Propools.com

Pacific Pool Products a leading swimming pool industry manufacturer has entered into an alliance to sell their Performance brand of certified-safe safety covers through propools.com. Pacific Pool Products, a manufacturer of inground pools, inground pool vinyl liners and other swimming pool products.

Pacific’s Performance Pool Safety Covers both protect your loved ones and your investment, available in a variety of designs and materials, including solid and mesh pool safety covers. Propools.com can guide you through the process of selecting and installing your pool safety cover. Performance Pool Safety covers by Pacific Pools come with a 20-year transferable warranty on all of pool safety covers. The Best Warranty in the Industry.

The Pacific Performance Pool Safety Cover difference is evident:

• Interlocked, double overlapped seams provide strength
• Coping anti-rub strips won’t mark up your pool edge Double decker webbing edges can’t unravel
• Heavy-duty double coil, low-profile springs come standard
• Custom non-corrosive hardware and brass anchors Solid covers feature INVIS-A-DRAIN and optional pump
• KEM-KAP allows you to add chemicals to the pool without removing the cover
• Exceeds safety standards from the ASTM

Pacific Performance Pool Safety Covers eliminate:

• Dangerous standing water
• Mosquitoes and insects
• Leaves, branches and odors
• Hard to handle water bags and tarps
• Pool Safety Covers are available as ProTex or BioShade Mesh pool safety covers and LitePro solid pool safety covers.

Pacific Performance Pool Safety Cover Brochure

Whether you choose to install your deck on concrete, wood or pavers, you’ll just need to let us know so we can be certain to send the correct type of deck anchor for your pool safety cover’s Spring.

More Safety Covers:
HPI pool safety covers
SCA safety pool cover
Merlin safety pool covers

Before vacuuming an above ground pool you should make certain the water level is mid-way up the skimmer mouth (opening).

To manually vacuum an above ground pool, typically you:

1. Insert the vacuum head on to the end of a telescopic pole.
2. Attach one end of the vacuum hose to the vacuum head
3. Remove the skimmer lid and skimmer basket
4. If you have a vacuum plate, install it.
5. While holding onto the telescopic pole, allow submerse the vacuum head and let the vacuum hose float on top of the pool water
6. Starting at the end of the vacuum head closest to the vacuum head start feeding the hose down a foot or so into the water.
7. Continue to do this until the air is out of the vacuum hose.
8. Cup one hand over the end of the vacuum hose while putting it into the skimmer either on the vacuum plate or the opening at the bottom of the skimmer.
9. The pump may lose prime but will generally pick prime back up within 10 - 15 seconds.

Once the pump catches prime you vacuum the pool slowly so as not to disturb any surrounding debris on the pool bottom. Once you have finished vacuuming, remove the vacuum hose, vacuum head and vacuum pole from the pool area; then clean the filter system. Depending upon the filter you have, decides how you should clean the filter.
If you’re tired of manually vacuuming your pool, an automatic pool cleaner may be just what you need.

In a recent online trade publication, I ran across the following article which I would like to delve into. It’s from Pool & Spa News.

I would like to share and discuss an issue or issues which the industry I’m in has run across since the advent of the modern day web. Admittedly, I realize there are many businesses, business owner’s and operator’s who do not cozy up to the idea of a consumer buying a product online, then expecting someone in the local area to install it.

Much to my chagrin, I cannot believe this issue still exists within the marketplace today, in so much that there are companies in a local market area who absolutely refuse, to in any way work with or on a product purchased online. As with many industries, there are products sold within the industry which are commodity type products.

Let’s say Consumer A buys such a commodity item online and asks Company B to install it for them. Company B says “Dude, you’re one of those internet customers. I’m not installing that without charging you for the money I lost because I didn’t sell you the product.”

Are consumers being profiled as either a local customer or an internet customer, which may be further segmented into a DIY classification?
Not that there’s anything wrong with this type of classification of customers, because we most certainly do it, but it’s how a business handles those different types of classes that brings about friction in the marketplace.

Our company sells and builds in our industry on a local basis and also sells nationally through our website. We have a localized site for our local customers and then our nationalized site for our national customers. It’s not that the two never meet because they do, and we promote it as such.

We are not the only company in our industry who sells online, so we do have local customers call us and ask if we will install a product which they purchased online. Now, I understand, there are those around the country who, as a dealer, may tell the consumer to take a hike and good luck finding someone to install that. We on the other hand welcome this as an opportunity to broaden our customer base. What we sell to the consumer in a situation like this is our company’s history, integrity, quality of work and the fact that we guarantee our work. Not to say the product won’t fail, but we guarantee our work.

Then there’s the customer who buys one of these products online and then contacts the local professional for some “free” information on installation etc. Within our industry this rubs the wrong way with so many people. Why? I’m not certain but I think it’s in part to the fact that there has been a paradigm shift in doing business, and they “never got the memo”.

I think that one of the reasons why there’s been so much resistance is a lack of adaptiveness and education. Those who are able to improvise, adapt and overcome have been rather successful in blending both a “local approach” and an “internet approach” to doing and generating business.

As we’ve noticed, the two above approaches will in turn have online businesses creating networks of licensed professional’s who will do the installation these “professionals” refuse to do. Thus, these so called “professionals” will be even further behind economically. I wonder to what degree this might be the “squeaky wheel” syndrome by this type of dealer.

