Brushing is an important part in swimming pool maintenance. It loosens dirt and debris from the walls and floors of your vessel. It also prevents algae spores from taking a foothold in your pool’s surface. Finally, it helps mix the chemicals, which helps them be more effective.
Choosing a Brush
There are many types of swimming pool brushes out there. Some typical ones are vinyl, wire, corner and combo. They are each used for different surfaces and for different tasks. Some people own 2-3 brushes and have to stop what they are doing, remove the current brush from their telescopic pole and then replace it with the other brush needed. Luckily, there is a lot of new technology in the ever-growing world! This does not exclude the swimming pool industry.
There are swimming pool brushes that have this new technology. They call it a 360 degree technology because you get brushing action from literally every side! Even the edges can be used in place of your corner brush. They even have a three-pack that comes with a 12”, 18” and 24” brush. Perfect for all the nooks and crannies of your swimming pool! Check it out here.
If you want a really cool swimming pool brush with a household name, I would check out the American-made Black & Decker 18” brush. With it’s telltale trademarked orange and black coloring, you’ll know you have a name trusted by homeowners and professionals alike!
How Often Should I Brush My Swimming Pool?
This is an excellent question and one that I get asked a lot from my clients and even my pool service professionals. The answer is as many times a week that is needed. I know that doesn’t sound very helpful. What I mean is, a standard pool requires 2-3 times a week brushing. But, if you are brushing only once a week and you get spots of algae building up, then you would need to increase your frequency. No two pools are alike. Even ones next door to each other. As a Certified Algae Prevention and Eradication Specialist, I learned from my mentor Rudy Stankowitz, to think of the swimming pool as your patient and yourself as the doctor. We need to treat our “patient” (the pool) by tailoring our maintenance to it’s needs.
How to Brush an In-Ground Swimming Pool
- Attach your brush to your telescopic pole. Most brushes and poles are universal and will be interchangeable with one another.
- You’ll want to keep the pole shorter in length for the walls and stairs and the pole longer for the floor and any hard to reach areas
- Brush the shallow end, steps and any baja shelves or built in benches first
- You want to start at the shallow end floor, pushing the debri towards the deep end and ultimately, the main drain.
- Then you will want to deep end floors and walls last.
- Do any corners or underneath rockscape with the edges of your 360 degree universal brush.
- When brushing the walls, have consistent, long strides. Start at the top and push down, Then move a little to the left or right and do the same thing in the spot right next to it.
- When doing the floors, extend your arm and the pole as far out as you can reach.
- Make sure you keep your back straight to have a good stroke and also to prevent injury
- Scrubbing stains off the wall take a lot of elbow grease so don’t be surprised if you feell like you did some bench presses afterwards. This is a sign of having done a stellar job brushing.
After all the dirt and debris has settled or been pushed into the main drain into your filter, you can vacuum your pool. This is hours if not a day later. If you have an automatic pool cleaner, you are not only the owner of a cleaner pool, but you are working smart–not hard. Robotic cleaners are completely independent from your pump and filter. They will clean the walls floors and even tile line of your swimming pool. With self-contained canisters, there is less debris in your pool filter which equals less filter cleans for you. You may think you have to spend a thousand dollars or more on a robotic automatic pool sweep. You do not. You can have a durable, sleek and reliable cleaner right here
I am all about a clean, inviting and safe swimming pool. This requires work. I say, make it as easy on yourself as possible by taking advantage of the technology advances when it comes to swimming pool equipment. See you poolside!
