Can Rain Affect Your Pool Water?
Do you ever wonder during inclement weather if the rain can affect your pool water? You might think it’s just water, but the truth is that rain can harm your pool water. It isn’t just the rain from the sky either — water in your yard might run off into your pool, as well.
Let’s take a look at the impact rain can have on your pool, and what can you do about it to ensure you handle any issues.
The Impact of Rain
Industrial gasses in the United States mean that the pH of our rain is acidic. That means getting rain in your pool can throw off your careful pH balance. Enough rain can also affect your pool’s chlorine level, alkalinity, and water hardness.
Rainwater is pure to begin with, but it picks up contaminants as it falls through the air. Light rain shouldn’t impact your pool that much, but heavy rain — or several heavy storms — can dilute your pool, soften the water, and even raise the water level too high.
Finally, if your property drains toward or into your pool, runoff and debris from your yard can make the pool dirty, encourage algae growth, and more.
What to Do About Rainfall
One of the best options is to cover your pool when it’s not in use. This won’t keep out all rain, but it will help prevent dilution and debris from entering the pool.
Then, make sure that testing the pool water is a regular habit, especially after a major rain. This can tell you if your chemicals need to be rebalanced. Not only will the rainfall affect your chemical levels, but it can also wreak havoc on your pool equipment if it’s not taken care of in a timely manner. If you’re having trouble balancing your water, be sure to stop by your local pool store and get it professionally tested to ensure you know the right amount of chemicals needed to balance the water correctly.
When your alkalinity and pH levels become out of whack due to the rain, it creates a corrosive water environment that can damage any equipment that the water flows through. Think filters, heaters and pumps. But quick action after heavy rains and proper adjustment to your pH, total alkalinity and calcium hardness levels will get things back to normal.
If you know there’s a big rainstorm coming, you may also want to consider lowering the pool’s water level to compensate. This helps your skimmers avoid being flooded so they can continue to remove debris and filter the pool.
Contact Your Local Pool Care Experts
Regular maintenance is an important part in preventing any long-term effects of heavy rains. If you have questions about maintaining your pool on a regular basis or what to do after it has stormed, be sure to contact your local pool pro