Having all the essential pool cleaning supplies and equipment is ideal. But every now and then, you have to improvise.
Because maybe one day your skimmer breaks, or you discover you’re fresh out of chlorine
That’s when DIY pool cleaning and maintenance is your best solution. It helps you keep your pool in good shape even when you lack the proper tools for the job.
So in this post, we show you the most effective DIY pool cleaning and maintenance tips for doing just that.
12 DIY Pool Cleaning and Maintenance Tips For Quick Improvising
1.) Use bleach as an alternative to chlorine for sanitizing your pool
If your pool is around 15,000 t0 30,000 gallons, you can use a gallon of bleach to increase your chlorine levels by about 2 ppm.
To properly chlorinate your pool for the first time, use 1-2 gallons of bleach for a 3-5 ppm chlorine boost.
Important: Since most bleach products don’t contain CYA (cyanuric acid) like pool chlorine products do, you’ll need to add some to your water. If you don’t add CYA, your chlorine will burn up twice as fast, costing you way more money.
2.) Use baking soda to raise pH and Alkalinity
Don’t have any pH increaser? Running low on Alkalinity Increaser?
No problem. Use baking soda.
Baking soda works as both a pH increaser and Alkalinity increaser.
For 10,000 gallon pool use 1 pound of baking soda to increase pH by .2 and Alkalinity by around 7 ppm.
For 20,000-gallon pool use 2 pounds of baking soda to increase pH by .2 and Alkalinity by around 7 ppm.
3.) Use muriatic acid to lower pH
Added too much baking soda? Don’t worry, you can bring the pH back down with muriatic acid.
Muriatic acid generally serves as a cleaning product, but one especially potent.
For safety, we advise never opening up a bottle up muriatic acid in a closed space. Follow all directions printed on the caution label, including wearing proper skin, eye, and mouth protection.
To lower your pH with muriatic acid:
- Fill up a 10-gallon bucket with water
- Add 1 cup of muriatic acid to the bucket
- Gently stir the acid and water together
- Pour acid and water mixture into your pool
NEVER ADD WATER TO ACID! THIS WILL CAUSE AN EXPLOSIVE CHEMICAL REACTION
4.) Remove metal stains with vitamin C (ascorbic acid) and citric acid
Seeing rust and metal stains on the pool floor and walls?
You can remove most metal stains with Vitamin C (ascorbic acid). Yes, the same vitamin you take in the morning.
To do that:
- Grab a handful of vitamin C pills and put them in a sock
- Wrap the sock up tightly
- Rub the part of the sock containing the vitamin C against the metal stains
- Continue buffing the stains with the sock
- As the vitamin C breaks down, it’ll remove stains more effectively
- You can crush up the vitamin C into a powder before putting it in the sock
5.) Remove scaling with vinegar, lime, and baking soda
Dealing with tough, chalk white stains across the pool wall? That’s calcium scaling.
It happens when your water’s Calcium Hardness levels are too high. When pool water has too much calcium in it, it starts getting rid of it. Usually, by creating calcium scales – both on the walls and in your pipes.
Scaling is especially common when your water is unbalanced with high pH levels.
Removing calcium scaling is easier than you might think with the right approach. And you don’t even need pool chemicals.
To make a DIY calcium scaling treatment:
- Add 1 part water to 1 part vinegar
- Soak a sponge in the vinegar-water solution
- Scrub the calcium scaling with the sponge
- Use an old toothbrush with a bit of salt and lime juice for stronger stain fighting
Learn how to keep away calcium scaling for good in this post: How To Remove Calcium Scaling & Lower Calcium Hardness
6.) Make a DIY skimmer sock with old pantyhose
If you check your pool’s skimmer basket often, then you know how fast it can fill up. Especially during the leafier months. But despite all that buildup, there’s still plenty that passes through your skimmer basket. Most of which end up in your filter.
And all that does is get it dirty and clogged up faster. But what if there was a way to prevent that? Something to stop all that debris from ever reaching your filter in the first place?
Well, there is, and it’s called a DIY skimmer sock.
- To make a DIY skimmer sock, all you need are an old pair of pantyhose.
