You’re sneezing. Your eyes are itching and then you see it: Pollen! How to get pollen out of the pool is a question the swimming pool contractors from Advanced Pools, Inc. in Memphis, Tennessee answer regularly. If you wake up and look out at your pool and see pollen floating on it — there goes the idea of a quick dip, right? Maybe not!
Depending on where you live, pollen is a fact of life in the spring time. Just as you’ve found ways to live with your allergies you can find ways to eliminate pollen from your swimming pool.
How to get pollen out of the pool
It’s not difficult to get pollen out of the swimming pool and that’s the best part of it. It also won’t take too long so if you still want to take a swim, you won’t have to wait long.
- Check when the pollen will be the heaviest. Many weather apps let you know when the pollen levels are at their peak — when you’re armed with this information you can plan outdoor activities and be certain the pool cover is on to keep pollen out.
- Make sure it truly is pollen and not algae spores. Some strains of algae look a lot like pollen when it’s floating on the water. Mustard algae is yellow, but it will stick to the sides and bottom of the pool — it won’t float on the water the way pollen does.
- Run the pool filter. If you have a problem with pollen, run the filter more frequently and for longer hours than you typically do. This will draw the pollen from the surface of the water into the filter and keep the water pollen-free.
- Grab your skimmer. Plan to skim the surface of the water more often. When pollen is heaviest check the pool often and skim off the fallen pollen before it falls to the bottom of the pool and before it gets sucked into the filter. If the pollen is too small to be lifted out with a skimmer, your pool contractor may recommend adding aluminum sulfate to the water. This chemical will bind with the pollen, causing it to clump and making it easier to remove.
- Shock the pool to kill off any organic contaminants the pollen may have brought into the pool water.
- Grab the vacuum. If the pollen has fallen to the bottom of the pool, you will want to vacuum it up. Vacuum slowly so you don’t stir it up and cause it to float around in the water rather than being removed.
Use your pool cover to keep the pollen out and just realize you will need to deal with pollen on occasion!
