How much money, work, and care is needed to maintain a swimming pool?

Question

We are getting a pool, and don't know what much money it will take for heating/cleaning/maintaining the pool. Does it take long or is it hard to clean outdoor swimming pools, and if we hire someone to clean it how much? Is it a lot of work? Also, do pools attract a lot of mosquitos, and is there anyway to prevent that?

Answer 1

Talk to your pool salesman and ask him.  I don't have specifics, but I can say from experience that it takes lots of care.  Don't put it near any trees as the leaves all end up at the bottom of your pool.  Then it is dip, dip, dip and vacuum, vacuum, vacuum! We stopped using ours in cold weather because it was costing around $100 a day to operate the heater, so we just have a summertime pool and I am blessed with grown kids to clean it.Pools are so much fun though and great exercise, they are also instant party locations too.  People will want to use your pool for their parties, so be sure and tell them they have to help do the maintenance. That is what we expect and get.  Have fun!

Answer 2

That is altot of questions. First, cleaning a swimming pool is not difficult at all. Sometimes people are hesitant to initially get a pool installed because they feel it will be too much hassle to keep clean. The best invention for pools is the automatic pool cleaner. This requires little time to setup and usually range from 250 - 600 dollars. Hiring someone to come clean your swimming pool is much like a service - dollar for dollar - of having someone some out to cut your lawn. It is usually about 30 dollars a week and these pool service companies will often check your pool chemicals too.

Pools do not attract mosquito's when they are properly chlorinated and the filters and pumps are working. That type of insect needs stagnant, non chlorinated water topropagatee.

Finally, heating your swimming pool, depending on the temperature and the climate you live in (i.e. heating a pool will be more expensive for outdoorin groundnd pools in maine vs. california as the cooler the climate needs to be heated for longer intervals). Pool heating and having your pumps running usually ads 30 each month to your power bill.

If you are considering expense, don't forget about home owners insurance as your rates will usually increase 30-40 a year.

Answer 3

the answer is.... It all depends on how much work you want to do...

There are some costs that cant be cut, such as  your Water Bill, Chemical costs <for chlorine as an example> Cleaning  your pool shouldnt be too hard at all.  IF you are adding a heater, then you are going to have the costs associated with using that piece of equipment, if its an electric heat pump, your going to use a good amount of Electrical, if its Propane or Natural Gas, you are naturally going to be using alot of that gas.  Warmer water also means more chemicals, since warmer water requires more chlorine to keep it clean and clear.  Warmer water also means you are going to be filling your pool more often.  If you live in an area that gets down into the 40's or 50's <here in the northeast it has already done that a few times> and your heated pool water is 78 or 80 degrees, you will be losing alot of water to evaporation.  It would not be uncommon for you to come out in the morning, and see that  your pool water has lowered itself by a half inch or inch.  It's not a leak, its just evaporation.  

IF you keep your water balanced, and have your equipment running properly, you shouldnt have any mosquitos.  Mosquitos like standing stagnant water, such as thatof a bird bath.  Generally if you have a swimming pool, and people swimming in it, and with the chemicals, it is not their ideal place to go hang out and lay their eggs.  However, if you let it sit for a week or 2 weeks and dont run your motor, let it turn green with algae, then it will be a perfect breeding ground for the mosquitos.

As for cleanign the pools.  I used to service 12-15 swimming pools a day sometimes over a 50-60 mil stretch from start to finish in the day.  So figuring in 2 hours of travel time at a minimum, it left my partner and I about 8-10 hours to complete the cleaning, and balancing of these pools in a day. So to vac out your pool, add chemicals, and test your water, it shouldnt take you more than 45 minutes to an hour once you get the hang of what you are doing.

As for cleaning pools and using a company, check with your local companies, most companies offer a service called Weekly service <which is what i talked about above with the 12-15 pools a day>.  They will come and clean the pool, check equipment and add the necessary chemicals for your pool.  Prices will vary by company, but you are probably going to pay 45-50 dollars minimum for this type of service..

Answer 4

Sabby,

We live in the Pacific NW, put up our pool in June and take it down in September. It's 4 feet deep and is 16' in diameter.

The biggest expense every year seems like the water. It takes $50-$100 to fill the darn thing.

We then have to purchase PH balance, Chlorine (both the shock granules and the floater pellets), the filters, and the testing kit.

I would say we spend around $30-40 per summer on these supplies.

It doesn't take much to keep it clean other than to test it daily and make sure the water is balanced. If you don't then you'll find yourself scrubbing the bottom and sides and super chlorinating the pool. We also turn the filter on at night.

I hope this helps.

Enjoy!

Answer 5

It seems Mark and I have the same pool but I spend about $100 more on WATER!!! Just test it everyday pH blah blah blah....

It's mroe fun when your in it sipping appletini's on a hot day......ok i drink goldschlager ,tequila, whiskey beer and vodka... not tini's but you get the idea!

goo luck! yes im buzzed!~