Swimming pool chat

Hi Roger,

I am not sure I follow some of your post, I read that you used chlor choc, (choc is a process not a product BTW) but then you added too much and used pH+. If your pH is in range 7.2-7.6 the addition of chlorine will not change that by very much and as the chlorine level lowers the pH would lower to near where it was before choc was added. Cyanuric acid (CYA) is a chlorine stabiliser against the effect of UV from the sun. Some is good but too much is not good, it should be in the range of 30-50ppm ideally but if you are far south with really strong sunlight then a bit more may be ok (french regulations on commercial inc rented gites seems to allow up to 75ppm max) Most packaged product including Bayrol will have it included even in their liquid version.

The chemicals to look for on the back of the packet/container are:

1. Trichlor, (trichlorinated isocyanurates) or some french anagram of similar (probably round the other way).

2. Dichlor, (dichlorinated isocyanurates) as above for the rest.....

3. Calcium hypochlorite.

On a previous post I wrongly posted that Dichlor would add less CYA than Trichlor which is not true but I can't edit that post any more. Dichlor would add more CYA than trichlor by 1/3 because of the extra molecule of CYA.

Please feel free to post your water test results to look at. What tester are you using as dip strips may show a result for CYA but it's far from accurate.

Good Morning John Withall - I think I may have the problem you describe in the article about the new season. We were late opening up - I used Chlor Choc to remove the algae, but may have used too much - so I then used PH+, but I still cannot get my PH/Chlorine levels right, using my tester kit. The filter bags seem to be clogging up very quickly. I have never heard of CYA. Please can you tell me what to look for in terms of products. I have been buying Bayrol products from Castorama for our pool care, but cannot see anything which relates to CYA! Any advice would be very welcome at this stage, as I'm losing sleep over trying to get it right. I reckon I have replaced about 50% of my water.

I am a complete novice at this so will be noting down all the "bits" I need to go with it. Your advice in invaluable. First idiot question - what's a skimmer? Presumably it's the photo. Just it take in the surface water or something? Anyway, so, the list - one skimmer, one sand filter.

Valerie I am sure you'll have a lot of fun for very little money. If I could offer a little advice. Get a skimmer for this type of pool as many don't have them and rely on pipes through the side.

Also upgrading form the tiny pump and cartridge filter to a slightly larger pump with a sand filter would give you less to do. Nothing wrong with cartridge filters but the ones normally used are too small.

Have fun!

Brilliant. Thanks John. Personally I would love to have a lap pool but have neither the space nor the budget so I thought a sturdy "splash n fun" for my littlun. Inflatables are obviously no good in our household (as has been proven repeatedly). One of these, like the picture I grabbed, looks as though it may do the job - much more sturdy, can be left in situ when not in use and can presumably have the regular pumps etc fitted. I think I would have to have a cover anyway simply to reduce algae and keep the leaves etc out when not in use, so that might satisfy requirements if it was slightly sunk into the ground.

Hi Valerie, I am more of a pool teckie than a legal bod but BIL law was given permission for a sizable de mountable pool which was deemed temporary so no tax.

It appears and your Marie will obviously correct us, providing it can be removed without the aid of earth moving equipment etc that it is classed as temporary.

The only issue at this time is sinking into the ground. You would need a security device (cover, alarm or fence) if once sunken the sides from the ground level were less that 1100mm high. Normally these pools comply by just removal of the ladder when not in use.

Don't know if this will work - just grabbed it off an advert. This sort of thing - I assume it comes in a 'kit' so technical can be dismantled. I can sort of envisage it being sunk a little. I can't imagine it would be categorised the same as a permanent, built-in, "posh" pool. And before I forget, thank you for the advice Roger. Appreciate it.

You would need to talk to your Marie on that subject, by demountable I meant a non permanent pool like the wooden jobbies you see round, the plastic oversize paddling pools would certainly be considered temporary, don't know about steel ones tho'

Thank you, Roger. Yes, I do have Kamikaze Kid and one dog that thinks she's a dolphin. Would a metal one (you know the sort, about €600) class as demountable or would it have to be a more capsizable intex or inflatable thing? They are what I was hoping to avoid with said Kamikazi and dolphin dog as they're more likely to collapse completely with all the screaming, splashing and leaping over the sides, ball in mouth. I thought perhaps a more sturdy, metal thing, which can be left partially in-ground all seasons but is still dismantleable (if that's a word). If it's slightly sunk, it might be a bit easier to get in/out as well for short, nearly 9 year old, legs.

Shoot me down if I'm totally wrong but my in ground pool attracts taux Foncière and Taux d' habitation, An above ground demountable pool would not.

Mounting an above ground pool in a hole might be a way round that but you should then make sure that you have a safety fence/cover/alarm against marauding suicidal children, Even if you don't have any!

