pool maintenance question

[Guest]

I rent out my home in Phoenix, Az which has a small to medium size pool and for the past year I have had weekly pool maintenance.

However I need to cut my expenses and would like the pool service to come out twice a month instead of every week.

What could I do to ensure the pool stays clean if I change from weekly service to twice a month? It was recommended that I invest in a pool vacuum.

Also will having the chemical balance of the pool treated every other week instead of weekly make that much of a difference?

The pool looks great and I would like to keep it that way but just can’t afford the weekly service changes any more.

Thanks for any help you can provide.

John

[Walter]

I recommend a cleaner but if you have renter this might not be good. Also as for chemical balance it will depend on weather and also amount of swimmers. I would try and involve the cost into the rentals. We do rental here 2/week for the summertime, we do 2/month in the winter months but that is because no one is swimming and if the pools have heaters and want to be turned on we know about it so we can monitor the water chems.

[Guest]

Thank for your comments. What I meant by a pool vacuum is a devise which runs automatically and I assume is affixed to the pool. I was told this devise runs about $500. What do you think about such a pool vacuum?

Also the weather is extremely hot during the summer but my guess is the pool is only used on the weekends. So I assume from your replay that the chemical balance in the pool can be maintained ever two weeks. Is this correct?

[Walter]

we use those vacuums here but you will still need to do cleanings and brush the pool. As for the chemicals it will depend on the amount of usage and also the weather. It is a hit and miss with chemicals.