My Pool Water Is High in Phosphate

Phosphates

• When twigs and leaves blow into your pool and are left there to decay on the surface of the water, those organic wastes can mix with your pool water. This leads to increased phosphate levels. Most pool owners do not test regularly for phosphate levels in their pool because if you vacuum and keep the pool sanitized this is not usually problem. If algae is growing quickly in your pool, however, phosphates could be the reason.

Test Pool Water

• Do not invest time and money into combating a high phosphate level in your swimming pool until you know for sure that there is a problem. A phosphate testing kit can be found in many pool supply retailers. This will give you an accurate reading of the phosphate levels in your pool. These are specialty kits that must be purchased separately from your typical water testing kit which are limited to readings for chlorine, pH,. alkalinity and calcium hardness only.

Lower Phosphates

• Pool supply retailers have a solution for pools that are being affected by phosphate wastes. Chemicals are available that will lower the phosphates in your pool. Consult the specific product guidelines for directions on adding them to your pool water. In most cases, the chemical is added through the pool skimmer in a dosage that is in accordance with your water capacity and phosphate levels. The pool filter should be run for at least 24 hours before retesting.

Vacuuming

• Pool owners whose swimming pools lie beneath a tree are most vulnerable to a spike in phosphate levels because of the amount of leaves and twigs that routinely fall into the pool. In other areas these items fall into the water after a windy storm. In either case, vacuuming and skimming the pool surface on a regular basis will go a long way in preventing high phosphate levels in your swimming pool. Without exception, a clean pool will lead to less water chemistry problems.