Re: A couple of tips I thought everybody knew. Anybody got some
After 4 months of owning my pool, here are my tips:
1. I do not have an automatic pool filler, but I do have a hose spigot 5 feet away from my equipment pad. So I added a T in the pool plumbing on the pressure side with a female hose fitting. I can use it to drain the pool if I need to, but mostly use it to fill the pool easily. I bought a metered shut off valve from Ace Hardware for $7 (50% off coupon) and it allows me to dial the amount of water I'd like added to the pool, and then shuts off automatically so I don't have an accidental overflow or have to go back out and shut it off.
2. I wanted a wireless pool thermometer but the ones they sell are expensive, so I bought a cheap $10 one at walmart that is not waterproof, placed the sending unit inside a 2" PVC threaded coupling with two end caps. I had if floating around the pool, but now keep it in the skimmer so it can't be seen. I get about 30 foot range from it.
3. Most days I'm only checking pH and CL, so I have a large syringe I use to collect my water sample. The cc's markings on the syringe are the same as the ml markings on the test tubes, so I can collect just enough for my tests and dispensing is easy and accurate and I don't have to bend down to see if the water level is at the line.
4. I printed out my recommended chemical levels, cut to size, and laminated it at Staples. Its business card size and I stuck it to the top of my test kit with that gummy stuff you find holding perfume samples in magazines.
5. I don't keep a running log of my test results, but do like to have at least a week or two's worth of data to see trends. I took a clear plastic divider that is used for presentations and three ring binders and cut it to size so that it stores in my test kit. With a sharpie, I made grid lines and column headings for the date, CL, pH, TA, etc. Then, using a small white board marker, I can record the results and take it to the computer for entering into the poolcalculator. When its full, a damp cloth erases the white board marker, but not the sharpie headings.
6. I built a PVC towel rack that can hold 4 towels flat and also has 90s at the ends to hold bathing suits. I did not use glue, so it is easily broken down and stored away in the winter months.