Paphos People

Our communal pool is now getting really low and I cannot contact the other 3 owners as I don't have their email or phone nos since my laptop died.
There must be others on this forum who are experiencing the same.
What are you guys doing?

Tiggy

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Life is what you make it.

Helen

I don't have any worries regarding the level of my pool Helen, as I have some pool equipment that will still clean my pool even when the level drops below the skimmers because once it does, the pump will sieze & burn out if its not switched off, so I'd get your pool man on the case

Check out the 'Pool cleaners' on my website, you may need them one day

I think you are right, may just have to turn off the pump but the pool cleaner has the key to it!!!
Stupid question but are folk filling their pools or just leaving them???

Tiggy

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Life is what you make it.

Helen

Only problem if you turn the pump off, your pool becomes a mozzie breeding ground once the chemicals evaporate, as the water starts to become stagnant & doesn't move, algea starts to grow & the pool starts to dry out

I bet people are still filling their pools even though they're not suppose to be due to the water shortage but if they get caught, it will be either a heafty fine or even a possible jail term who know how the water police will react, after all, this is cyprus

Too true Pete, I turned off the water in our water feature (of which a pitharia forms part) a couple of weeks back. When I looked in the pitharia a few days later there were hundreds - if not thousands - of mosquito larvae swimming around in the (by now stagnant) water. Soon got rid of them, but just shows how quickly they manifest themselves. In a 10 x 5 pool you could have tens of thousands of larvae!

Actually, the fines are not that much of a deterrant...€85 in our neck of the woods. On our development we're talking with a number of private tanker companies with regard to topping up a number of pools at the same time, and share the cost. Lloyd

hi lloyd, it would be interesting to know the outcome of your talks with the tanker companies,i.e. if they're willing to do that, and likely cost etc.there must be a lot of people in the same situation wondering what to do about their pools, including us. an update would be appreciated.
thanks,
linda

Yes please Lloyd, we would welcome any information.
It is going to be a real problem for lots of people and the more we 'pool' information the better we can cope with the situtation.

Tiggy

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Life is what you make it.

Helen

Mozzies are capable of breeding in the smallest amount of water, a 10x5 simming pool left to go stagnant would breed millions & millions of larvae, so if you have to switch off your pool due to water evaporation, your only real choice is to empty it too, but as stated in another post earlier, this may cause untold damage to your liner/tiles, the seals in your pipes, your pump etc etc so before you do take this drastic decision, speak to a pool installation company to find out what the effects of draining is & what costs to refil when/if the time comes

It may be cheaper to buy a suction cleaner which then sucks water from the bottom of your pool through your skimmers & out into your pool, than to keep getting tankers to top up because you can bet your bottom dollar, the tanker companies will double their prices & more if people become desperate to keep their pools above the skimmers, but you don't need to, just get a Skwid/pool suction cleaner to keep that water flowing around your pump & pipes

Yes I sell them but I'm not the only shop in Paphos that does, so I'm not plugging for business, just trying to help give an alternative to having to pay over the odds for tankers when you don't need too

As Lloyd knows, I also sell a automatic surface cleaner (Pooldevil Pro) which connects to your inlet jet & will still work once the water level drops below your skimmers, that on the other hand isn't sold anywhere else

OK guys, will come back once I've got some info...a neighbour is currently investigating.

It's no secret that ours is the pool safety business whose banner adorns the top of the day2day page. Over the last week or two, we've had an increasing number of customers call us up re. covers to put over the pool. Not safety covers, but rather a winter or debris cover, to help minimise water evaporation. A nice feature of these covers is that they are porous, so when it rains (if ever!), the rainwater filters through the cover and into the pool, rather than forming a horrible stagnant mini-pond on the surface of the cover. But until it rains, it will slow down the rate at which the water level drops.

Pete mentioned his Pooldevil Pro in the previous post. This is one of the best pool-related devices I have ever bought, though if I'm honest, I was probably a tad sceptical when I first made the purchase. Effortlessly captures all the leaves, petals and insects which grace the surface of most pools. My pool cleaner also loves it, because it makes his job so much easier. Can highly recommend, not expensive either. Lloyd

Thanks Lloyd, it is a nifty piece of kit, save a lot of work too

Hi I'm going to add my experiences to this...

first and foremost, a bubble-wrap cover will reduce evaporation by about 80 - 90%! they start at about €215 for an 8m x 4m... p.m. me for details of where!
does your filter actually work efficiently? how long since the sand was changed? (three years is about the maximim it should be left (p.m. me for details of who can do this!)
do you use flocculant to make sure dust can be removed effectively? (the thick blue liquid clarifiers are best for this!)

