Storm Recovery for the Pool

So following the long power outage, we also had a torrential downpour this week that turned our already suffering pool water into literal ditch-water!  Seriously, it was turning green and was full of debris.  On the upside, the water level was extremely low after the big freeze, and the rain gave us a free refill.  However, the water was nasty!  Hubby had to spend a couple of days cleaning the pool, replacing the broken plumbing pipes, and getting the equipment running again.  Once the pump was running for a while, it took care of a lot of the discoloration in the water.  But we discovered more pool damage from the freeze, unfortunately.

The high-end pool heater that we’ve already had rebuilt was heavily damaged.  The freezing water caused a crack in the manifold of the heater.  ARGH!  It’s $2,000 for a new pool heater.  This is the worst news of all.

In addition, the frozen line to our robotic pool cleaner (which we’ve affectionately dubbed “Perkins”) sprung a big leak at one of the snap joints, which is preventing it from moving around and doing its job of cleaning the bottom of the pool.  I went to Leslie’s Pool Supplies today and got the part ($25) and also had them do a pool water test for us to see what we needed to do to recover this nasty water after the pool being down for a couple of weeks.  It actually wasn’t in too bad of shape, surprisingly.  Phosphates were high, which feeds algae.  Calcium hardness was actually low for a change, which can damage pool surfaces and heater equipment.  We have really hard tap water here, so it’s usually the opposite problem.  But the quick fix was a gigantic 25-lb. bucket of calcium at a cost of $50.  We shall see.  Between pumping all the debris through the filter and adding the calcium, the pressure shot way up, so we’ll have to keep an eye on that. 

To get the pool pumping despite the cracked heater, he bypassed the heater altogether for now.  When we get that replaced, no one knows.  But that means no more nights in the spa, which is a shame.  We usually use it at least once every weekend.  And wouldn’t you know I just paid to fill the propane tank right before the big freeze?!?

Eventually, hubby ran out of daylight working on the pool.  He plans to replace that connector on Perkins tomorrow afternoon.  I will probably add some shock to help clear up the pool if the color is still off.  This pool sure has cost us a ton of money over the last 4 years!

Here’s to a better week that hopefully feels a little bit more normal…