Just like balancing all other chemicals in your pool like total alkalinity levels and pH, pool calcium hardness is also important to keep balanced. It’s likely that a calcium hardness imbalance will slip up on you out of the blue and all of a sudden throw your entire water balance off. Luckily, if you aren’t familiar with calcium hardness and the effect it can have on your pool water, we are here to answer your questions. Let’s dive right into understanding what calcium hardness is in the first place.

If you’ve heard of hard water before, you might be more familiar with calcium hardness than you thought. Typically, if you live in an area where you use well water or the municipal water is hard, you might’ve said that you have hard water at your house. This term refers to having a high level of minerals in your water including calcium. On the other hand, if you have “soft water”, this indicates that the calcium levels in your water are low. This same concept can be applied to the water chemistry in your swimming pool as well.

Knowing what the correct levels are for the calcium hardness in your pool is important to understand before you decide whether levels need to be increased or decreased. The correct level for your pool depends on the type of liner it has. If it has a fiberglass or vinyl liner, the calcium hardness levels should be between 175 and 225 parts per million (ppm). On the other hand, if you have a concrete or plaster pool, the levels should be maintained between 200 and 275 ppm.

If you find that your pool water is too soft, you may think that it’s not a huge problem compared to having hard water. However, there are many undesirable effects that come along with having soft water. Some of the most common things that can happen if you leave your water like this for too long include:

• Corrosion to the pool structure
• Can dissolve concrete and plaster
• Can destroy any metal parts in the water

If you find that after using a test strip to test pool chemical levels that calcium needs to be increased, you’re in luck because raising these levels are simple. A pool hardness increaser is the best option for increasing calcium hardness levels in the water. Using a pool calculator, you can easily determine the volume of your pool to find the right amount of a pool hardness increaser to add. After this is added to your pool water and has been circulated, your calcium hardness levels should begin to return to normal, safe levels.

Once you’ve gotten your calcium hardness levels under control, adding pool accessories can make your swimming pool even more enjoyable this summer. Find pool slides, ladders, railings, games, and swim-up bars all from Global Pool Products. Follow the links to check out our product catalog for these great pool accessories!

There are a few steps to cleaning a D.E. filter, so follow along and pay close attention to make sure you get it right.

This is the quicker, easier, and less dangerous cleaning method.

Step 1: First, you’ll need to backwash the filter for a few minutes to knock loose dirt and debris. At this point, you should turn the pump off and open the air relief valve.

Step 2: Drain the filter tank by removing the drain plug

Step 3: Open the tank, remove the manifold and grids and use your hose to rinse out the tank.

Step 4: Spray the manifold to clear the grids of all debris. If things are especially gunked up, you may need to use a specific D.E. filter cleaner. Follow the instructions on the bottle for the specific brand you purchase.

Step 5: Once everything looks clean, return everything to its starting positions and you can once again turn on your pump and start filtering your water.

Cleaning a pool filter is something you should do regularly to keep the water clean and sanitary. If you need help figuring out how often or how to properly clean your pool filter you should contact your local pool professional.

Now that you’ve got some direction when it comes to cleaning your pool filter, you can move on to bigger issues like making additions and improvements. Fortunately, Global Pool Products can certainly help you in that department! We have American-made pool slides, ladders, railings, games, and swim-up bars to take your pool game to a whole new level!