Pete's pool devil pro is a fantastic alternative to using surface skimmers, but it's NOT the only one (it is the cheapest though!)

do a "google" on "floating skimmers" and you'll find a couple:

Heisnner do a floating skimmer that attaches to the hole in the skimmer chamber, below the basket, with a length of flexi-pipe, and bobs around the pool near the in-wall skimmer. if you have two skimmers and only one valve, then buy a plastic "plug" from a DIY store and seal it in one skimmer with PTFE tape to get an air-tight seal without glue!

there are a number of Koi companies who stock a 240v powered surface skimmer (try ebay) which will work in the same way. REMOVE FROM THE POOL BEFORE SWIMMING!
also the "polaris" (very expensive!) and "octopus" cleaners will continue to work once the skimmer-mounted type start sucking air through the spring clip.

as long as you have a bottom drain on your pool, then close the skimmer valve once the water level is below the skimmers (you can get a day or two extra by carefully removing the flaps!)

if your pool has no bottom drain, but does have a vacuum point some way below the water level, use this, provided some sort of guard is attached to avoid large debris being sucked in, BUT NEVER EVER WHEN THE POOL IS NOT IN USE... if someone got their hair pulled into the vacuum point below the water, the result would probably be fatal! set the timer for night-time only!

the other main alternative depends on how much space you have...
the 4m round splasher pools cost about €100, and when fitted with a cover, lose nothing to evaporation. if you have room, it could be worth buying one, then when your pool gets to the point where you desparately need water (eg 15cm from the top of the liner or tiles), you can call a private supplier, and get 10,000l (approximately 30cm of evaporation) split 50/50 between the pool and the splasher. you can then syphon out the splasher when-ever you need to top-up after a backwash.

alternatively, do any of your Cypriot neighbours have a well? many do and are proud to help (for a small fee!)

don't be tempted to shell out a grand on an underwater "tank"-type cleaner: it's the surface where the problems will occur, not on the bottom!

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poolpeople
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the golden hi-lux
aka
zeusfc

Ian,

Thank you for the plug but a BIG thank you for sharing your expert advise, as I know this is a big issue at present & can turn into a costly issue too

pete, one specifically for you...

re. skwids:
I'm assuming the spring mechanism that gives them the vibration is needed or they don't work? have you worked out a way to get it below the surface if the water-level drops?
obviously you can buy a push fit>male screw fitting for using normal vacuum hoses, but is it possible to simply attach one length of skwid hose to the opposite side of the "spring thing", so that you can attach that to the skimmer drain point...

eg, hole in skimmer ... male screw fitting>push-fit ... length of hose... push-fit>male screw fitting... female>female fitting... skwid fitting

also re. "pool pivot": will the use of this be possible in the same circumstances

does any of that make any sense at all? if not maybe we should talk it through on the phone?



also... I was in PPC today (behind Helenic bank on the mesoyi ave) and they were saying that their Maintenance team had a communal pool in Chlorakas, where they were tearing their hair out as the communal area water had not only been cut off, but the meter had been removed and sealed!
Definitely might be worth a phonecall re. the Pool devil pro, cos they ain't got any other short-term options!

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poolpeople
aka
the golden hi-lux
aka
zeusfc

Hi Ian,

I did think about that the other night but I think I found a solution, well with the Skwid anyway, (not sure about other suction cleaners tho) as it comes with a rubber bung seal that the spring connection fits into to seal the suction just incase the hole is too large, well I tested mine tonight & the hose section fits directly into the rubber bung, without the metal spring section, so when the pump switches on, the suction should be enough to seal section but I'm unable to test that as the water level is still above the skimmer on my pool due to the auto-feeder built into the pool

If you want to call round & see mate so that you can show other people who you know have a skwids, let me know & i'll show you what I mean

I hope this isn't to complicated for anyone who's reading this who own a Skwid or other suction cleaner to follow

could be worth trying now, with the bung, but no spring section... my understanding is that "skwid" will become "limpet" and simply stick to the bottom without it!

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poolpeople
aka
the golden hi-lux
aka
zeusfc

Well mine is slithering around the pool nicely, it even decided to climb the wall for a short while too, so not a bad thing I'd say

The problem being, if your leave the spring section in & the water level drops, it will suck air directly into your pump & you know thats not a good thing to happen, so people with suctions cleaners have a choice, I know which I prefer

But as I said, until my water level drops considerable, which it won't due to the built in auto-filler, then I'm unable to test other ways of coping with evaporation

At least the PoolDevil Pro will still keep cleaning the surface, no matter where the water comes from, be it the skimmer, Vacuum or Main drain on the pool, at least you'll still have a clean surface

[quote="Pete"]until my water level drops considerable, which it won't due to the built in auto-filler, then I'm unable to test other ways of coping with evaporation

quote]

don't wish to worry you, but in Chlorakas, the Muhktar has cable-tied some auto-top-ups, and put a seal on them, so they don't get used!

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poolpeople
aka
the golden hi-lux
aka
zeusfc

Well they can sort that out with my Landlord as its pool & I know how anal he is when it come to his property, so that's a battle I'd love to see

In fact, I think I'd sell tickets to the rest of the village too

You did know that Tsada has never restricted its residents water due to having its own bore holes apparently, well according to my landlord anyway, so we'll have to wait & see

it's true! we had water "cuts" last year but only due to developers asking for the supply to be withheld or when they were worried about losing pipes to the fires... apparently in early 2006, when the pipework on vikla was all passed by the "building inspector" ( ! ) they spent 48 hours filling all the header tanks and the rest of tsada had no water, but compared to the cr*p tala's got, that's actually quite mild!

