Leaves and Swimming Pools
It’s that time again! The “perfect” San Diego weather starts to shift to colder, crisper air. Below 50F is freezing here, right? (kidding). Autumn is generally a time when San Diego swimmers take a break from their outdoor pools, but not from taking care of their pools. The beautiful trees change color and shed their leaves everywhere—especially in the swimming pools! Although the leaves seem harmless, it’s best to keep leaves out so that the pool can be in the best condition until swimming season returns.
Leaves fall from live trees, which contain organic matter. That organic matter reacts with chlorine, which will accelerate the use of free chlorine. Leaves are also an ideal breeding ground for algae and bacteria to grow. That means pool owners will need to work harder to balance the chemistry and increase the amount of chlorine usage to keep the pool turning into an algae aquarium thriving with potentially harmful bacteria. Gross!
Leaves get pulled into the skimmer baskets anyway, right? Yes, but leaving the leaves in the baskets will only guarantee that water passes through the leaves, shedding the organic matter throughout the entire swimming pool water system. Plus, the skimmers cannot catch leaves that have already sunk to the bottom of the pool. Be sure to grab your and pool vacuum out and put them to good use!
How about the pump filter. Is it serving its purpose? Absolutely! The filter can remove leaves, dirt and debris that measures as small as 5-15 microns depending on the type of filter (for reference, 1 millimeter = 1,000 microns), but the bacteria that has propagated from the leaves can still pass through because they can be as small as 2 microns.
In the end, keeping swimming pools clear of autumn leaves will help pool owners save money on maintenance costs and headaches of solving difficult chemistry problems to combat algae and bacteria growth. Mythic Pools is always here for you if you ever need an extra hand to maintain your pool through the off-season. Give yourself peace of mind and give us a call today!
