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BE YOUR OWN POOL GUY
Dipping in your own private pool is a great way to relieve fatigue on a hot day. But a swimming pool is also a constant source of stress—that is, if you neglect it or don't often take good care of it. Sometimes a swimming pool need repairs and requires your intervention to set things right. When any aspect of a pool show signs of breaking down, you better be there to repair it. A swimming pool in distress can't wait. You can call the pool guy to patch things up for you, sure, but don't you agree that sometimes it's better to do things yourself? When and when not to call a pool guy You need to put into serious consideration whether you should just take care of things yourself or hire a professional swimming pool service. Both has its advantages and disadvantages. For one thing, hiring a pool guy can be expensive. Unless you're talking about the college dropout who lives across the street be prepared to shell out a couple hundred dollars on maintenance alone by a professional pool guy. For big repairs such as fixing a leak or replacing a broken pump or heater, prepare to spend some more. The bottom line is that professional pool services don't come cheap. Thing is if you're planning to build your own private pool then you might as well take the time to learn how to care for it. Maintaining a swimming pool is easy if you know what you're doing. By maintenance, this means hosing the deck, skimming dirt and dead leaves from the water surface, maintaining chemical content in the water, cleaning the filters, checking the water temperature from time to time. So having a swimming pool is a lot like owning a car: don't buy one if you can't drive it. Save hiring the pool guy for the big repairs. For example, if there are cracks on the bottom tiles or along the sides. Replacing the heater, fixing a leaking pump, installing lights on the pool floor, or tinkering with the water pump—all these require the expertise of a pool guy. So times like these it's a good idea to step back and let a professional handle the job. But if you're a handy man around the house, perhaps you could take care of some minor repairs yourself. How does torn a pool liner sound to you? How to find a leak in your liner If you're adding more than an inch of water every week, your swimming pool more or less has a leak. It could be the liner that's leaking. Liners normally lose their resilience over time. So you need to watch out for signs of your liner leaking by keeping track of the amount of water that you add to your pool on a weekly basis. Never ignore a torn pool liner. Over time the leak will washout the back fill, then corrode the walls, then wash sand away on the floor, and finally create large sinkholes. Contact a pool guy right away if you find a leak in your liner and have it patched up or, if necessary, replaced. The cost of the pool guy's services far outweighs the price of a new pool. The true cost of maintaining a swimming pool
The basic components of a swimming pool are the pumps and pool filtration system, pool heater, pool cleaners (vacuum, etc.), pool chemicals, and pool covers. These will cost you several thousand dollars, just about, excluding the cost of building the pool. So a few years later when your pool guy advise you to buy a replacement for one of these, you should have a basic idea of how much it's going to cost you. Swimming pool supplies are sometimes sold at large hardware chain stores. But if you hired a professional pool repair company, they'd be more than happy to buy a replacement piece for you. Remember that a swimming pool was meant for fun and recreation. Lower the need for major repairs by adhering to a tight maintenance schedule. |