Spring

EASY A,B,C: Ok, all you chlorine fans, you have a week off. Today we discuss the merits of soft swim. Do you ever feel like your pool is getting more and more like a one year old? It just keeps demanding all your time so you have less time to enjoy it. If that's the case, the soft swim sanitizing system may just be what the doctor ordered. You can keep your pool sanitized and healthy by testing your pool water and adding chemicals as little as once a week. Since there is no chlorine to add, you do not bleach out your liner, so it looks newer, longer. Although you may spend more money initially on soft swim, depending on the size of your pool, your liner may last twice as long. If you feel like you are a slave to your pool instead of the master, let the pros from imperial show you how to make pool maintenance as easy as a,b,c!

EASY AS 1,2,3: Here you are, ready for another season of fun and sun in the pool. You have purchased your chemicals for the summer and you are ready. You think. For just about anything that comes along. You are due to add algaecide. But didn't you do that last week? There is no sign of algae, so no news is good news, right? You should shock the pool, but the pool looks so good and the kids want to use the pool this morning so why do it at all? Everything will be all right, won't it? After all, that kid, the assistant manager of the toy department where you bought your chemicals, said that it was all you needed to do. It will be ok, won't it? NO, IT WILL NOT!!! A simple 3-step program will generally take care of all your algae and bacteria problems, if done correctly. By keeping a good chlorine level with Bio -Guard Stingy Sticks, adding Back-Up algaecide weekly, and shocking your pool with Lite or Burn Out every week to two weeks, depending on the temperature, your pool will be a joy to swim in and look at. Come in today and let the Pros from Imperial show you how to make your pool maintenance as easy as 1,2,3!!

Free Pool Heat: Here it is a warm day in may and you are all ready to use the pool. You decide to throw caution to the wind and dive right into the pool. As you dive your hands hit the water, then your arms. As if in slow motion, the rest of your body descends into the coldest body of water in the history of pools! You'd swear that an Eskimo would get hypothermia in this water. You can't get out fast enough! Now your in-laws are coming to town (from Florida) and they are expecting to use the pool next weekend. What do you do? Well, you could hope that your in-laws don't show. Or you could go see the pros from Imperial and let them show you how "Mr. Sun" can heat your pool free of charge. Like thousands of magnifying glasses, a solar blanket attracts solar energy and warms your pool. Not only does it attract heat, but also prevents evaporation, thereby reducing heat loss. If you have a heater, a solar blanket is a must! If you don't, you can still add four to six weeks of swimming time to your spring and fall! Don't freeze in May in your pool again. Be ready for the spring with a solar blanket from Imperial!

Clean That Filter: The pool year 2000 has begun and is off to a good start. Your pool already looks good enough to swim in. You have your Bio Guard chemicals that you bought in Early Buy from Imperial and your kids are swimming. You've backwashed, or cleaned, your filter and life is good. But wait. Your circulation in the pool isn't as strong as it was yesterday. Didn't you just backwash yesterday? Your gauge is pegging out again! Have you ever noticed the black, scummy ring in your skimmer? Ever notice how hard it is to clean up? What you see is body oils, pollutants, etc. You must chemically remove them. This same "gunk" builds up in your filter. You have two options: change the media (sand, DE, cartridge) or simply clean the filter chemically 2-3 times per season. Come in today to Imperial and let their resident pros show you how to make that filter do what it was "hired" to do...FILTER!! SoftSwim Filter Cleaner.......$11.99

Water Balance 101: The pool is open, you shocked your pool, added chlorine and added algaecide. Everything is everything. One of your kids, you know, the one with no nerve endings in his entire body, goes for the first swim of the season. He stays in for five minutes and comes out screaming like a banshee! His eyes are fire engine red! You test the pool. There is no chlorine and the pH is so low, the color hardly even shows. What do you do? Come in and let the Pros from Imperial show you how to balance your total alkalinity. By bringing in a sample, we can get your alkalinity up to par. If your alkalinity is low, your pH will stay low, too. You may add soda ash to raise your pH till the cows come home, but it will only help for a short time. Low pH means acid water. That means irritated eyes, maximum chlorine use and a short-lived liner! Bring in a sample today for free water analysis and special attention to the water balance that will save you money. See the pros from Imperial today!

Green Water Blues: April's here, the time has come, if you haven’t already, to open that pool. You put the cover on it last year and have not been in the backyard since. Out of sight out of mind right, right? More like, be sure your sins will find you out! Stick your head around the corner of the house to see the disaster that waits. The cover is still there, sort of. Except for the three feet of green water, you can almost make out that the cover is indeed still there. You must drain the cover off before you can clean it off, what do you do?

Well, you could start a siphon with your garden hose. Remember, you did that last year, remember the results? After you swallowed half of a green ocean on the cove, you got soaked with green water, and what about that funky smell? Bet you thought you would be showering outside...for the rest of your life! By the time you finished, you looked like the creature from the black lagoon! This year, take a tip from the pros from imperial pools and invest in a cover pump. Screw on a hose, put the pump on the cover, plug it in and walk away, periodically, check in to see the amount of water left on the cover and turn it off when the cover has sufficiently been drained. Always remember to check for holes in the cover, to make sure that you don't drain your pool as you drain off your cover. This year, don't be the walking talking neighborhood algae monster! Go se the pros from imperial and get good deal on a new cover pump!

Clean that cover: The decision has been made (by your kids!) The time has come to open the pool! Let’s take a look at that black hole in the ground. That’s not the pool, but the cover that you’re looking at. You get the water off the cover, take the cover off and are ready to store it. But, the cover looks like space aliens have splotched it with green slime! Do you leave it like this for the summer? Absolutely not!! Before you panic, let the pros from imperial guide you through the rough stuff. With a bottle of bio-guard’s stowaway, you can clean and sanitize the cover for the summer. Simply pour stowaway on, brush down with cover with your pool brush or a broom, rinse and you are ready to fold the cover and store for the summer.. It is best to fan-fold your cover, roll up as tightly as possible and store in a plastic trash container. Make sure you put it wherever you are going to leave it for the summer and fill full of water. Then take another quart of stowaway and add into the trash container, half now and half in mid-July. This will help to keep the cover deodorized. By keeping the cover wet, you keep the cover from dry rotting, making the cover last much longer. Stowaway that cover for the summer and keep your money in your pocket. Just let the pros from imperial show you how it’s done!

Get off to the right start- As the mercury inches up it's time to start thinking about opening the pool for the season. If you plan to do it yourself here are some tips to make it easier. First, remove the the pool cover, being careful not to allow leaves or other debris to slip into the pool. Clean the cover with Bio Guard Stowaway, fold it carefully and store it in a clean, dry place, away from the sun and weather. Next, check the condition of the pump, filter, and skimmer. Make sure each is in good working order so the chemicals can work as they should. Fill the pool to the proper level. Vacuum if necessary, unless your pool is newly plastered. In that case wait a few weeks. If you haven't yet purchased new test reagents, see the trained personnel at Imperial. Reagents in tablet form can last up to three years, so check the expiration date. If you don't have good reagents, your test results may not be accurate. Run the filter for 24 hours, then reach about 18inches down, away from the return fittings, and collect about a quart of water in a water sample bag or other clean container. Bring that water sample into Imperial for a free computerized analysis to help get your water in balance. The water professionals at Imperial Pools will recommend a personalized prescription for your pool, because no two pools are exactly alike. The sanitizer level will be checked and balanced as will total alkalinity, pH, stabilizer levels, calcium hardness and metals.