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poolpeople
aka
the golden hi-lux
aka
zeusfc

forgot to post, and this is really important!...


FLORIDA POOLS IS TRYING TO GET TOGETHER A LIST OF TALA (ETC) RESIDENTS TO BUY A "PART-LOAD" OF WATER ONCE A MONTH! IF YOUR POOL IS AFFECTED BY WATER-CUTS, THIS COULD BE THE ANSWER TO YOUR PROBLEMS!

CALL 26811161 FOR MORE DETAILS!

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poolpeople
aka
the golden hi-lux
aka
zeusfc

Another outlay on top of your water bill each month

no, that's the whole point... this is fresh well water... the ph and alkalinity are spot on, so its needs no chemical adjustment, and (presently) it's cheaper than using the higher-usage tarrif on municipal water. if you're in an area with severe shortages it would work out no more expensive... it just needs a bit of organising at their end...

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poolpeople
aka
the golden hi-lux
aka
zeusfc

Are you forgetting one thing Ian, you will still have a water bill every 2 or 3 months, as filling your pool doesn't come under your usual usage of water, so I doubt very much that the municipal will stop charging you for water

Filling a pool is seperate from usual drinking, bathing, washing water which you pay for, so to keep topping up your pool will cost extra

yes you'll still get a local water bill, but last year, my bill went up from about ten quid to fifty in the middle of summer! if i pay say a tenner a month for a delivery, then that tenners worth wont be on the local bill. not much point in Tsada i grant you, but if you live in Tala etc, this could be the thing to save summer!

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poolpeople
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the golden hi-lux
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zeusfc

You paid how much last year for your water

Our's has never gone above cyp£6.30 & our last was €10.90

I thought everyone in Tsada paid the same but obviously not

The problem you've got is, the rate of evaporation will be greater than the rate of replacement by tanker, so in th eend, you're going to be constantly paying for a tanker to refill your pool & the cost will raise

don't you wash?

seriously, we had irrigation for 30 pots in that... fifteen minutes a day, plus we were re=filling zeus' paddling pool every day, as well as the evaporation from the pool

plus don't laugh, but we had a pool-cleaner as part of the rental contract, and he left the pool on "rinse" when Cindy made him a bacon sandwich, and we lost about four tonnes in one day... bloody expensive sandwich!

you use the solar rings don't you? to show the water bill against a pool with no evaporation cover...I guess that's probably the best advert you can have for them.

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poolpeople
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the golden hi-lux
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zeusfc

No Solar Sun Rings on my pool mate, I don't sell them anymore either, so no use advertising for Shipshape either

We wash everyday, sometimes twice depending on temp, so its nothing to do with that but it seems you pay more over your side, do you own or rent, maybe that why I think they carge you more for your council tax & give you more heating allowence also

Anyway, my Skwid & Pooldevil are working great guns since I removed that spring connector off the Skwid, not stopped or got stuck since, plus I'm testing out a new item at present, its an 'inline leaf catcher' which fits between 2 lengths of hose on the Skwid & collects all the debris sucked up from the bottom of the pool by the Skwid instead of it going into your backwash basket.. Should cut down of backwashing too

Its doing a great job so far

Inline leaf catcher? I thought that it was called a "can't remember when i bought it, but i paid fifty quid for it, and only used it a couple of times!"

be very wary... they have a bad reputation for blocking, then flattening all the hose between the leaf catcher and the vacuum point!

far easier to just empty the pumb basket surely?

shipshape want €44 per solar ring... €352 for an 8m x 4m pool? bit pricey i thought... especially as florida will do a solar blanket for €215

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poolpeople
aka
the golden hi-lux
aka
zeusfc

You see, my in-line leaf catcher can't get blocked, as it's got a net inside, not a basket you see, plus the ends are contoured not flat, so any debris that gets past the net, slips nicely into the hose, so no blockage.. Anyway, I'm only testing it & not sure whether I will bring them in from the USA or Australia yet, depends on whether there's a call for them

I think the backwash baskets are too small & a pain to empty all the time, at least this way I don't have to do mine weekly anymore what with the In-line leaf catcher & the PoolDevil Pro as they collect at least 95% of the debris in my pool

As of Solar Sun Rings, I was retailing them for cyp£30 each but decided they were too expensive to ship in & then all of a sudden, Shipshape started advertising them as if they were the first (NOT) but let them have them, no big shakes to me, I'm happy I didn't bring them in now

i have a client with a 3hp CERTIKEN pump, which has a basket hardly any larger than a can of baked beans! mind you, there are a great many pumps (IML and Aqua source) who have baskets larger than that in most in-line baskets! I think the biggest advantage to the in-line ones, is that you can see if they block; the biggest disadvantage is that risk of flattening your vacuum hose!

just don't expect to make your fortune on them Pete... ask yourself why no-one else is bothering with them!

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poolpeople
aka
the golden hi-lux
aka
zeusfc

No idea why no one is using them or stocking them to be honest, I suppose its a new concept too, so I know how sceptical people are, same happened with the PoolDevil Pro & now that's doing pretty well

I'll use mine & see how it goes, then I can use that info to talk people into buying them if I decide to ship them in