Shocking your pool isn't necessary, although, it's not a bad idea either. If you get an extremely heavy rain fall, you could shock your pool for good measure. This will help fight off any contaminants that the rain may have brought to your pool.
Use shock treatment on your pool one or two days before the storm. Add chlorine levels significantly during the treatment and let it run for 24 hours to allow the treatment to fill the entire pool. Make sure all furniture or items around your pool are safe to prevent injury to persons or property.
Shock & Filter the Water
Shocking helps sanitize any contaminants or materials that were introduced to the water during the storm. Run your system for at least 12 hours to ensure proper filtration and circulation. This removes dirt and debris, and also assists with circulating the chlorine throughout your pool.
We get asked this question every time there is a heavy rain. That answer is pretty simple when you think about it. The pool will only overflow by the amount of rain in excess of the amount of rain needed to fill the pool to the top.
At the first sign of an incoming storm, you should turn off and unplug your pump. If this is left running during a storm, the motor may suffer electrical damage and short out.
The Department of Environmental Health recommends avoiding activities such as swimming, surfing, and diving for 72 hours after it rains. Research has shown that the risk of infection is the highest during and the day after rain, and declines to around normal levels after three days.
It's not absolutely necessary to shock it after rain, but it's not a bad idea either. Now that you know how to drain water from your pool after rain, just be sure to do that first, then balance the water, then shock. Remember to wait until dusk before adding any pool shock.
When preparing your pool for a storm, leave it uncovered. Installing any kind of cover across the pool will not do much to protect against dust and contaminants because storms often bring strong winds and heavy rain that can cause the cover to lift off your pool.
So shock your pool and keep the pump running.
And if you're wondering if you can shock a pool IN the rain, the answer is yes. Just remember that rainwater adds more contaminants, so it won't be as effective as shocking during dry weather.
Never use your pool pump to try to drain the pool. Inevitably, you will pull air into your suction line, the pump will lose its prime, and you will damage or burn up your pump. Always rent or purchase a submersible pump to drain the pool. Remember to turn off the electricity to your pump and pool light.
That is because lightning can travel many miles away from the edges of a storm. It can hit in areas unaffected by the rest of the storm. Additionally, water is a very good electrical conductor making it very dangerous during storms with lightning.
Lightning can also travel through any metal wires or bars in concrete walls or flooring." So it sounds plausible that it could happen to you. But according to Aquatic Safety Research Group, "There are no documented reports of fatal lightning strikes at indoor swimming pools. None!
A lightning strike can damage your pool's pump, filter and heater. The strike overloads the electrical circuits and can ruin the equipment. You can install surge protectors to prevent lightning from damaging your pool, but that's just another cost that makes pool ownership too expensive.
The short answer is, no. Swimming in a thunderstorm with lightning present is not safe, whether you're in the ocean or a pool. A body of water is the equivalent of putting a hairdryer in a bath, and because water conducts electricity, lightning is more likely to strike water than land.
Generally, pool water needs to be replaced once every five to seven years. This should be done during mild weather so that your pool surface is not at risk from strong sunlight and heat. Your pool maintenance company can recommend when it is time to drain your pool.
How long can you leave a pool empty? Well, the minimum amount of time possible in order to minimize the risk of serious damage. Most issues that require a pool drain will take at least a day or two to resolve, but it's recommended to not let it sit empty for any extended period of time.
First, if the draining is done at the wrong time or under the wrong conditions, you can actually risk damaging your pool structure and liner. All the water from your pool needs to go somewhere when it's drained, and that usually means the ground.
No, you don't need to drain all of the water. We know that draining your pool is a hassle and you want to conserve as much water as possible; however, it is necessary to drain some of the water out of your pool. You will need to drain the water level down below the skimmer level.
Most inground fiberglass and concrete pools are built structurally to withstand the weight of the dirt against them when drained. However, if the groundwater is high enough, it can push the entire pool out of the ground. The pool shell acts like a ship and floats up in the groundwater.
A 10,000 gallon pool will take about 14 hours to drain, the maximum rate recommended by the City of Phoenix. It will take twice as long to drain if the pool size is doubled or cut in half.
Modern concrete pools can usually stand being drained for as long as needed, but there'll still be a risk of popping if the ground water level is high. Fibreglass pools are less resilient. The floor may come loose and float to the top when refilled, even after a short period.
Why water level is important
Your water should only be drained so it sits just below the skimmer and jets. This helps make sure that no water can get into the pumping system. You may also need to drain a few extra inches of water, depending on the type of pool cover you're using.
“The pool cover will block out the light, and kill the algae, right?” Closing a pool that is green with algae, or dirty with debris or with water that is unbalanced, leads to heavy staining and saturation of the water with dead algae cells, which makes it easier for subsequent generations to grow.
But did you know there's an easy way to reuse the water that's already in the pool? All you have to do is recycle it! Meet reverse osmosis — the best way to purify your swimming pool water. It works by pushing the existing water through semipermeable membranes that hold off any impurities, particles, and buildup.