When it comes to clean, safe pool water, there’s more to it than meets the eye. As Summer cranks up and the kids spend more and more time swimming, it is important that you make sure your kids are bathing in clean, healthy water. Just because the water is clear doesn’t mean it is safe. For healthy swimming pool water, there’s much more than meets the eye.

Water clarity is an indication that your pool is free of particulates, but it is no guarantee that your pool water is bacteria-free and safe for your child’s eyes, ears, nose and skin. Many pool owners get a false sense of safety when they look into the pool and see crystal clear water. However, to ensure the safety of your loved ones who bathe in your pool, there are many other things you must consider.

Many times, pools with a dangerously low pH can appear sparkling and beautiful. What you don’t see is that the water is corrosive and irritating to your eyes and skin. Many people attribute burning eyes to high chlorine levels. While extremely high chlorine levels can cause some irritation, the most likely cause of the burning is an improperly balanced pH. What’s more, a low pH makes the chlorine in the water overactive, causing it to break down and gas off much more quickly than normal. This leaves your pool with little free chlorine to kill dangerous bacteria such as cryptosporidium, E. Coli and Pseudonomas.  A high pH can have equally damaging effects, making chlorine in your pool inactive and unable to kill bacteria.

Keeping a balanced pH between 7.2 and 7.6 is essential for maintaining safe pool water. Balancing your Total Alkalinity makes it much easier to manage the pH and eliminates pH drift. Total Alkalinity should be kept between 80 and 120 parts per million, depending on your type of sanitizing system.

A common misconception is that salt pools do not require anything other than salt to be safe and clean. Nothing could be further from the truth. The salt in the pool is only used to produce chlorine. The water balancing requirements for a salt pool are virtually the same as a non-salt pool. Salt pools still require balanced Total Alkalinity, pH, Calcium Harness, and Cyanuric Acid or stabilizer. If you own a salt pool, you must not ignore these requirements.

If you have any doubts as to the healthiness and safety of your pool water this Summer, you owe it to yourself and your family to have your water professionally tested. Buck Stove Pool & Spa maintains two water labs with state-of-the-art testing equipment. Our entire staff is trained and certified in pool water chemistry with over 75 years combined experience. In less than a minute, we can tell you if your pool water is safe. We carry a full line of chemicals for all types of pool systems and we can recommend a weekly routine that will make it easy to maintain a clean, safe, healthy pool that you and your family can enjoy every day.

Come in and have your water tested today. We treat every pool as if it were our own so you can trust us with your pool water chemistry.  We are open Monday-Friday 8:30 to 5:30 and Saturday 9-5. There’s a free gift of one bag of Rapid Shock waiting for you when you text swim to 31996.  It’s our way of saying thanks for giving us the opportunity to serve you.