All ‘KSL Property Services’ pool technicians hold a valid NSPF® Certified Pool Operator® or CIMSPA PPO Certification.
A monthly check is also made by senior members of staff who hold a valid NSPF® ‘Certified Pool Inspector’® licence.
All company operations are also supervised by our Exec. Director, who is certified to the NSPF® Associate Instructor level, the highest certification level currently available.
This focus on training and oversight ensures the consistent high level of pool safety and maintenance available.
TESTING SCHEDULE
The swimming pool is tested on each visit for Chlorine Free, Chlorine Total, Chlorine Combined and PH. Alkalinity, Calcium and Cyanuric Acid are tested at least once per month. Any tests are reconfirmed before any chemical adjustments are made to the swimming pool.
CHEMISTRY
Swimming pool chemistry is made up of materials dissolved into the water, to ensure effective disinfection of the pool water and prolong the life of the pool equipment and liner we monitor the levels of key materials. These levels are constantly fluctuating depending on chemistry, bather load, weather etc.
When testing these results are then used to calculate swimming pools water ‘balance’. We do not expect levels to all be perfect when we perform these tests, a swimming pool is an open system constantly being contaminated by users and the environment. The purpose of the tests is to detect what levels have dropped out of balance and adjust accordingly. Our aim is to keep the water chemistry properly balanced so that we pick up levels that have dropped out of the ‘ideal range’ before they drop out of the ‘accepted range’.
Most of these levels are not regulated however there are legal limits for Cyanuric acid as high levels reduce the effectiveness of disinfectants like Chlorine and promote the spread of bacteria and viruses.
Here below is a quick guide to help all owners understand the importance of managing the balance within a Swimming Pool.
FC – Free Chlorine
The Ideal level is between 2 and 4 ppm (parts per million).
Accepted Range is 1-10ppm.
Levels immediately after manual dosing may be higher.
FC should be tested and chlorine added daily, unless you have an automatic feeder or SWG, in which case you can test it every couple of days. FC is consumed by sunlight and by breaking down organic material in your pool.
It is important that you do not allow FC to get too low, or you run the risk of getting algae and/or having an unsafe pool.
TC – Total Chlorine –
Ideal level is for the total to be the same as the free chlorine.
Accepted Range is <0.2ppm
pH
Ideal level is between 7.4 and 7.6ppm.
Accepted Range is 7.2-7.8
pH indicates how acidic or basic the water is. pH levels between 7.2 and 7.8 are suitable for swimming, while levels between 7.4 and 7.6 are ideal.
We primarily use a type of chlorine that while is the best for the types of pool in Cyprus does have a side effect of increasing PH. Due to this we tend to find that the PH is usually high when tested. We add balancing chemicals to the pool to counteract this effect.
TA – Total Alkalinity –
Ideal levels are 80ppm-100ppm when using Calhypo and 100ppm-120ppm when using Dichlor/Trichlor. Accepted Range is 60ppm-180ppm
Total alkalinity indicates the water’s ability to buffer pH changes. Buffering means you need to use larger quantities of a chemical to change the pH. At low TA levels, the pH tends to swing around wildly. At high TA levels, the pH tends to drift up slowly.
CH – Calcium Hardness –
Ideal level is between 200ppm and 400ppm
Accepted Range is 150ppm-1000ppm
Calcium hardness indicates the amount of calcium in the water. Low levels of calcium can damage tiled/plaster pool surfaces. High levels can damage heaters, pumps and block pipe work.
CYA – Cyanuric Acid –
Ideal level is between 30ppm and 50ppm
Accepted Range is 0-100ppm
Cyanuric acid protects FC from sunlight however at higher levels it lowers the effective strength of the FC. The higher the CYA level, the more FC you need to get the same effect.
Due to its relationship on the effectiveness of disinfectant like chlorine, CYA is legally regulated.
NSPF guidelines along with the CDC and WHO advise a maximum safe level for CYA is 100ppm. In Cyprus the legal limit is 200ppm. We self regulate that a pool should never exceed CYA of 100ppm.
Information Provided by KSL Property Services (D J Key Services Property Ltd)
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