Search results

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    Help with Pool Light Housing

    Same thing happened with one of our original PacFab Hatteras pool lights...the potting compound on the back of the light melted and ran into the fixture and against the lens. The light still worked and did not leak, but the missing potting compound affected the heat transfer out of the fixture...
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    18 year old Polaris 280.... Buy a new one, 'upgrade' to another pressure side cleaner, or just keep repairing/rebuilding existing unit

    My 280 is 21 years old according to the serial #. I got the $100 rebuild kit off Amazon this year and used roughly half of the included parts to fix up mine - it's back to running like new. Hoping to get another 5-10 years out of it. I also have a robot, which cleans better than the 280, but...
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    Could my waterfall basins be the cause of my recurring algae issue?

    5 and 50, although I admit I haven't been testing and adjusting as often as I should (before the SLAM - 1-2x weekly, but currently 2-3x a day).
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    Could my waterfall basins be the cause of my recurring algae issue?

    Thank you ajw22, that's what I'd figured. The right fix is probably to rebuild the waterfall and/or "shallow" the basins so they can't hold water, but that sounds pretty involved. Maybe will do so when we replaster the whole pool in ~5 years or so. In the meantime, I'll thoroughly clean the...
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    Could my waterfall basins be the cause of my recurring algae issue?

    Am entering my fourth season with our pool (third season during which I've maintained the pool myself). Despite (mostly) following TFP practices and testing my water several times a week, I tend to struggle with algae growth whenever my water temps are in the upper 70s or higher. Last season, I...
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    Right Waterfall.jpg

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    Waterfalls.jpg

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    iAqualink control of towel warming drawer

    Thanks to this community, I've sorted out the "important stuff" with my own pool (installing VS pump and SWG, properly maintaining and using pool cleaner, etc). Now that my pool mostly takes care of itself I can start to think about "nice to haves"... Our kitchen has a warming drawer, which was...
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    Is newer worth the upgrade?

    I have that same Dolphin cleaner. I think it's about 7 years old, got it used last year. Mine will climb all the way to the waterline in our pool. If yours doesn't, may want to check if treads or the foam grips on the rollers need replacing. I can't really fault how it cleans. Leaves my pool...
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    Anyone have a heater but no spa?

    Your pool must be particularly shady...I'm also in the Houston area and we started swimming a couple of weeks ago. Pool is currently at 79 with no heater use. When we covered the pool at the start of November last year (just ahead of leafpocolypse) the water was in the low 80s and swimming was...
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    Sanitatizing Fill Off Irrigation Line

    Oops, sorry, I missed that part. I'd think you'd be okay as long as you keep proper chlorine levels maintained in the pool, but will defer to the experts.
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    LED exterior flood lights flickering while incandescent pool lights are on

    Thank you both. I agree that faulty / cheap LED bulbs are the likely culprit. I installed the light fixture fairly recently (last two years) and it's pretty well protected from the weather, so I don't think water intrusion or corrosion is the issue. I'm more baffled by the fact that the...
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    Sanitatizing Fill Off Irrigation Line

    I fill my pool with one zone of my sprinkler system. No water quality issues observed (at least none that can be attributed to fill water quality) over the couple of years that this setup has been in place.
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    LED exterior flood lights flickering while incandescent pool lights are on

    Noticed a minor but strange issue today - one pair of LED flood light bulbs on the exterior of our house flicker slightly but noticeably, only while our pool lights are on. No other incandescent or LED lights inside or outside of our house are affected - only two bulbs in one floodlight...
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    TX Cold Weather Poll

    After the 2021 TX winter storm experience, I leave a "power off alarm" plugged in during the winter months. Pool runs as needed on freeze protection. If power goes out, the alarm sounds a shrill siren that is loud enough to wake me up (and everyone else in the house, unfortunately). I can then...
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    Opinions on whether salt will damage the stone on my hot tub waterfall?

    Another vote for the SWG from a Houston-area pool owner. It makes maintaining the pool during our brutally hot summers both easier and cheaper. A couple of notes from my experience: -My pool is almost 30 years old and has been operated as a saltwater pool for about half that time (original...
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    We Have a Winner! TFP Pool of the Month (February 2025); "The Nerve Center" - Equipment Pads

    Installed SWG and variable speed pump (speeds controlled by Aqualink relays) based on the advice from this community.
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    Pool cover repair best practices

    Closeup of one of the anchors. Mine may be the same brand as that shown in JamesW's first picture above...it even stores on a similar PVC reel.
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    PXL_20250203_225610740.jpg

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    Pool cover repair best practices

    Thanks, I figured there was a difference, but I have little experience with either type of cover. Both seem to be very rarely used in our area. According to Google Maps, my next door neighbor and I are the only ones in our area who cover our pools in the winter, despite 50%+ of homes in the area...
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    Pool cover repair best practices

    Thanks, I'll send a close up of the anchors when I get home. Putting some sort of padding over the high spots on the waterfalls in the future sounds like a good idea. The damage to the cover was there before the snowfall a couple weeks back, and as far as I can tell, the snow weight didn't...
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    Pool cover repair best practices

    With the leaves nearly done falling here SE Texas, I'm getting ready to uncover my pool and would like to repair a few holes/worn areas before rolling up the cover. The cover is of unknown age and brand. It came with the house when we purchased four years ago and I never installed it until this...
  23. Freak Snowfall Jan 2025.jpg

    Freak Snowfall Jan 2025.jpg

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    Large Tear.jpg

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    Small Tear.jpg

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    Overview.jpg

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    Freeze Protection with Waterfall

    That's a great example of the myriad ways that difficult-to-anticipate issues can "get you" in these situations. Sounds like you're well prepared for next week's event. One item that I believe more people with pools but without automatic standby generators should consider is a "power off...
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    Freeze Protection with Waterfall

    I.drain my waterfall pump and leave all of my waterfall Jandy valves partway open whenever a hard freeze is expected. Only runs main pump in freeze protect mode. Has always worked fine for me. In general, running your waterfalls continuously should also work. I don't do this because it's a...
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    Deep Heating circulation

    Maybe your deep end return line is partially clogged? I have these "deep heating" returns in my pool. They are activated by a manual Jandy valve just downstream of the automatic valve that switches between pool and spa returns. When they're in use, the chlorinator isn't in the active plumbing...
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    CaliMar VS Pumps Updates

    My first one was installed ~October 2022. It worked great until late summer/early fall 2023, when it would intermittently shut down with an undervoltage error and require a manual restart. I never figured out the issue, but oddly - it ONLY appeared while running the pool in spa mode, after the...