Swimming Pool Tips and Reviews

Let’s rule out the most dangerous situation of high filter PSI which is a blockage in the line. This is probably the rarest but can be the deadliest as your filter tank could explode. Typically, it is something after your heater, maybe a broken check valve or debris lodged in your salt cell. On even rarer occasions I have had customers deadhead their pool return by over-rotating the Jandy Valve past the safety notches. Typically a filter that has a blockage will have the PSI spike rapidly and the skimmer will have poor flow. The most obvious reason for the high PSI is that the filter is dirty. Simply cleaning the filter or backwashing it if you have a D.E. Or Sand Filter will usually lower the PSI down to the acceptable range. The clean starting filter PSI will vary from filter to filter, some hover around 10-15 PSI but many cartridge filters start at 20 PSI. The best way to know in your case is to clean the filter and then mark on the gauge the clean PSI for your particula...

The Jacuzzi® JPV300 Cordless Professional Pool & Spa Vacuum is a great tool that fits in perfectly between skimming your pool and manually vacuuming your pool with a system vacuum. It is priced just under $230.00 making it an affordable tool for your pool or spa maintenance. It is ideal for spas, above ground pools and small to medium in-ground pools. It is an extremely convenient way to vacuum your pool or spa and the fact that it is cordless allows you to just connect it to your pool pole and drop it right in. A huge time saver. Here are some of the features of the JPV 300: LPM Part #: 58202 Up to 1-hour run time on a full charge 10.5 inch Wide Vacuum Head Advanced Motor. Lithium Battery, Cordless, and Fully Rechargeable Multi-Layered Filter Cone to catch debris High Volume Debris Chamber and Unique Filtration System Includes Vacuum Head, Debris Chamber, Filter Assembly, Cleaner Body, Pool Pole Adapter, and Battery Charger Fully Charges in less than 4 ...

Cloudy pool water is a very common issue and it can be both easy to fix as well as complicated depending on the cause. Often it can be a combination of things causing the cloudy water and this will require a combination of things to clear up the pool. Here is a common scenario that you may run into if it is multiple issues causing the cloudy water. Say there was a pool party over the weekend and the pool is very cloudy on Monday. It could be a combination of the heavy bather load plus the pool running out of chlorine or the chlorine combining with the organics in the water creating Combined Chlorine or the filter is dirty due to the suntan lotion and organics in the water. You can see how all of this comes together and how each of these can contribute to the cloudy water. So, it is not always as simple as the causes and solutions below. If it is a combination of things it may take longer to correct it, or you may need to do more steps. For example, in the above combinat...

The Waterway Power Defender Variable Speed pump is a great new entry into the Variable Speed pump market. The Variable Speed Pump market is, of course, a market dominated by the big three manufacturers Pentair, Hayward and Jandy. But I think there is plenty of room for smaller companies like Waterway, especially when they make a quality VS pump like the Power Defender. Let me touch on what I think are the best features of this pump and why I think it a VS pump you may want to seriously consider upgrading to. The motor on the back is made by Century Motors. This is the same company that makes the VS motors found on the back of the Hayward and Jandy VS pumps. In fact, it is the same exact motor that is on the Jandy VS pump. The only difference is the control panel on top of the pump. That is designed and manufactured by Century Motors themselves. The Wet End or front plastic area is of course made by Waterway and it is a product designed and manufactured here in the USA. It h...

I am a strong believer in the PoolRx product because I have personally used it and it works extremely well. PoolRx is a simple way to keep your pool algae free all season long. It is also effective in cleaning a green pool and a side benefit of the product is that you will use less chlorine in the pool all season long.   PoolRx is a Mineral Technology does two very simple things when used in your pool or spa; it eliminates all algae and will allow you to use less chlorine during the pool season. The active ingredient is Copper Sulphate Pentahydrate (chelated). What Chelated means is that the metals in the PoolRx have been bonded to form two coordinated bonds similar to what Metal Sequestering Agents do. This means that the Metal Ions will remain in the PoolRx unit with no metal ions being introduced into the pool or spa water. PoolRx is Chelated so the metal ions stay within the PoolRx unit itself. Make sure that you choose the right size PoolRX unit so that the t...

One of the side effects of swimming is that your skin may get dried out by being in the water for long periods of time. I always thought it would be a great product idea if there was something you could add to your pool before swimming that would prevent this. Turns out there is. InSPAration is a company that has been around since 1975 and specialized in those little spa scents that you see on the pool store counters. InSPAration now makes a product for your pool called Pool Refresh which has a moisturizer in it that prevents dry skin after swimming. Here is more from the manufacturer: This inSPAration Pool Water Freshener and Moisturizer is the perfect weekly treatment to keep your skin moisturized and your swimming pool fresh and clean. Pool Chemical Features Reduces the effects of pool water hardness Leaves skin and hair feeling soft and moisturized Mask chlorine or chemical odors in the swimming pool Keep pools fresh all year long The perfect weekly trea...

Saltwater pools have now been around for over 20 years and are in wide use across many areas of the world. Originally invented for the Australian pool market, the concept quickly spread here to the United States and you can find Salt Water Generators (SWG) in every region of the country. All of the major manufacturers make a SWG and there are a number of smaller brands on the market also. So, what exactly is a Saltwater Pool? There are is a lot of misinformation out there and the following points here should clear that up for you. Do Saltwater Pools use chlorine? The the process is quite complex but the SWG will take the salt and convert it into chlorine. Yes, I did say chlorine. A Salt Pool is a Chlorine Pool. It just adds chlorine to your pool in a way that is safe and non-toxic. No chemicals to handle or add but the SWG does produce chlorine. So a Saltwater pool is a chlorine pool.   How much salt is in the water? The salinity level of the Ocean is 35,000 ...

The Dolphin Proteus DX3 is an entry-level robotic cleaner with a lot of bells and whistles for a robotic cleaner priced at $600. It has a front scrubbing brush, a large debris chamber, wall climbing ability, CleverClean software onboard and a programmable timer. That is a ton of features for a cleaner in this category. Here is more on the DX3 from the manufacturer: “Made by Maytronics, a global leader in robotic pool cleaners, the Dolphin Proteus DX3 Robotic Pool Cleaner focuses on delivering clean results and easy maintenance. The Proteus DX3 is constructed with a powerful suction that allows it to easily climb up the walls and seamlessly come back down. It is equipped with an active brush that spins faster than the speed of the unit itself to scrub away dirt, debris, and bacteria. Once the net basket is full, simply empty and rinses clean. The Proteus DX3 also offers a quick water release, which makes removing the cleaner from the pool a breeze. The Dolphin Proteus DX...