Water Evaporation

windsob · Postby **windsob** » Tue 13 Jul, 2010 13:36

We are first time pool owners. The pool is at a second home in Florida on a barrier island. We are gone from this property for months at a time. We have a weekly pool service that maintains the pool. The pool service will check the water level weekly and add water to the pool. It looks like the prior owners had an water float hooked to the hose that would automatically add water to the pool if it was low. The current float no longer operates. I am trying to figure whether out whether this is neccessary. What is the risk of damage to pool if the water level gets too low and how low does it have to get before there would be the possibility of damage? If the pool service is there once a week should I be concerned about this?

lbridges · Postby **lbridges** » Tue 13 Jul, 2010 16:34

Depends on the conditions - if the water level drops below the skimmer opening the pump may run dry and seize (depending on setup).

I'm about a 90 minute drive north of Vero (Indialantic) and have not lost more than 1/4" per day - my "normal" mid-tile water level means there is 3" in the skimmer. In my specific case it would take about 12 days between visits for a problem to happen.

Postby **chem geek** » Wed 14 Jul, 2010 11:43

You can see from this map the annual pan evaporation rates in different areas of the country. For Florida, it's around 60 inches per year which is around 0.16" per day, but in practice the evaporation is higher during the summer when the water is warmer than in the winter when the water is cooler, so 1/4" per day would seem about right as a limit. If the water is heated with a solar heater, then evaporation rates can be higher.

Postby **floridapooltech** » Tue 03 Aug, 2010 21:20

If you suspect a leak in your pool, the first places to look should be around the skimmer, lights, and ladder (if you have one). More commonly, it is just an evaporation issue as Florida's heat during the summer (upper 90's) can evaporate water at an accelerated rate! If you have a pool service company (and he knows what he's doing), he should be able to tell you if there is a leak or not since this will cost him much more in chemical costs than if there wasn't a leak.