How Much Does It Cost To Clean A Pool

Your swimming pool deserves regular maintenance services. After all, it is you who will be affected when you don’t give attention to the pool’s cleanliness most of the time. And when we say cleaning, it does not only mean skimming leaves and debris from the water. Cleaning the swimming pool is all about ensuring the water is free from debris, balancing the water chemistry, brushing walls, and so much more. Hence, cleaning a pool is not as easy as you believe it is or as cheap as you think it is. This article will guide you through estimates of swimming pool cleaning costs.

The Cost Of Cleaning A Pool

The cost of cleaning a swimming pool varies depending on who does the job: DIY pool cleaning can run from $20 to $100 per month.

This price includes the purchase of chemicals for maintaining the cleanliness of the pool. Professional pool cleaning will cost you $100 to $400 per month.

This estimate includes hiring a professional pool service in a four-visit package per month. The package can include all or some of the following tasks: brushing the walls and surrounding steps, checking and adjusting chemicals, skimming debris off the water, washing the filter, emptying the pump baskets and skimmers, brushing the tiles, and vacuuming the bottom of the pool.

Factors Affecting The Cost Of Cleaning A Pool

Service. If you are hiring a professional pool cleaner, the cost will vary depending on the kind of service you are actually getting. Some pool cleaners will charge you lower because they will service your pool only once per month while others charge higher because they clean pools in a weekly basis. Moreover, some professional pool cleaners have limited services such as only adjusting the chemicals, washing the filter, and the like. Hiring a full service pool cleaner that will service your pool week after week is the most expensive approach for cleaning a pool.

DIY. For a DIY cleaning service, the cost of cleaning a pool varies depending on the kind of chemicals you are purchasing. Depending on climate and pool usage, chemical requirements may vary, which can either make the cost of pool cleaning high or low for you.

Size of the pool. Of course, bigger pools require more attention when it comes to cleaning and maintaining it. Hence, if you have a large pool, expect to spend more on cleaning it regularly. After all, most professional pool cleaners check the size of pools first prior to giving any estimates.

Pool usage. Some swimming pools are not at all hard to maintain because they are not used very often and only a few people are using it. Hence, cleaning the pool can be done once a month only instead of four times per month.

Additional Costs

For DIY pool cleaning, you need to purchase several pool cleaning tools for the job. A maintenance kit including a wall brush, test kit, telescopic pole, and leaf skimmer will cost you from $50 to $70. On the other hand, you may need to purchase a vacuum head and hose, which can be around $50.

Cleaning the pool's filter unit will be extra. Usually, professionals charge $60 to $70 for filter cleaning.

If your pool is neglected, it requires a more extensive cleaning such as power vacuuming. This can cost you $50 to $130 per hour.

To prepare the pool for summer use, it requires an opening cleaning service. This includes removing the cover, initial chlorine shocking, reinstalling the pump, filter and chlorinator, and reinstalling the ladders and diving board. Opening costs for cleaning a swimming pool can be around $100 to $150. The same amount is often needed to close a swimming pool for the winter. Closing the pool requires clearing water out of the plumbing lines, draining the water level, removing the ladders and other accessories, and attaching the pool cover.

Photo by La French Place

Tips Before You Clean A Pool

Understand that the tasks involved in cleaning a pool are very serious. It requires a certain degree of knowledge, skill, and experience in order for someone to successfully maintain a swimming pool at its best. Hence, think about whether or not you can do this yourself. DIY cleaning is not only about saving money for swimming pool cleaning but also having enough time and patience to do the tasks yourself.

More often than not, it is better to hire a professional pool service especially if you have no knowledge and no time to do the job. Even if you are paying more money for a professional service, it is more likely that you’ll save money in the long run because good pool cleaners know how to properly take care of your pool to help you avoid future expenses in line with improper pool maintenance.

Get price quotes from different pool cleaners in your area. Compare prices including the inclusions in their services. You know you found the best deal if you have a pool cleaner that offers a good variety of services at a good price tag.

When hiring a professional pool cleaner, make sure he is someone licensed and insured. Liability insurance is always necessary to protect your investments in cases when the pool cleaner accidentally damages something in the pool.

Check for the reputation and credibility of the pool cleaner of your choice. Make sure that previous and current customers are satisfied with his service. You may want to check for references or ask for recommendations from friends and neighbors to help you find the most efficient pool cleaner you can hire.

Especially when you are hiring a professional pool cleaner to service your pool regularly, it is important that you ask for a written contract in terms of the inclusions in the package, the cost of the services, and how often they will be servicing your pool.

Why Hire A Pool Service Professional?

A lot of pool owners simply do the jobs themselves when it comes to cleaning and maintaining their swimming pools. However, not all of them are actually knowledgeable when speaking of proper pool maintenance. Hence, instead of saving money, they often end up with a lot of surprises along the way. Here are the top reasons why hiring a professional pool service is a better choice as compared to DIY pool cleaning despite the obvious price difference:

• Complete service. Professional pool cleaners do not only clean pools. They also maintain them. They skim debris out of the water surface, maintain proper chemical balance in the pool, scrub walls and steps of the pool, clean the filter, empty the skimmer baskets, and service all pool equipment. With all these tasks, there is guarantee that the pool is always at its cleanest and everything is in great order.

• Safe cleaning. Part of cleaning a pool involves shocking. This involves adding a high chlorine concentrate into the pool water to eliminate contaminants in the water such as suntan lotion and dead skin. A professional can do this properly without risks of splashing shock onto skin and clothing, which may cause serious injury once it happens.

• Save money. You may be paying more to maintain the pool per month but hiring a professional pool service can help you save money in the long run. With the all-around pool cleaners, they can make sure that your pool and equipment are at best all the time. And if it happens that something requires repair, they can attend to it right away without you needing to hire and pay someone to attend to the needs of the pool.