- Stretch the pantyhose over the skimmer basket (like in the picture)
- Tie it up firmly
- Place the sock-lined skimmer basket back into the skimmer hole.
It’s really that simple. This simple addition makes your skimmer basket twice as effective at catching smaller debris. And that takes a load off of your filter, which saves you time and money on replacements.
7.) Create a DIY pool skimmer with a broom, clothes hanger, and window screen
What happens if you need to skim the surface of your pool, but don’t have the skimmer attachment that goes on the pole?
And what if you don’t have a telescopic pole either?
Well, in comes a DIY pool skimmer to the rescue. It’s not perfect, but it does the job.
To make one, you need:
- A broomstick
- Metal clothes hanger
- Window screen
- Duct tape
- Start by bending a metal clothes hanger into a square/diamond shape
- Cut out a square of the screen about 5 inches bigger than the hanger frame
- Secure the screen to the hanger with duct tape
- Attach the hanger-skimmer to the broomstick
8.) Use old window screen as replacement skimmer nets
Already have a pool skimmer and pool, but stuck with a ripped skimmer net?
No problem. Swap out that old broken skimmer net for some window screening. It’s a similar material and works just as good for skimming the surface of your pool.
You can use duct tape or a stapler to secure the screening to the skimmer attachment.
9.) Create a DIY pool vacuum with a hose, funnel, and pantyhose
Need to clean the pool floor, but don’t have a pool vacuum?
Make your own DIY pool vacuum – here’s what you need:
- A PVC hose
- A funnel
- Rubber bands (or duct tape)
- Pantyhose
Here’s what to do:
- First, fill the hose with water by lowering it into the pool
- Next, attach the plastic hose to your skimmer
- Take out the skimmer basket to do this.
- Add the funnel to the free end of the hose
- Wrap the pantyhose over the funnel
- Secure with tape or rubber band
- Place the funnel end of the hose back into the water – you now have a vacuum
10.) Improve your sand filter’s effectiveness by adding DE powder
Have a sand filter, but want even better filtration? Add DE powder to it.
It’ll lock into the sand and add an extra layer for trapping contaminants and keeping your water pure.
Sprinkle about a cup or two of powder into your pool’s skimmer. From there it’ll mix with the water and travel to your filter.
11.) Use a black hose to warm up your water naturally
Looking for easy ways to warm up your water?
Try using a black hose. It’s one of the simplest ways to make a DIY pool heater.
While it won’t work as well as a pool heat pump, it’ll make a noticeable difference on a sunny day. By sitting directly in sunlight, the black hose absorbs heat, which it then transfers into the water flowing through it.
To make your own black hose DIY pool heater:
- Connect a 100 ft garden hose to your outdoor water valve
- Walk the hose over to your pool
- Find a sunny spot, and wrap about 80% of the remaining hose into a coil formation
- Place the free end of the hose into the water
- Turn on the water and allow the hose to heat up
Learn other ways to affordable heat your pool in this post: 7 Cheap Ways To Heat Your Pool
12.) Use a pool brush, hose, and your main drain to clean the pool floor without a vacuum
If you’re using an Intex Pool, or if your pool doesn’t have a main drain, then cleaning the pool floor can be a challenge. Especially without a vacuum or automatic cleaner.
But there’s still a way to do it!
To clean your pool floor without a vacuum, you’ll need:
- Pool brush
- PVC hose
- Pool pump
Here’s what to do:
- Attach your hose to the skimmer opening
- This serves as your vacuum
- Next, use your pool brush to push floor debris into bigger piles
- Walk slowly and carefully to avoid spreading the mess
- Use your vacuum hose to quickly clean up the debris piles
Bonus.) Create a DIY pool cover with a blue tarp
Don’t have a swimming pool cover? A blue tarp works almost as good.
This DIY pool cleaning and maintenance tip is easy to use and super effective. Covering your pool reduces water loss and improves heat retention, which saves you money and keeps your pool comfortable.
To make a DIY swimming pool cover:
- Grab a blue tarp about the size of your pool opening
- Secure the cover at one end with heavy weights
- Next, drape the free end of the cover over the pool
- Use chairs or weights to secure the cover at each corner
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