Pool care articles
What to check on your pool after a storm
After a storm, have any pool equipment that was exposed to water inspected by a pool professional before you switch its breakers back on, and do not restart or repair it yourself. Then clear the debris and check and balance pH, alkalinity, hardness and conditioner before adding chlorine, as Pentair's storm guidance describes. Sullivan's Pool Service looks after pools in Austin weekly; green-pool recovery is assessed and quoted separately.
Before you switch the equipment back on
Pentair's advice after extreme weather starts with the equipment. Pool equipment that was exposed to water should be inspected by a pool professional before power is restored. Pentair also says not to restart pool equipment before that assessment and not to try to repair broken pool equipment yourself.
Its guidance for pools that came through a storm and a long power outage adds a practical step. Contact a pool professional to assess the damage and give estimates, and document what you find: notes, photographs and the part numbers of any damaged equipment. Pentair recommends making an appointment with a pool professional to help create a plan.
Clear the debris, then rebalance
Pentair's post-storm steps include removing the debris from the pool. On the water side, the order of work is balance first and chlorine after: check and balance pH, alkalinity, hardness and conditioner before adding chlorine. Once the pool is running and water quality is back to normal, Pentair recommends keeping an eye on it over the next few days.
The numbers to aim for
The CDC's guidance for home pools gives the targets to rebalance toward. It recommends a pH of 7.0 to 7.8 and at least 1 ppm free chlorine, or at least 2 ppm in pools that use cyanuric acid or stabilized chlorine products. For a hot tub it recommends at least 3 ppm chlorine and no cyanuric acid or stabilized chlorine products.
The CDC also recommends testing chlorine and pH at least twice a day, and more often during heavy use. Sunlight, and the pee, poop, sweat and dirt that swimmers bring in, can reduce chlorine concentration. Follow the test manufacturer's directions, and keep one limit in mind: a sample above 10 ppm chlorine may bleach the test and give a false low or zero reading.
If the water turns green
Green water is a reason to check the disinfectant, the pH, the debris and whether the equipment is running. Keep swimmers out while the condition is assessed; clear-looking water is not by itself permission to swim. If the water has turned green, read our note on green pool recovery time. When you tell us about it, include the change you noticed and any recent test results.
Before we quote any recovery, we look at the pool itself: what the tests show, including stabilizer, how the filter is doing and how much debris is in the water. The color of the water cannot tell anyone the treatment, the price or the day the pool can be used again, and we never offer a set number of days or a color change as a promise of safety. The work itself can mean cleaning, running the filtration and correcting the chemistry by the product and equipment instructions, and we keep testing afterward to follow the progress. You approve the quote before recovery begins, and replacing any of the water gets its own safety assessment first.
Where weekly service fits
Sullivan's weekly visit in Austin covers skimming, brushing, vacuuming, emptying the skimmer and pump baskets, checking the filter pressure against its clean baseline and testing the water, with an equipment check and a written note after every visit. The visit schedule is not a testing schedule: between visits, the CDC's twice-daily checks still apply. Equipment repairs and one-time recovery work are quoted separately, and their timing is confirmed for the property. When the water, the equipment or the way the pool is used changes, that is the time to talk about additional care. Nobody has to be home when we come by after a storm. We only need a way through the gate that you have agreed with us, and any pets kept clear of where we are working.
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Sullivan’s Pool Service maintains pools in and around Austin, including Northwest Hills, South Austin, West Lake Hills, Tarrytown, Great Hills, River Place, Crestview, East Austin, North Austin, West Campus, Hyde Park, Downtown Austin and St. Johns, and in Bee Cave, Cedar Park, Georgetown, Leander, Pflugerville and Round Rock. See every service area.
Weekly residential service has one fixed monthly price, set by pool size: see pool service pricing for what each size tier covers.
Tell us about your pool
Tell us your service location and whether you need weekly care, help with equipment, or a one-time service. Call or send the quote form. We’ll confirm availability and the next step for your pool. Repairs and other separately quoted work are discussed before approval.