What’s the harm in offering out some free advice and guidance to those who ask or require it? Furthermore, what’s the harm in broadening the customer base by doing the installation, doing some leg work, etc., all in an effort to broaden/strengthen your local base? The companies which offer this free advice and affordable installation; both sell and market their service and their company’s value in the market place as an installer, who hopefully adds value by a higher, longer service level.

One industry publication even quoted one dealer as saying “I’ve found that if I work with people, eventually I become the first call on their list,” says Bob Nichols, owner of Precision Pool in Glendora, Calif. “Next time they have trouble, there I am! I think it’s good business to build relationships with people based on their needs rather than yours.” To this point I couldn’t agree more.
“One time I helped a guy and now I’ve got five of his neighbors [as accounts],” Nichols says. “If I had refused to help, I would have lost a lot of money. My suggestion is don’t walk away until you’ve taken a good, close look at the situation.” Absolutely Sound Advice, in my humble opinion.

So, after reading my ever so brief dissertation; what’s your take on this ?

Life, It’s a Team Sport.

Sand - the oldest and most popular method of filtration for swimming pools and spas. Water flows from top to bottom during normal filtration cycles and use an lateral system in the bottom of the filter to return water back to the pool or spa. Sand filters generally use #20 silica sand which is approximately .40 to .55 mm. As water passes from the top of the filter to the bottom particles of dirt and debris collect on top of and in the sand bed. The filter does need to be cleaned on a normal basis by simply reversing the water flow through the sand. This is usually achieved with a multi-port valve on top of or on the side of the filter.

Cartridge - is BETTER filtration than sand and provides roughly twice as file filtration than that of sand. When water passes through a cartridge filter, the dirt particles are screened out. It is important to clean the cartridges on a normal basis as accumulation of dirt on the outside of the cartridge can drastically effect the efficiency and effectiveness of the filter. Generally, for cleaning the cartridge is removed, soaked in Tri-Sodium-Phosphate then sprayed off with a hose.

D.E. (Diatomaceous Earth) - is the BEST water filtration method available for swimming pools today. Which means it removes even smaller particles than the sand and cartridge methods. Diatomaceous earth is a porous powder with microscopic openings, that when magnified looks like tiny sponges. Clean, Clear water can pass through the openings but any water with small particles ranging from 1 - 3 microns become lodged in the diatomaceous earth particles. All D.E. filters use internal elements to give the powder something to adhere to. Follow the manufacturers instructions for pre-coating a D.E. filter with diatomaceous powder. This is generally done by adding the powder through the skimmer with the filter system circulating.

1. Above Ground Filter Systems
2. Inground Pool Filters

For more information about swimming pool filters and filter systems, please contact Pro Pools at 888-352-7582 or visit our website at propools.com

We get this call quite about when it comes to saltwater chlorine generators, “If I get a saltwater filter system, can I replace the sand filter system that comes with the pool?”
The answer is that the “saltwater filter system”, as so many people call it is not a filter system at all. It is an sanitization system that works in conjunction with the pool filter system.  A lot of people think the saltwater chlorine generators are some sort of filter, but they’re not at all.
The saltwater chlorine generators we sell are an addition to the pool filter system. See more on Saltwater Chlorine Generators for Above Ground Pools and Inground Pools.
Saltwater chlorine generators are installed in the filter system plumbing on the return line after the filter or after a heater, if a heater is installed. The return line is the line which returns the water back to the pool.
Example:

There is also a lot of talk in the market place about wanting to have a “saltwater pool” and that is easily done by just adding a saltwater chlorine generator to the pool filter system.
As with all of these generators there are a few things that have to be done before turning on the generator. 

1. There must be 100 volts of power supplied to the unit
2. A recently filled or newly-refinished pool may contain undesirable matter. This undesirable matter could interfere with chlorine generator’s ability to chlorinate properly. Make sure the water is properly tested and properly balanced before switching on the chlorine generator. Meaning balance the:

1. Free Chlorine
2. pH
3. Total Alkalinity
4. Cyanuric acid
5. Total Dissolved Solids

Optimum Pool Water Chemistry Conditions for Salt Water Pools

Free Chlorine: 2.0 - 4.0 ppm. Above 4.0 ppm may cause corrosion of metal components
Combined Chlorine (Chloramines): None (super chlorinate to remove all chloramines)
pH: 7.2 - 7.8 (USE MURIATIC ACID to lower pH and Soda Ash to raise pH.)
Cyanuric Acid: 50 - 80 ppm
Total Alkalinity: 80 - 120 ppm
Calcium Hardness: 200 - 400 ppm
TDS (includes salt): 3000 minium to 5700 to 6000 maximum ppm
Salt: 3000 - 4500 ppm (ideal 3400 ppm)
Metals (Copper, Iron, Manganese): None
Nitrates: None
Phosphates: Less than 125 ppb

What type of salt should I use in the pool for the saltwater chlorine generator?
Use salt that is at least 99.8% pure NaCl, sodium chloride. The preferred and recommended salt is an evaporated, granulated, food quality, non-iodized salt with no additives. And salt can be found at many of the larger hardware stores, such as Home Depot or Lowe’s.

See more on Saltwater Chlorine Generators for Above Ground Pools and Inground Pools.