Like the many, you may be wondering ‘well, I just filled pool with water, now what? Filling a new pool with water is exciting but it’s still not safe for the swimmers.
Well, you need to use some pool startup chemicals to make it safe. Treating pool water might seem daunting if you have never done this before.
Well, I have written this guide on exactly how to treat pool water for the first time as per the CDC guideline and various pool expert’s advice.
Steps To Follow After You Just Filled Pool With Water
Safety comes first, so let’s cover it now. There are plenty of things that can go wrong unexpectedly. It might be leaking which happens a lot. So, detect such pool leaks first.
It’s true for sure if this is the first time you are prepping your pool. Follow these steps to make your backyard pool safe for everyone:
- Take Steps To Prevent Injuries
Pool drowning is real and there are serious consequences of chemical injuries. So, you must take preventive measures against drowning and injuries from pool startup chemicals.
I am not trying to scare you but the leading cause of injury-related death of children is drowning. And most of the drowning happens in the pool.
So, in addition to fencing around the pool, install window locks and alarms as well. And never leave your children in the pool unsupervised.
Chemical related injuries involve water splashing to the eyes and sometimes on to the skin. So, everyone should be wearing safety masks or goggles and you want to post aquatic safety signs around your pool.
- Turn On The Filter
Assuming you have taken and ensured all the safety issues, turn on the filter as per the pool manufacturer’s instruction to get started.
Make sure the filter is working properly. If not, contact the manufacturer immediately. Don’t try to troubleshoot the problem yourself if you don’t know what you are doing.
- Give It Another Vacuum Cleaning
I know you have already done a great job cleaning your pool, but debris may have entered inside the pool after you have filled it with water.
The lingering debris can damage your pool liner. So, make sure to vacuum the bottom of your pool to remove that debris. If it’s an Intex above ground pool, you can follow this expert written guide on cleaning a small pool in step by step.
You can use your pool skimmer to remove any floating debris from the pool too. But for the bottom of the pool, there are plenty of sources to learn how to remove sediment from the bottom of the pool which you can right away.
- Test The Pool Water
When you use some chemicals needed for pool start-up, you must ensure the water quality.
You can’t just let anybody swim in the pool until the water is tested. You must ensure the water is chemically balanced. You should definitely check the pH level and chlorine to ensure water quality.
As per the CDC recommendation, the water pH level should be 7.2 to 7.8 to keep the swimmers comfortable in the water. The ideal measure is 7.4 if you are wondering.
To make the chlorine more effective to neutralize the germs, if you let the pH level drops below 7.2, the swimmers will gradually become uncomfortable and all the equipment in the pool will start corroding.
Of course, to sanitize your pool, chlorine plays a great role and it’s very easy to use. But use them responsibly and as per the guideline.
As for the alkalinity (water hardness), you should check the whole alkalinity and make sure to set them in between 80 – 120 ppm.
Test the water to be chemically balanced again and again to make the water safe for the swimmers.
- Safely Enjoy Your Pool
Now, it’s time to get in the water once you have tested the water and taken all the safety precautions. There is a nice guideline on the residential pools from the CDC and I strongly recommend reading this to maintain a safe pool environment.
Just Filled Pool And Water Is Green: Why It’s Happening?
When you first notice it, the first instinct will tell you it’s algae. That is absolutely true for sometimes but if it’s a newly filled pool, this may not be the case.
The most plausible reason why you have a green color to your freshly filled pool is copper or iron, whatever may be the case, most likely, you have a lot of metals in the water.
What to do about it?
Well, if you shock the water again, the metals will be oxidized and with the chemical reaction, the water will have a green hue color. So, what should you do?
If you have the option, you should remove those metals and you can get a metal remover like the CuLator. You can insert it in your skimmer basket or in your pump.
If removing metal is not an option for you, you can add some sort of metal sequestrant. You can find them online and it does an amazing job preventing any unwanted effects or stains.
You will get a better result if you treat the water with such metal control as you are filling the pool. Alternatively, you can use the right hose extension that can filter out metals to fill your pool.
If you can already filter the metals from the pool using such hose extension, your water won’t be needing any metal treatments later.
Let’s say you are not filling the pool for the first time. After months, the water is turning into green. Only then, you can say you got an algae pool. I strongly recommend watching this video to solve that problem before you start cleaning your pool.
Frequently Asked Questions (FAQs)
How long after filling Pool Can you swim?
Answer: Approximately, 7 days. This is of course the average time, but you must test your pool water first to determine everything is okay.
Can you swim in a pool just filled?
Answer: of course, you can if it’s a liner pool and the pool water is tap water. Freshly filled tap water does not get contaminated overnight and you won’t be hurting the pool either.
Do you shock a pool when you first fill it?
Answer: Yes, you should shock your pool by adding chlorine to kill the germs.
How long does a pool take to cure?
Answer: 28 days on average. Within this time, your pool strengthens and hardens and you can measure the strength of the concrete by measuring its PSI.
Conclusion
Are you still looking for answers after you have just filled pool with water, now what? As you have just seen, filling a new pool with water is just the work half done, there are plenty of things to ensure.
Follow this in-depth guide and enjoy your backyard pool. Let me know if you have any other queries in the comment box.