How much water do you lose per week?

[ZWExton]

This has always kept me up at night. I've never had a pool before this one, so I did not or do not have a great frame of reference. I'm in the Dallas area - hot sunny summers, fairly windy - with a pool that faces west. LOTS of sun. Water gets very warm.

I feel like I'm losing 2" of water per week. Is this an amount that would concern you enough to look for a leak, or do you think this is close enough to typical in this area that you wouldn't worry about it?

I just had the pool resurfaced as well. It seems like maybe I'm losing water a little faster, but it could be my imagination. I filled it to an easily measurable level Monday evening and it's at least 1/2" down right now on Wednesday morning.

I hate the idea of wasting water. Even having a pool sometimes feels like an egregiously wasteful luxury. Oiy!

 

[Joshii]

I can easily lose an inch a week in the height of summer. And your summers are WAY hotter than mine. Sounds normal.

But you can do the leak test. Fill a 5-gallon bucket with water, put it on the second step in your pool. Make sure the level in the bucket is equal to the level in the pool. Then see the rate at which the water level drops in the bucket vs your pool. They should lose water height at the same rate, barring leaks.

 

[mknauss]

In the Nevada desert I lose 3/4" to 1" per DAY in June, July, and most of August.

 

[GOONiE]

2” per week here and my pool is covered most of the time.

 

[ZWExton]

In the Nevada desert I lose 3/4" to 1" per DAY in June, July, and most of August.

Good grief. Well, I don't feel so bad I suppose. I will try the bucket test indicated by another member though, as that is a smart and inexpensive way to monitor the situation.

 

[Torrente]

In Panama’s dry season (Jan-Apr) I lose around 1 inch/day, in wet season (May-Dec) I can have rain water amounting 10%-25% pool volume with the corresponding drain...

 

[dmcconnell68]

I'm in Fort Worth and lose 3-4" per week. Pool gets direct sun most of the day.

 

[ZWExton]

I'm in Fort Worth and lose 3-4" per week. Pool gets direct sun most of the day.

Wow. Well, then I'm not worried. Unless we both have a leak...

 

[bigevilgrape]

I'm up several inches this week

 

[ZWExton]

Well, I think 4" per week in north TX is a leak, friends. The bucket test indicated that over 3 days I was about an inch down in the bucket and over 2 inches down in the pool.

See pic - I noticed today that I had water moving through that little backwash "window" while the pool was in normal operation. Popped it off and it water free-flowing.

Took the backwash/pump valve apart, relubricated, and we seem to be in business.

Oddly, if I open that little spicket at the bottom right of the picture I still get a flow of water. Do you think this is just that backwash pipe emptying? It doesn't seem like the water could be coming from anywhere else, and there's nothing in the backwash window anymore.

 

[ZWExton]

Here's a better look. No water in the backwash window now, but if I open the little backwash relief spicket, water water water. I don't think that pipe is under pressure as the backwash goes to waste when the spicket is closed. Any ideas?

 

[Marty D]

I live in Long Island NY. Our pool will drop 2 inch in just a few days. I did the math 400 gallons a day can be more. I keep a hose in the water on sprinkl mode. It fills a 5 gallon bucket in 12 min. I’m adding 300 gallons a day- rain -sun - windy doesn’t matter.