac, backwash, and then reconnect. You may have to push the air from the hose again after backwashing.
- When done, turn the pump off and remove the vacuum equipment. Clean the skimmer basket and backwash the filter.