It’s also the case when you first fill a swimming pool, and perfect water balance is no less important when first filling a pool than it is before you turn loose any kind of automatic pool equipment, automatic cleaners in the case of this post. In the opening 100 words of your pool-opening routine, you ought to be testing and adjusting for the presence of chlorine, pH, alkalinity, calcium hardness, and stabilizer. Once the chemical treatment has taken place, tools like a skimmer, pool vacuum, and pool robotic pool cleaner step in to prevent debris and microscopic particles from getting in the way of your fresh chemical levels.
Test and Add to pH and Total Alkalininty
1 – Fill your pool halfway up the skimmer opening. Measure pH and total alkalinity with a good test kit. Try to achieve 7.2 to 7.6, and the alkalinity between 80 – 120 ppm. If it is low, then you need to add pH increaser; if it is high, you will need to add pH decreaser. Correct alkalinity helps to prevent pH fluctuations.
Clear with Chlorine or Non-Chlorine Shock
After pH is level, sanitizing is next. Be sure to mix any chlorine or non-chlorine shock according to instructions on the package. This first stage shock treats harmful bacteria, organic contaminants, and chloramines which are found in fill water. Wait 4–6 hours, and then retest free chlorine; make sure it’s 1–3 ppm.
Stabilize with Cyanuric Acid
UV light breaks down chlorine quickly if your pool is outside. You can also add cyanuric acid (stabilizer) at a rate of 30–50 ppm, which will prolong the life of your sanitizer in the sun. “Step one: Dissolve granules in a bucket of water and broadcast around deep end—never dump directly over steps.
Adjust Calcium Hardness
Low hardness When hardness is less than 200 ppm it may be corrosive to plaster and liners. Scaling may occur at high hardness (more than 400 ppm). If hardness is too low, add calcium increaser. Go ahead and use that and keep the level between 200-400 ppm.
Prevent Algae with Algaecide
To help to avoid greenouts, even in hot, sunny areas, dose a base algaecide after your first chlorine shock. This layer makes your robot pool cleaner, pool vacuum robot work effectively It can avoid filters prevents from clogging for long life.
Alt: robot pool cleaning checking and balancing pool water with chemicals
Pre-Chemical and Post-Chemical Mechanical Cleaning
As the chemicals are circulating already, go do an initial debris removal:
Use a skimmer to collect leaves and surface debris.
Clean up heavy debris with a pool vacuum set to main drain.
After the chemicals have mixed (typically 24 hours), run your robot pool cleaner or swimming pool robot cleaner through a full-cycle cleaning. Current models like the Beatbot AquaSense 2 Ultra, Beatbot AquaSense 2 Pro, and Beatbot AquaSense 2 are capable of filtering fine debris as well as some light algae, for sparkling clear water from the beginning.
For Tough Stains: Acid Wash
If you see mineral rings or deep stains around your pool tiles and around your steps, it may be the perfect time for a light acid wash using our guide on how to acid wash a pool for safe and effective removal of calcium build up. Always rinse thoroughly before returning to your robot pool cycle.
But What If You Can’t Run Your Pump?
If you face a rare pump failure, you should have a good idea of how to drain an inground pool without a pump so that you can lower the water level safe enough to spot-treat and tile-clean without causing damage to your equipment.
Enhance the Movement with a Pool Booster Pump
For the water flow to go down on the shallow end of the pool or steps, keystoning a pool booster pump can allow chemicals to become emitted more evenly and your robotic pool cleaner can travel easily to those hard-to-reach areas. Check out our What is a pool booster pump primer for installation tips.
Not to Be Confusing: Can a Robot Pool Cleaner Pick up Algae?
Typically your robot pool cleaner should easily pick up residual algae after you properly shock and treat with algaecide. If you see green water, do what you can to suck up algae on your manual vacuum using the algae attachment, then run a stroke with your pool vacuum robot.
Conclusion
Conclusion: If you are working with a freshly filled pool, start with the pH and Alkalinity, then an initial shock, followed by a Stabilizer, Calcium Hardness, and a preventative Algaecide. Clean out your leaf catcher, use your robotic pool cleaner or pool skimmer and pool vacuum before and after chemical movement. With a measured effort and the proper tools, your pool will remain crystal clear and swimmable all season long.
