The industry is still debating this question, but there is anecdotal evidence that suggests a salt system may adversely affect some of the “softer” stone work that may be around your swimming pool. Unsealed limestone in particular seems to be somewhat susceptible to etching from salt water, especially here in Texas.
A fairly easy cure for this is to simply seal the stone work with high-grade sealant. (A Better Pool Service offers this service at a very reasonable price.)
There have been little to no reports of saltwater etching on any of the harder materials such as granite, tile, plaster, pavers, or even broom finished concrete.
Ideally, you shouldn’t store pool chemicals at your house at all. They can be quite dangerous, especially if handled improperly. Some service companies (such as A Better Pool Service) will store the chemicals for you, so you never have to worry about it.
You are maintaining your pool your self, or your pool service company is requiring you to store the chemicals, then keep these important safety recommendations in mind:
Keep them out of direct sunlight
Keep them in a well ventilated area
Do not put them inside your house
Make sure they won’t get wet
Do not let different chemicals come in contact with each other, or where the water.
Do not take the chemicals out of their original containers except when you’re actually putting the chemicals in the pool.
For optimum safety, you should read the MSDS (Material Safety Data Sheet) for each chemical, and follow the guidelines identified on the sheet.
Any water that is contaminated can make you sick. In a well-maintained swimming pool, the sanitization system will keep health risks to a minimum. On the other hand, if the pool is not maintained diligently, or if someone has “an accident” in the pool, there could be risks.
One way to reduce your risk of trouble is to add an ozone system. This uses pure oxygen along with the existing chlorine to constantly sanitize the water in the pool. Ultraviolet systems are also very effective at killing any microorganisms in the water. Call us if you would like to know more about these upgrades.
Regarding pets, pool water is generally considered safe for animals to drink. But if you’re concerned about chlorine levels, then upgrading to an ozone system, a salt system or an ultraviolet system will help to minimize the level of chlorine in the water.
It depends. If you are operating a commercial swimming pool, and you are not in compliance with the new Virginia Graham Baker act of 2008, you can most definitely be thrown in jail and fined.
If you are a homeowner, then as of this writing (August, 2009), you are not required to comply with the specifics of the VGB act. However, it is always wise to make sure your pool is operating as safely as possible. If you’re not sure about the safety condition of your swimming pool, please call us for no-charge consultation over the phone. If you prefer, we can perform a formal safety inspection of your swimming pool, and make recommendations for optimum safety.
This can be a serious problem, especially from a health and safety standpoint. Abandoned homes often have inadequate fencing, which means a child could enter the property and becoming trapped in the pool. Also, Texas is not immune to the West Nile virus, so you certainly don’t want any mosquitoes breeding in your neighborhood.
The property owner is liable for any injury that occurs on the property. In most cases of foreclosure, that’s a bank.
We offer a safety remediation service for abandoned pools. If you would like to notify the mortgage holder of our availability, or put us in contact with the mortgage holder, we’ll be happy to offer a quote to make the pool safe for your neighborhood.
Call us. If you’re on a regular contract with us, and the pool is dirty, then something must be wrong. If you’re not on a contract with us, and you need emergency service, we can usually arrange that with very short notice.
No, we provide all the chemicals as part of our weekly cleaning services. You do not need to buy chemicals, nor do you need to store the chemicals on your property. That’s all included in our service.
It may be helpful if you are there for the first visit, but it’s not required. (We know our way around a swimming pool.) Whether you’re there or not, we’ll leave a record of when we came, when we left, and whatever services we performed.
To the best of our knowledge, we’re quite competitive with other service companies in the greater Dallas Fort Worth area. Our difference isn’t that we’re “more expensive.” It’s that we hold ourselves to a higher standard of performance. Having been burned by lousy pool service companies in the past, we simply operate the way we would expect a great company to operate. It doesn’t cost more to do things right the first time.