I'm not sure if this has been mentioned somewhere so apologies if it has (in the middle of a 200 page "thing" on a deadline so haven't trawled).

Can someone tell me about tax implications, if any, of having a small pool, specifically if they vary between in-ground, part-sunk and on-ground? At some point I'm hoping a friend with a small mechanical digger will be turning up to dig out some large balls of bamboo root. Obviously this is going to leave a ready-made hole, probably a couple of feet deep, which could be useful as a base for perhaps a metal or intex-type pool (not huge, a splashy thing).

If it's sunk about a foot into the ground does that have tax implications?

Tony, The Intex pools have several versions so not sure which one you have. Some do not have filters and just circulate the water to keep the chemicals mixed and to prevent dead spots, not even a surface skimmer. Others have small pleated cartridges which actually cost a bit as they are small and don't do such a brilliant job as the pumps are quite small to. Moving up to a sand filter for the largest of the range. To be honest ditching the cartridge filter and up grading to a sand filter is a huge step forward and a lot easier to maintain, the is a constant demand for intex pumps on Ebay, le Bon Coin etc so you can get something towards a sand filter setup. During the day chlorine is burned up by the sun and also by swimmers so running the pump during the day is better if a little tiny bit more expensive but dragging out the dirt and skin/hair cells is better than allowing it to stagnate and sink to the bottom whilst waiting for the night time pump run. That is unless I misunderstood your post and you run the pump for 6 hours overnight during winter.

During the winter our in ground 8X4 pool hibernates and the biggest problem is insuring that the pump and pipework remain free from ice. If you have your pool installed properly with the pipework well underground and the pump housed in a frost free environment it will function well and when you come to open it up in the spring the water should be in a reasonable condition, ie no massive amounts of green grunge. it is at this time when the water is at or about 10°C that you start adding Chlorine to the system in order to bring the pool water to a swim able quality. During the winter I have a heavy duty Pool cover which helps to keep it warm by limiting evaporation, keeps the light out thus reducing the risk of Algae growth and of course stops dirt entering too. to keep the pool ice free I run the pump for 4 hours a night on Heures creuse during the coldest time ie 4am to 8am so that the pool is stirred up and all that warmer water on the bottom is forced to the surface (sort of cheapo heat recovery system) :-).

Winter removal is mainly against ice forming and bursting expensive parts like pumps and filters. Yes it is an on going problem with electricity needing to be switched off. The odd solar panel and battery may help as dosing pumps don't use much electricty but I haven't actually ever setup a system yet to do that but it's on the cards. As an alternative maybe a hot tub, can be a lot of fun and you just have to make sure its emptied and as much water as possible is blown/vacuumed out of the pipework for safety against bacterial growth and legionella etc.

John - many thanks. Invaluable information. An issue for us with automatic remote monitoring would be that we turn off the electrical supply when we are not there, attractive and reassuring as such monitoring would be. It sounds as thought there is no real alternative to routine checking in our absence. Is the reason for removing pumps in winter to avoid damage through freezing or is there another reason? Greatly appreciate your advice.

Welcome Doron,

Pools do require attention but more frequently these days a lot can be done with automatic chemical dosing or one form or another. Some of the latest units will email/text or provide a portal via the internet or smart phone to monitor chemical levels.

With heavy winter covers left on for the majority of the time daylight is excluded so chemical usage is very much reduced. I would still advise that someone checks the pool for you on a regular basis as just like any machine things can play up. In winter we often lower the water levels and remove pumps etc for their own protection but it would still require a visit to hook all that back up again in order to run the pump and filter even when you are not there. Low level heating could be used to eliminate the need to strip the pool equipment in theory but there would also be a risk as I am sure you are aware.

Reduced pump run times would be ok with no one in the pool so if you adopt the Eco pump regime the cost would be minimal to run this.

We have been toying with having a pool installed for some years now and increasingly wish to take the plunge (sorry). The house in France is a maison secondaire and we are there for about 3 months of the year, 2 of which are usually during the summer. Without knowing what might be involved in maintaining a pool I have avoided exploring further for fear of becoming a pool attendant. If I am willing to do what it takes to keep it clean when we are there, my question is this: can a pool be 'winterised' and left unattended for up to six months at a time and especially over winter? Does it require monitoring/remedial attention during such periods of absence? Any advice about what the maintenance entailments of having a pool greatly welcomed.

Hello
I live in Longue Jumelles and have problem with swimming pool leak . Can you advise or recommend someone to come and try to sort ?
Kind regards
Sara Bailey

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Hi Sara, unfortunately in the UK for a couple of months. What type of pool, liner, fibreglass or tiled/plaster

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Hi John… sounds like you are stuck on the M25… :wink::expressionless::expressionless: