How to Prepare Your Swimming Pool for Severe Weather - Drought

If you live in an area where drought is common and water conservation is a way of life, you’ll want to read the below list of tips, products and resources to help you understand and manage drought’s impact on swimming pool usage.

Swimming Pool Water Conservation Tips for Drought Conditions

The good news is that you can still enjoy a swimming pool in times of drought! Statistics have shown that a properly maintained pool can use less water than a lawn of the same size would. With the correct chemical balance, pools can go for years and years without needing to be refilled. Use the tips below to help you save water and enjoy your pool to the fullest. Or download this infographic and keep these tips with you on the go!

Have your water tested regularly. Maintaining a properly balanced pool saves water and prevents evaporation.
Have your pool checked for cracks and leaks.
Use a pool cover to reduce evaporation.
Lower your water level to one inch above the bottom of a standard 6” tile line to reduce “splashout.”
Use caution when using water features like fountains. The aeration of these features increases evaporation.
If your pool is heated, lower the temperature to reduce evaporation.
Install automatic timers or controls to open your cover, maintain water temperature and turn off features.
Use cartridge filters that can be cleaned manually and don’t require backwashing.
Reduce water volume with built-in pool features like steps, ledges, beach entries and swim up bars.

If you live in an area prone to drought, reach out today to find service and supplies to prepare your backyard.

Recommended Drought-Friendly Swimming Pool Products

There are several products that you can use to promote water conservation in your swimming pool not only during times of drought, but year-round.

Swimming Pool Automation Systems & Timers

Control temperature remotely, turn fountains and water features on and off with timers, and open and close automatic covers. Reducing the temperature of pool water reduces water loss to evaporation, an important part of water conservation. Here are a few of our top product recommendations to help you manage water temperature and conserve water:

Safety Covers / Automatic Covers / Winter Covers

The average uncovered pool loses one inch of water per week. Covering your pool can save up to 30 – 40% of water lost to evaporation! One simple way to reduce the amount of maintenance water that is needed to fill the pool is to install an automatic safety cover. Not only will a cover keep your pool warm and reduce the amount of debris that falls into the water, it also reduces evaporation, keeping more water in your pool. Below we list a few of our recommended safety covers:

Solar Covers

Solar covers work with the sun to catch and retain heat. The covers retain the heat gained during the day at night when the temperature is typically lower, resulting in a warmer pool, energy and water conservation and lower operation costs. In the following list we recommend several solar heaters:

PoolStyle Heating Blanket with Thermo-Tex
Solar Sun Ring™

Liquid Solar Blanket/Cover Products

Liquid solar blankets work to spread a very thin layer over the surface of the pool to prevent the excessive loss of water from evaporation. The layer is one molecule thick and can’t be seen nor felt by swimmers. However, it saves water and money by dramatically decreasing evaporation and heat loss and reduces the frequency of water adjustments. Below you will find a list of Swimmingpool.com’s Liquid Solar Blanket recommendations:

Water-Conserving Swimming Pool Filters

In comparison to sand or DE filters that use water to backwash, cartridge filters do not require the use of water. Therefore, conserve water by using a cartridge filter. Here are our brand recommendations:

Swimming Pool Chemical Maintenance Products

Properly maintaining your swimming pool with chemicals saves water and reduces evaporation. By using sanitizers, shock, balancers, clarifiers and metal controls as part of your regular maintenance routine, your pool should remain clean and not need to be drained. Therefore, we recommend the following products to keep your pool water sparkling clean: