Help! Summer's here and my pool has gone green!

To guard against green water, think filtration

Green water is a disaster, but there"s an easy way to guard against it. At soon as the sun comes out and there are more people in your pool than usual, you need to adjust your filtration settings. Basically, you need to run the filter longer, and make sure it is operating while the pool is in use, not overnight! Combine UV light with a busy pool and you have a recipe for green water. Filtration exists first and foremost to keep pool water safe for swimmers, so it needs to be tailored to the number of people using the pool.

SwimClear™ Filter

To avoid a green water panic, be on the lookout for these three signs

Slippery walls, sticky steps and rising pH levels are early indications of a water quality problem. You need to act quickly, because the situation can deteriorate fast. Slippery surfaces point to the growth of a biofilm made up of micro-organisms that you definitely don't want sharing your pool! As well as being bad for water quality, they increase the risk of slipping. Start by checking everything, beginning with the pH and then the chlorine level. From these readings, you can measure the free chlorine. It can be high if the pH level is too high, while active chlorine is too low. So, pH level is your most important indicator in this situation.

Effective solutions to the green water problem

If your pool has gone green, forget maverick cocktails involving several disinfectants. Mixing products is a very tricky strategy! You may well do more harm than good and end up polluting the water. If you use chlorine to treat your pool and the situation isn't too serious, add stabilised chlorine tablets. Leave them to work and then check again. Still have a problem? Then it's time for the radical solution: a dose of non-stabilised shock chlorine will get your water crystal clear again. Check the pool once more and fine-tune the water with tablets. To avoid further problems, give your filter some TLC.