We've just opened the pool after it's winter hibernation, and this is what we found.
OK, it's always a bit dirty under its protective tarpaulin, but this year it was totally GREEN. I'm not sure quite what happened, but I imagine too much 'light' was getting though.
We've put in the chlorine shock, and a load of anti-algae stuff, now all we can do is wait to see if it will die off and settle on the bottom, ready to be vacuumed.
I had a quick look at the temperature of the water; it was 16 C...... Brrrrrr.
Next job; clean all the surrounding flagstones. As you can probably see, everything is filthy!
Summer approaches.
Summer approaches.
It is a very pretty colour even though it may not be inviting for swimming.
ReplyDeleteWow that's an impressive algae bloom you have there! :)
ReplyDeleteIt's already much clearer, but still murky.
DeleteThe water's the correct colour, it's just that the pool is on the wrong planet...
ReplyDeleteAnd it should be surrounded by rocks and rushes.
DeleteHopefully by the time it has cleared the water will have warmed up enough to take a dip.
ReplyDeleteWe opened ours early this year in March. Last year we disgusting, we had to empty all the water, clean the bottom and then refill, so this year we have tried to manage it a bit better - when I say we, I mean hubby. He threatens to fill it with fish every year!!!
ReplyDeleteOurs was a bit green with all the storms we had but seems to be a bit better at the moment.
Sue
Frankly, I was surprised not to find alligators in ours!
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ReplyDeleteI agree.
Deletelooks like an attack of the lime green jello! good luck getting it cleared out. I imagine when it's in good working order it's a delight to swim in.
ReplyDeletePea soup or pee in pool comes to mind
ReplyDeleteWe opened ours 2 weeks ago ( foolishly thinking temperatures would rise ) It was a similar colour and flag stones looked much worse.....within 2 days it was looking beautiful again, back to the "pristine" state I require ! 5 year old Liam swam in it at half term, temp was 20.....now it is about 23, I will venture in when it hits 25. Good luck with your clean up.
ReplyDeleteIt's now a slightly milky pale green. I think in a day or two it should be OK. How do you keep your pool so warm; do you have a heat pump?
DeleteIt appears that aliens have been using your pool during the winter. Hope the algae isn't the poisonous kind.
ReplyDeletethat is one of the most gorgeous colours I have ever seen!
ReplyDeleteSummer approaches? I wish it would approach a bit quicker!
ReplyDeleteAnd it's just started raining again!
DeleteIt matches the grass very well.
ReplyDeleteYou could always bottle it as anti freeze and sell it cheap to German wine makers...
ReplyDeleteI installed a very cheap solar heating system in Cape Town which relied on black polymer panels through which the water flowed driven by the pool pump. It made a huge difference. I also switched to salt water chlorination which made it much easier on the eyes. We were swimming in warm tears of joy.
I made enquiries about those solar panels last year, and was told that I'd need a surface area roughly the same as the pool in order for it to make much difference. I'm now thinking about a heat pump; much more expensive to install, but cheap to run. At the moment we just have a blue plastic bubble cover to conserve what heat is built up during the daytime; it works quite well.
DeleteIf a simple blue plastic bubble works quite well what does that tell you about the honesty of those trying to sell you more panels than you need?
DeleteCro, you could make this system at home with kit bought from your local hardware store. I am not sure of prices in Europe now but I would eat my hat if it cost you more than 500 Euros. All we are talking about here is some plastic panels and tubing.
You are a DIY freak, I could do you some crude diagrams. All you need is a sloping roof with, in your case in the Northern hemisphere, a south facing aspect. In Cape Town it was my garage roof and faced North but you could just as easily construct a frame tucked away in the corner of your property.
Seeing the color of that pool reminds me once again of why I'm not sorry we had ours filled in. Ours was even full of tadpoles one year when we opened it.
ReplyDeleteNot that a pool isn't fun. When our kids were growing up, it got a lot of use, but once they moved out, not so much. When I enjoyed it most was after cutting the grass. I'd fall into the pool, clothes and all. Instant cool-off.
I know several people who've filled in their pools..... I enjoy mine too much!
DeleteIt's astonishing how quickly they clean up. What a beautiful pool you have! What kind of security system do you have? We were told we needed a child-proof fence or approved alarm system...
ReplyDeleteWe have an alarm. However, nothing beats 100% vigilance.
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DeleteSadly, curious three year olds can. I believe all pools should be built partially above ground or be surrounded by a security fence with self closing gates. My three year old nephew drowned in a neighbour's pool. They filled it in afterwards because they could not bear the idea of swimming in it again.
DeleteThat's terrible; every pool-owner's nightmare. We do have a wall also, but it's not really high enough to stop a determined child. We do have very strict rules when it comes to children.
DeleteThe next pool I am going to build will be partially above ground, about two feet with no steps leading up to it so to get in, you will have to sit on the wall and swing your legs over. It will have a stainless steel hand rail all around it at water level (a drowning toddler cannot reach up out of the water and get a purchase on wet coping stones. The pool will also be fenced off and the whole property is surrounded by a security fence as well. The property will have a 24 hour guard. The pool will also be situated at the far corner of the property diagonally opposite the entrance so it would take a pretty bloody determined todddler to get through that lot. Still, I'll have to be vigilant as very few people can swim here. Marcia, when I met her, could not swim. Even fishermen here who earn their living on the water cannot swim. I had to haul a fisherman's body out of the river here and it wasn't pleasant. I cannot imagine what my brother went through when he found his son in his neighbor's pool. He actually managed to rescucitate him and the boy was airlifted to hospital but then the Doctors said that although Chris had managed to restart his boy's heart and had given him artificial respiration until the medics arrived, the little boy was very severely brain damaged and was only being kept alive by the machines he was on. So my brother had to make the decision to take his son off life support. He and his wife held the little tyke in their arms, telling him all his favourite fairy stories. It took him eight hours to die.
DeleteAlex, who is four, can swim already and that's my rule, you can play in my pool only if you have passed my swimming test. If you are a 'newbie', then I have to be there and for non-swimmers 'play' means swimming lessons from me otherwise you don't get in.
I have lost count of the number of children I have taught to swim.
Such a lovely shade of florescent green.
ReplyDelete