At least once every 3-5 years, homeowners should be draining and completely replacing the water in their in-ground pools. Even with proper and regular pool maintenance, this is part of the regular upkeep that you should expect with a pool to ensure that your water is safe for swimming. It’s a straightforward, affordable, and more thorough fix than simply adding chemicals.
There are a number of reasons that someone may need to drain and refill their pool. Overall though, the most common reason is an overabundance of Total Dissolved Solids (TDS). Over time, TDS slowly increase in your pool water and, eventually, you begin to lose the ability to balance the water. Your first response is likely to add more chemicals, but that will not solve the problem.
While 3-5 years is the average, the frequency that you should change your water relates to a few variables. These include:
- Maintenance and upkeep
- Usage
- Environment
The best solution is to drain your pool during the mild season when it’s not too hot and not too cold. This makes Spring and Fall the ideal times of year to drain and replace your pool water. These mild temperatures prevent pool surfaces and filtration systems being damaged by sun, heat, or moisture.
How much does it actually cost on average for a drain and refill?
Draining and refilling a pool is much more affordable than most people realize. The labor charge to simply drain and refill is only a few hundred dollars. For those that need a complete acid wash, the labor to drain and acid wash is about $1000. As far as actual water cost goes, don’t be scared off. Most pools only cost about $100-200 in water expense. To calculate, you can look at your bill and see what your HCF=748 gallons cost is. You then multiply that by how many HCF you will need to calculate your water cost. For example, if your pool is 25,000 gallons divide 25,000 by 748 = 33.42 HCF x cost of each HCF $3.34 = $112 is what it will cost to refill a 25,000 gallon pool.
Think it’s time for a water replacement?
Contact us today for a consultation to evaluate your pool to see if it needs to be drained. We will evaluate the water and how long since it’s been drained, check water chemistry and give a recommendation from there. Give us a call at (805) 428 0132 today!