Swimming Pool & Stains: Things You Should Know

Over time, stains occur on all the concrete surfaces. And one of them is your swimming pool.

Stains affect the aesthetic appeal of your swimming pool and lead to premature deterioration of the pool’s surfacing material. Also, they create an abrasion, which is a huge risk for you and other swimmers. Stains are bad for the skin and hair.

In this post, we discuss the ways to identify, remove and prevent stains in your swimming pool.

Types of stains or ways to identify them 

• Organic stains- Caused by things in the natural like foliage, algae, or berries.
• Metal stains- Caused by exposure to copper, iron, and manganese introduced through water sources or outside factors.
• Rust stains- Caused by corrosive and foreign metallic objects left near or in the pool.
• Waterline stains- Caused by oils and lotions, swimmer waste, and minerals and metals present in the pool water.

Do you know the kind of stain in your swimming pool? Is it possible for you to identify?

Knowing the kind of stain is very important before treating or removing it because no one solution fits for all. The cleaning technique for organic stains will be different from metal stains and others.

To identify the kind of stain, you should perform testing with the help of the swimming pool cleaning experts. In case you are doing it yourself, you should wear protective equipment, especially when using testing chemicals. If not for your complete body, you should at least wear equipment for your eyes and hands. Eyes can get damaged due to spills and it’s not advised to touch the chemicals with naked hands.

Ways to Identify Different Kinds of Stain 

• Organic stain- You should add a shake of chlorine granules to the spot and let them sit for 1-2 minutes. You should scrub vigorously using a brush and see if the stain fades. Fading means stain is organic.
• Metal Stain- You should sprinkle some crushed Vitamin C or ascorbic acid on the stain and see the change. If the stain fades, it is a metal stain caused by rust.
• Rust stain- You should sprinkle some sodium bisulfate on the spot and brush gently to see the change. Just like others, if the stain fades, it is a rust stain.

Treatments for swimming pool stains

To get rid of organic stains, you should shock your pool. You should start by reducing the pH level and alkaline levels to recommend numbers in the water so that the process becomes much more effective. After reducing the levels, you should add calcium hypochlorite to shock your pool. A few hours later, you should sprinkle chlorine granules on the stains and brush them after they get settled. You should brush continuously until the stain fades.

Second, you can try enzyme treatment from swimming pool cleaning professionals. The process breaks the organic matter that causes stains so that chlorine works more effectively.

After treatment, you should retest the water and bring the pH and alkaline level back to normal.

Regular Pool Maintenance is the key to stain prevention 

“Prevention is better than cure”, it’s a common phrase but you need to apply the same for your swimming pool. Instead of treating the stains later, you should prevent them from impacting your pool. And it can only be possible through regular maintenance.

You should contract with a swimming pool cleaning company and the experts will take care. They will test the water quality and stains at regular intervals and address the potential problems immediately before they become a severe hazard for you and your pool.

To keep your swimming pool stain-free, you should check regularly and maintain it properly.