When To Drain A Swimming Pool

A pool full of chunky chunks of algae and floating debris is every pool owner’s nightmare. For some, it’s a hopeless case. You might even raise a white flag to surrender and decide the best thing to do is to drain your pool. However, draining it should be your last option.

Pools typically need to be emptied and refilled every 5-7 years or for major repairs, but not just for cleaning purposes. So, if you want to know when to drain a swimming pool, keep reading on!

Reasons to Drain Your Swimming Pool

Homeowners should never drain a pool as part of its regular maintenance. However, there are instances when you can partially and even completely drain it.

Water Balance and Clarity Issues

From sunscreen to sulfates to deodorant to salts, various substances get dissolved inside a swimming pool. This is called the Total Dissolved Solids (TDS). The ideal level of TDS should always be below 2,000 ppm. When it goes any higher, this reduces the effectiveness of the chlorine in the water. This may irritate swimmers as well as corrosion of various pool equipment.

Once your pool water exceeds 2,500 ppm, it will become increasingly difficult to balance the water’s chemistry. In such cases, it is advisable to drain the pool.

On the other hand, if your pool is high in Cyanuric Acid (CYA) or Calcium Hardness levels, then you can drain your pool. CYA and excess calcium create build-up in the water which cannot be eliminated by adding chemicals. In this situation, you can partially empty your pool and add fresh water to dilute its water levels.

Routine Pool Maintenance

There are only certain types of repair work that require homeowners to drain their pools. One of those instances is when repair work is done on interior pool surfaces. These include acid washing, resurfacing, and fixing the tile cracks on its floors and walls.

The pool can also be drained when the pool’s vinyl liner needs to be replaced. During this case, you’ll be required to drain your pool completely.

What Time of Year Should You Drain a Pool

In the Philippines, homeowners can drain the pool all year round as long as it’s not raining. Families can also opt to have this done right before the summer season so that the pool is ready once vacation begins.

Safety Tips to Remember Before You Drain Your Pool

Even when draining the pool, you must always exert caution. Here are some tips to follow before, during, and after draining the pool.

• Find out when and where it is okay to remove your pool water. There may be local ordinances that don’t allow pool water drained directly into storm drains.
• Avoid completely draining an inground-vinyl lined or fiberglass pool. This can destroy your pool surface, resulting in cracking. Therefore, you should only fully drain a vinyl pool if you’re replacing the liner. Otherwise, the effective practice for these types of pools is to partially drain them.
• Make sure to always partially drain your pool a foot of water at a time. Specifically, ⅓ of water at a time.

How to Drain a Pool

For this part, we’ll discuss several things to remember to drain your pool safely.

• Don’t use your pool pump to drain your pool. It will damage or destroy the pump.
• Once you’re done removing the old water, start refilling the pool with water using your hose. We suggest you use two hoses simultaneously to speed up your water refill process.
• It takes approximately 14-15 hours to refill an average-sized pool with two hoses. Don’t hesitate to call for assistance.

What are Some Risks of Improperly Draining Your Pool

Incorrectly draining a pool has potential consequences that pool owners want to avoid, such as::

• Your pool can loosen or shake off the ground.
• Sun exposure can destroy your pool.
• It can damage your filter pump.
• It can back up the sewer system into your home.

Key Takeaway

Draining your swimming pool shouldn’t become a habit as it takes years before you can drain them. If you’re not certain when to drain a swimming pool, we gladly hope this blog helps you! And, if you do regular pool maintenance, you don’t have to worry about doing this task often. Just the right cleaning and high-quality swimming chemicals will do the work and prevent algae from contaminating your pool!

If you’re looking for affordable, high-quality swimming pool chemicals in the Philippines, look no further than Oktakem!

We stock a list of pool chemicals that you can order in bulk for your pool cleaning and maintenance. For more inquiries about our products, contact Oktakem here. You can also visit Oktakem’s official Shopee page or official Lazada page!