What Does Rain Do to Pool Water? Here's the Deal
When you're a pool owner, you've probably wondered what does rain do to pool water after an enormous thunderstorm rolls through your neighborhood. It's tempting to look at a weighty downpour as a bit of "free water" to top off your levels, but unfortunately, it's seldom that simple. While a light sprinkle may not do much, a significant rainstorm can turn your own crystal-clear backyard oasis in to a cloudy, green-tinted mess in simply a few hours.
The reality is that rain isn't just natural H2O falling in the sky. It's picking up all sorts associated with things on its way down, plus once it hits your pool, this starts a bit of a chemical substance chain reaction. Understanding what's actually taking place under the surface area could save you a lot of money upon chemicals and the lot of time spent scrubbing the particular liner.
It Throws Your pH and Alkalinity Out there of Whack
One of the particular most immediate items you'll notice is that rain dirt with your water chemistry. Most individuals don't understand that rain is actually naturally acidic. As this falls through the atmosphere, it picks up carbon dioxide, which lowers the pH level. Within most areas, rain has a pH of around 5. 0 to five. 5, whereas your pool needs to stay in that "sweet spot" of 7. 4 to 7. 6.
When that acidic rain hits your pool, it begins to drag your pH level straight down. But that's only half the fight. This also attacks your own total alkalinity. Think that of alkalinity as a "buffer" or a sponge that shields your pH through swinging wildly. When rain dilutes that will alkalinity, your pH becomes unstable. If you don't stay upon top of it, that low ph level water can begin to eat away at your pool's steel components, like your heater or step ladder, and it can even irritate your eye and skin the next time you jump in.
Dilution is Not Always Your Friend
We've almost all seen the pool water rise right after a big thunderstorm. While it might look great to possess a full pool, that extra volume of water is in fact diluting all the particular expensive chemicals you've added. This will be a huge portion of what does rain do to pool water that individuals often overlook.
If your pool was completely balanced with a few parts per mil (ppm) of chlorine before the storm, plus then you get two inches of rain, you don't simply have more water—you have a reduce concentration of chlorine. This "dilution effect" weakens your pool's immune system. Suddenly, right now there isn't enough sanitizer to kill away from the bacteria plus organic matter that will the storm simply dumped into the water. If you don't re-balance points quickly, you're generally inviting algae to take up residence.
The "Invisible" Junk Rain Brings Along
It's simple to see the particular leaves and sticks floating on the particular surface after a storm, but it's the stuff you can't observe that causes the real trouble. Because rain falls, it grabs dust, soot, and smoke contaminants from the air flow. Even worse, if the wind is whipping around, it's blowing dirt, pollen, plus lawn fertilizers through your yard (or your neighbor's) directly into the drink.
These contaminants are usually basically a buffet for algae. Nitrogen and phosphorus are common in rainwater plus wind-blown debris, and they act like "super-food" for those microscopic natural spores. You might wake up the morning after the storm to discover your water searching a bit dull or even hazy. That's the particular first sign that the organic insert has become too much for the remaining chlorine to handle.
Rising Water Levels and Skimmer Issues
When it rains with enough contentration, your water level might rise above the opening of your skimmer. You might think, "The more water, the particular merrier, " but your skimmer actually needs that opening to be about halfway submerged to work properly.
When the water level is simply too higher, the skimmer can't create the "waterfall" effect needed to pull floating particles into the basket. Instead, the leaves and bugs simply sit there on top, eventually getting waterlogged and sinking to the bottom. Once they're on the floor, they begin to decay, which uses up also more chlorine plus can even stain your pool's finish. If the storm was a real gully-washer, you might really need to drain several water out just to get the particular circulation system functioning right again.
Why Your Pool Might Turn Gloomy or Green
So, you've obtained acidic water, diluted chlorine, and the bunch of natural "food" floating around. This is the perfect storm—literally—for an algae blossom. Within 24 to 48 hours of a heavy rain, it's common regarding pools to take on an over cast, milky appearance. This could be the stage right before it turns "swamp green. "
This cloudiness is usually a mix of good dirt particles and the very beginning phases of algae growth. Because the ph level is off, your own chlorine isn't functioning at 100% effectiveness. Chlorine is very much more effective when the pH is definitely balanced; when the particular pH drops or even spikes, the chlorine gets "sluggish" plus can't kill off the invaders fast enough.
Just how to Fix Your Pool Following a Thunderstorm
Knowing what does rain do to pool water is one point, but knowing how to fix it is how the real work begins. You don't necessarily need to panic, but you do need to act fast. Here's a simple game plan for when the clouds clear:
1. Clean out the debris
First things very first: get the huge stuff out. Empty your skimmer plus pump baskets so the water can flow freely. Use a leaf net to scoop out whatever is floating plus give the underside the quick vacuum when it's looking sloppy. You want to take away the "food" prior to it breaks straight down.
2. Reduced the water degree if needed
If the water is burying your own skimmer, use the particular "waste" or "drain" setting on your own filter to bring the level down again to the midway point of the particular skimmer faceplate. This ensures your pool can actually clean itself again.
3. Test the water immediately
Don't guess. Get your own test kit away and look into the pH, alkalinity, and chlorine levels. More than likely, you'll need to include a pH increaser or some sodium bicarbonate (baking soda) to get your alkalinity back upward.
4. Surprise the pool
Even if the water looks okay, it's a wise move to provide it a "shock" treatment after weighty rain. This "super-chlorination" burns off all the organic contaminants the particular rain brought within and kills any kind of early-stage algae spores before they can take over.
5. Run the particular filter
Allow your pump work for at minimum 24 hours straight after a storm. Your own filter needs time to catch almost all those tiny contaminants that the rain introduced. If you have a fine sand filter, you may need to backwash it a few times during this process.
Should You Cover Your Pool Throughout Rain?
The lot of individuals ask if they should just throw the cover on whenever they see clouds forming. It's a bit of a toss-up. If it's a light rain, a cover are able to keep the hormone balance stable. But in case it's a severe storm with higher winds, an appliance cover may actually be a liability.
Heavy rain plus wind can dump large sums of water and debris on top of an appliance cover, potentially sagging this into the pool or maybe tearing the anchors out of your deck. In addition, if you possess a solid cover up without a pump motor, the weight can become a nightmare to remove. Usually, it's better to leave it uncovered and just deal with the chemistry afterward, unless you have a high-end automatic cover that's designed to handle it.
Final Thoughts
At the end of the day, rain is simply part of being a pool owner. It's annoying, sure, but it's not the end of the world as very long as you don't ignore it. The main thing to remember is that will rain changes the particular environment of your water. It brings level of acidity, it brings "food" for algae, and it dilutes your own protection.
Next time a person hear thunder, don't stress a lot of. Just be ready to test your water after the sun arrives back out. The little bit associated with proactive maintenance goes a long method in making sure a summer storm doesn't ruin your next weekend pool celebration. Just watch that will pH, give it a good shock, and you'll be back to swimming within no time.