6 Tips to be an Environmentally Conscious Pool Owner

‘Being Green’ has become a healthier and more responsible way to live and we make taking care of your pool no exception. Below we provide you with 6 ideas and tips to maintain your pool while being environmentally conscious.

1 – Use a robotic or solar pool cleaner

Robotic cleaners are a great solution for the environmentally conscious. They reduce the amount of chemical cleaners needed for your pool. They are also over 90% more efficient that a traditional system and cost less to run. Roughly, less than five cents an hour! They also reduce the amount of times you’ll have to change your pool filter and clean it.

All these reasons alone are exactly why this is listed as #1 on this list. Robotic pool cleaners are very inexpensive and one of the simplest and quickest ways to ‘green’ your pool. Solar pool cleaners use even less energy and work just as well.

With this simple purchase you can get started today with a simple plug, charge and go!

2 – Use a greener cleaner or none at all

Chlorine is the most common chemical used to keep your pool pristine, however it’s not the best for the environment or you. There are numerous alternatives to chlorine that you could grow accustom to. For example, bromine, natural mineral sanitizers, Ozonator systems and PHMB (polyhexamethylene biguanide).

With any of the choices above, you still need to add chlorine or algaecide with them, however you simply don’t use as much, so its effects are less harmful and therefore more environmentally friendly.

Now if your looking to go completely chemical-free, a natural swimming pool is a wonderful option. It takes more work and time to maintain but the outcome can be a wonderful solution for the environmentally conscious family. A natural, chemical-free pool uses plants to clean the water. With this type of pool, a ‘balance’ needs to be in place with the environment and then it can be a very safe swimming environment.

3 – Switch to a solar heater

Some question whether a pool heater is a ‘green’ option at all? However, a solar heater uses less energy to heat your pool, so the less energy you use the ‘greener’ you are. On the other, a heater allows you to use your pool for more months out of (or even the whole) year.

If you want to conserve your water and get the most out of what you have, there is no doubt using a solar heater is the answer. Solar-powered pool heaters use a series of tubes that absorb heat from the sun to warm the water after it passes through the filter system. This will also help you save money on your energy bills each month! Now we are getting ‘green’ (wink, wink). Your return on invest ment with a solar heater will come back ten-fold. The sun will be able to heat your pool forever.

4 – Clean your filters

Making sure your filters are clean will ensure your pool runs as efficiently as possible. A dirty filter causes your pump to work more, this using more energy. It also causes your pool chemicals to not be as effective, therefore diluting them and basically tossing money down the drain.

Cleaning your filters is generally an easy process, if you don’t have a pool professional maintaining them. Even double checking your pool cleaners work, can help if they fail to check it one day.

5 – Add a timer to your pumps

Most pumps can be a hassle to turn on and off, so by adding a timer, there is less stress on you and your pump isn’t running unnecessarily. Most pool pumps really only need to be ran for six hours a day, as long as your pump is sized properly to your pool’s volume.

Adding an automatic time clock to your pump system is the best way to make sure your water gets filtered regularly without consuming unneeded energy.

6 – Cover your pool

One of the easiest and cheapest ways to conserve water and energy with your pool is to cover it when it’s not being used. Simply put, they keep heat in and debris out as well as minimizing water evaporation.

By keeping heat in you will use even less energy to heat your pool and by keeping debris out, you will use less energy filtering your pool. Minimizing water evaporation means using less water to refill it, which also keeps your water bill down. Win, win, win!

To top it off, using a solar pool cover will seal that heat in from the sun and warm your water even more with a smaller energy bill. Overall, a pool cover with offer you less energy consumption and cost.