Everyone Should Have These Pool Supplies

Testing your pool water is one of the most important aspects of pool maintenance.  It's suggested to test your water twice per week with a good test kit.  I use and recommend the Taylor K-2006 pool water test kit.  It's the best kit on the market and will give you the actual numbers you need in order to maintain your pool properly.  

Test strips are easy and affordable, but can never give you the chemical numbers you need.  Invest in a good pool water test kit, and your pool will be much happier. 

While shocking a pool, or pool shock, is actually a process rather than a product, we'll keep the customary vernacular.  Shocking your pool simply means to maintain a high free chlorine level long enough to kill organic matter in the pool such as algae spores and bacteria. 

You can use liquid chlorine or calcium hypochlorite for your weekly chlorination.  Both work very well and will give you the results you demand. 

This is an invaluable piece of pool equipment.  A wide mouth leaf rake can handle all of your debris scooping jobs.  It's just as comfortable getting debris from the top of the pool as it is scooping out leaves and sticks from the bottom of your pool. 

From gobs of dog hair to bugs and the occasional rock, a wide mouth leaf rake is a must-have. 

A good telescopic pole was my best friend on my pool route.  Where I went, it went.  From pool to pool, skimming the water's surface and pool's bottom, vacuuming, sweeping, you name it.  If I needed it done, I trusted my telescopic pool pole. 

A quality pole is one of the absolute essential tools you should have by your side.  And the name says it all: telescopic.  You can use it at its regular length of about 8 ft. and when fully extended, it can go to nearly 16 ft. or more, depending on the kind of pole you decide on.

It's versatile, tough, and ready to take on any pool challenge at a moment's notice.  

How can you sweep you pool without a good brush, right?  A quality pool brush made from durable nylon is great for weekly maintenance and sweeping, and is also needed if you have a dreaded algae bloom.  Sweeping with a nylon brush keeps the dirt in the water where it can easily get filtered and backwashed out.

For plaster and concrete pool owners, you may want to look into getting an algae brush.  An algae brush contains stainless steel bristles that can easily sweep algae away.  It can certainly save you a lot of time, and is absolutely needed for black algae.

Oh, how many backyards have I been in where I've seen chlorine bottles, pool hoses, and empty containers of acid just thrown around and left on the equipment pad.  I recently had a pool inspection where 3 full jugs of chlorine were left out in the sun.  Wasting money and chemicals is never fun.  Your pool chemicals, tools, and equipment need a home, and that home is a dedicated storage area. 

By having a dedicated storage area or shed, it keeps your chemicals dry and out of direct sunlight, lengthens the life of your pool equipment, and keeps children and animals from getting into your investment.  

While our pools are fun, it's our responsibility to make them as safe as possible.  It's recommended that layers of protection be installed.  Dedicated pool fences should be at least 48" inches high and have self-closing and latching gates.  All access doors and windows leading to the pool area should have dedicated alarms. 

Our pools should also have water alarms and motion detectors.  These will alert you if something or someone falls into the pool.  

An all-purpose cleaner is one of those cleaners that all pool owners should have.  It's usually a liquid and is used to effectively remove dirt, grime, and stains from a variety of surfaces. Some all-purpose cleaners will need to be diluted, while others are an easy "spray and wipe" and you're finished product.

As a cheaper alternative, you can make your own all-purpose cleaner and disinfectant.  Simply mix water and bleach, or use rubbing alcohol or hydrogen peroxide to disinfect surfaces.  This saves time and a trip to the grocery store.