Lucas Firmin Blog

5 Post-Storm Steps Every Louisiana Pool Owner Should Take

Posted by Lucas Firmin on Aug 16, 2016 11:36:51 AM

5 Post-Storm Steps Every Louisiana Pool Owner Should TakeAs the rain stops and the high waters begin to recede, it’s time to account for possible flood damage. Even if your home remained above-water, rain and debris can majorly affect your property’s health and longevity, including your pool. Take these five steps to restore your pool after a heavy storm:

  1. Check for structural damage: Before cleaning or shocking your pool, check to make sure there are no cracks or gouges in the walls and floor of your pool. If so, please stop and call a professional pool builder for a complete pool inspection.
  2. Clear the debris: Use a pool net to remove limbs, leaves, and any other reachable debris from the surface of the pool. This will help prevent the plaster or liner from becoming stained or damaged, as well as slow the depletion of pool chemicals so you can get an accurate measurement of your pool’s chemicals.
  3. Clean the strainers and baskets: Heavy rain likely pushed dirt and debris into the filter and skimmer baskets of your pool. Cleaning them thoroughly will allow for a steady flow of water to resume moving through the filter system.
  4. Brush and vacuum: After cleaning the filter system, brush the walls of your pool—making sure to remove debris from steps and behind ladders—so your vacuum or robotic pool cleaner can more easily grab debris that falls to the bottom.
  5. Test the chemical levels: Debris and excessive rain can throw your pool water’s chemistry off-balance, which can affect the longevity of the plaster and tiles as well as the water’s sanitation. Test strips are often inaccurate, so we recommend using a Taylor K-2006 FAS-DPD test kit. If your chemical levels are in crucial need of balancing, please consult one of our trained and certified pool maintenance technicians.

Most importantly, NEVER drain your pool after major water saturation—or if the pool was flooded. If complete draining is the only option, the ground surrounding the pool must dry out before the pool is drained. Otherwise, there is a great risk that the pool can crack or pop out of the ground.

If you have any questions or are in need of immediate pool maintenance, please contact us.

Our thoughts and prayers are with all those coping with the aftermath of this weekend’s flooding.

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