Preventing and Treating Stains in Your Pool Over the Winter

If they haven’t done so already, many swimming pool owners will soon be winterizing their pools ready for the colder months. And as they do so, most will already be dreaming of the day when spring comes round and it’s warm enough to take the plunge again!

But how disappointing would it be to open up your pool in the new year, only to find it stained, discolored, and not at all welcoming?

In this article, the Pulliam Pools team is going to find out why this happens, how to treat a stained pool, and how to stop it from happening in the first place.

Types of pool stains

There are two main types of stains likely to affect your swimming pool: organic and metal. Let’s examine these in turn to discover what causes them.

• Organic stains – These are caused by living matter, which could be anything from algae, leaves, and mud to insects, bugs, and other critters and creatures. They’re likely to leave green and brown stains in the pool as the matter falls to the bottom and decomposes.

• Metal stains – These are usually the result of the chemicals in your water not being properly balanced and causing metal equipment in the water to corrode. This is likely to result in unsightly reddish-brown or copper stains in your pool.

How to treat pool stains

Unfortunately, unless you want to completely empty all the water from your pool first, getting rid of pool stains isn’t as easy as getting in with a scrubbing brush and some soapy water. 

Before you can do anything, you’ll need to dechlorinate the water. In the case of organic stains, this will need to be down to less than one part per million, while it needs to be zero parts per million for a metal stain.

• Organic stains – Once you’ve lowered the chlorine, you’ll need to shock the pool, then brush at the stains and run the pump to filter out the dirt.
• Metal stains – After eliminating the chlorine, there are different chemicals you’ll need to apply to the stains. You should be able to source these from a specialist supplier.

If you’ve managed to do all this, you’ll then need to make sure that all your chemicals are back in balance before your pool can be used again. If that all sounds like a long and complicated business, then it is – if you don’t know exactly what you’re doing!

That means that the easiest way to treat a stained pool is to get in the experts from Pulliam Pools, who know how to do it quickly, effectively, and safely.

However, as we all know, prevention is always better than cure!

How to prevent pool stains

• Remove organic matter – To stop organic matter that’s found its way into your pool from getting to the point where it decomposes and stains your pool, make fishing it out a regular part of your routine.
• Cover your pool – Even better is to stop it getting in in the first place. During winter – or any time of year if your pool is in an area that makes it particularly prone to this problem – a good quality cover will ensure that pool pollution is kept to a minimum.
• Keep the chemicals balanced – Ensuring the chemicals in your pool water are always correctly balanced is one of the key ways you can ensure it stays clean and safe to use.

For all swimming pool maintenance, cleaning, and repairs, the expert team at Pulliam Pools is the number one choice for homeowners in and around Fort Worth, Texas. Get in touch with us now to find out more, or fill in our service request form or weekly maintenance request form to take advantage of our professional assistance.