Frequently Asked Questions About Pools & Spas

1 

Why does my pool have algae?

• It may be time to clean the filter.

• You may have yard fertilizer in your pool (contact South OC Pools to remove the fertilizer).

• Your chemicals may need adjusted. Make sure your chemicals are balanced as follows: alkalinity is between 80 and 120, chlorine near a test level of 3 via Taylor Test Kit, calcium hardness between 175 and 700 (commercial pools and spas should be under 400 - too low of calcium creates corrosive water and too high of calcium creates staining and scaling), TDS (total dissolved solids) between 175 and 150,  cyunaric acid (stabilizer) between 50 and 90

• Check your salinity (salt level for salt pools only) - all Pentair salt systems need to have a salinity level near 3500.

2

Why do my eyes sting and my skin smells like chlorine even after getting out of the pool?

• You may have too much chlorine in the pool.

3

Why is my electric bill so high?

• You need an energy efficient pump.

• Try running your pool during off-peak hours. This means leave the pool off between the hours of 9:00 am to 5:00pm. Try running the pool from 5:00am to 9:00am, off all day, and then back on from 6:00pm to 10:00pm. This will conserve energy.

• You may want to consider having Photo Voltaic solar panels installed on your roof. Contact us for more info. 

4

Why my pool/spa water heater not working?

• Your filter may need cleaning.

• It may be time for the heater to be serviced by a professional (they all need occasional minor repairs).

5

Why is my pool water cloudy?

• Your PH and or alkalinity may be too high. You can lower the PH and alkalinity by adding acid.

6

Why does my automatic pool cleaner not work like it used too?

• It may need new shoes or wheels. They all need an occasional internal rebuild. We can do this!

7

Why is there an oily residue on the surface of the water?

• This is usually sunscreen, also referred to as "bather load." You may want to add potassium monopersulfate to dissolve these oils.

8

Why is my pump noisy?

• All pumps need an occasional rebuild.