Ahhhhh…prime pool season has arrived. Hands up if you’re the type of person who spends the majority of your free time by the water during the summer months. We don’t blame you! Few things beat soaking up the California sunshine while friends and youngsters splash not far away.
But as any property manager or owner can attest to, there’s a lot of behind-the-scenes work involved in keeping a pool in top shape for your residents. The pool deck surface and pool walls, specifically, need extra attention for the coming season. By keeping those well maintained, you not only increase your property’s beauty and safety, but add years to its longevity, as well.
Keep Your Pool Deck Pristine
No one wants to push a broom around while the rest of the world is lounging, but routinely sweeping your pool area will help eliminate the accumulation of dirt and debris that can lead to disintegration of your deck. If you have a lot of falling vegetation or pollen in the area, you may need to perform this task daily. The bonus to keeping your deck’s surfaces nice and clean is there’s less junk that will inevitably fall into the pool. You’ll be doing your filters a favor with every sweep.
Periodic cleaning with a strong hose or power washer will also keep your pool surface spruced up and serve to clear out pesky bacterias that can grow and make areas slippery. Pay special attention to the cooler, damper areas of your deck, such as behind planters and around decorative rocks and fences.
Be Sure to Seal
The life of your concrete relies heavily on how well you protect it from elements, such as chemicals, water, and debris, that can cause disintegration. Sealing the surface annually creates a barrier that resists all of the above and keeps it looking nice year-round. When sealing, pay attention to any small cracks which have occurred and have those filled in before they cause a tripping hazard. Even the smallest of cracks can attract little toes.
Don’t Forget the Pool Walls
You may not think about it as you stumble around during a fierce game of Marco Polo, but the pool walls represent a serious amount of surface area that needs to be maintained. Careful testing and a well-balanced chemical cocktail keeps your water sparkling and goes a long way toward keeping the entire inner surface clean. But there are a few more steps that should be taken:
- Brush, brush, brush. Yes, you have the vacuum, and that does a great job in many respects, but you can’t beat a good brushing for getting to the more challenging problem areas. The water line, behind the ladder, and the seams in the lining are all tricky places where algae can begin to grow.
- Don’t short the run time on your filter. Depending on the size of your pool, you should probably be running the filter 8 or more hours per day. This will accommodate all the water going through the system and keep things clean and fresh. This is especially important when you have a pool that receives high amounts of traffic.
Consider a Replacement
Depending on the age and condition of your pool deck, it may be time to bite the bullet and replace the whole shebang. It sounds like a daunting process, but with the right project management, the whole thing can be just about as easy as a summer breeze. Enter Black Diamond!
When you sign on for a job with us, our experts take care of all aspects of the replacement process. Not only do we have a handle on the concrete work, we manage the entire project, coordinating with other trades from start to finish for a seamless, hassle-free experience for you and your community. Black Diamond’s skilled team, in collaboration with our network of trade professionals, can help you with:
- Concrete surface replacement
- Plumbing system repairs and pressure testing
- Electrical system repairs
- Handrail and skimmer replacement
- Coping
- ADA compliance
- Landscape repair
- Fencing
- Permits
Give us a call to see how we can help your pool deck make a splash this summer!
