If you’re a regular follower of our blog, you might have noticed a recurring theme with our posts, and that is maintenance and how it can take up a lot of money, time, and energy. These are unavoidable things but with a few tweaks to your system, you can cut down on some of the effort expended in maintaining your pool so you’ll spend more time in the pool having fun than outside it maintaining the pool!

The main expense when it comes to pool maintenance is your pump. Your pool pump has to run at least 6-10 hours a day or even more when it comes to heavy usage days like in the summer. A great way to cut down on this energy expense is to upgrade your pool pump to an energy efficient variable speed or ECO pool pump like the Water TechniX Pump VorteX Variable speed. An ECO pump can save up to 50% to 80% of your energy costs!

Even at the low end, a 50% savings on your annual energy consumption is no laughing matter and it’ll pay for the cost of the upgrade itself! Not convinced? Check out our Standard Pool Pumps vs ECO pool pumps by the numbers post where we break down energy costs and consumption between a regular pool pump and the Water TechniX Pump VorteX Variable Speed.

For a small trade-off in time spent rolling and unrolling (just minutes if you have a pool cover roller) you can save thousands of dollars in energy costs for pool heating every year. Not only can you save on heating costs, but you can also save costs in pump runtime (less debris, less filtration needed), less chemical costs (water evaporation) which all consume energy in one form or another. Pool covers also reduce water evaporation, especially during the extremely hot Australian summers by up to 95% percent! For more information on how to fit and measure your pool for a pool cover, check out our Ultimate Pool Covers guide right here

SEE ALSO: How to get your swimming pool ready for summer

Traditional furnace or electrical pool heaters burn up a lot of energy to heat up your pool. The only way around this is to get a ECO heat pump like the Water TechniX Paradise Heat Pump Inverter. Yes, this is quite a large investment for pool heating, but it does cut down your energy consumption when heating your pool by 40% to 60%. Combine this with the energy savings you’ll get from the heat retention properties of a good pool cover then you can cut your pool heating costs by up to 80%. Again, getting a pool heat pump is completely optional, but if you really have to have a heated pool due to a condition (or you just don’t like jumping into icy pool waters) then this is the way to go. Read more on the Benefits of Getting a Water TechniX Paradise Pool Heat Pump here.

SEE ALSO: Pool Renovation Ideas without breaking the bank

We’re not kidding when we say that saltwater chlorination systems like the Water TechniX Atomic WTA35 are the best thing to be invented since sliced bread. By investing in a saltwater system, you’re saving a lot of time by ensuring that as long as the pump is running, you’re getting new chlorine being produced, sanitizing the pool. No more forgetting to add chlorine or worrying about cyanuric acid levels. Maintenance is a breeze and you only have to add salt a couple of times a year, as opposed to continually monitoring your pool’s chlorine levels every few days. Not only does it saves you time in monitoring chlorine, but the slightly elevated salt levels in your pool will serve as a buffer, preventing wild pH level swings, another thing to tick off of your “to-do” list.” Read more on how saltwater chlorination systems work here.  

Don’t get the cheapest pool tools out there, they’re more likely to break and waste time and money in repairing them and figuring out how to put them together. Trust only pool cleaning tools like the ones from Water TechniX which have been designed with the goal of simplicity and ease of use in mind. Aside from that, all Water TechniX accessories and fittings are designed to fit with all standard branded pool cleaning equipment so no more worrying about getting something that doesn’t connect with your existing equipment.

While some people think that getting “free” pool water testing at their local pool shop is a good deal, they don’t consider the fuel costs driving to and from the pool shop as well as the time spent driving and in traffic. With a good pool testing kit, you can get your results right there and then and you can adjust your pool chemical levels immediately. Don’t worry about the costs, a good testing kit will last you for over a year and reagent refills are always available from Mr Pool Man’s online shop! If you want more information on testing your pool, check out Mr Pool Man's Ultimate Guide to Pool Testing here.

Automatic pool cleaners like the Water TechniX Rapid Pool Cleaner, The Pentair Rebel 2, and the Zodiac TX30 Tornax Robotic pool cleaner can save you a LOT of time when it comes to cleaning the pool. Instead of spending hours manually vacuuming your pool, just install and set your automatic pool cleaner and you can relax while they do the pool cleaning for you while you get on with your other tasks. Read more on the differences on the types of automatic pool cleaners here.

Depending on where you live, some energy companies offer rebates or discounts when you run your pump at off peak times. Having a good pool timer will allow you to set your pump to turn on at certain times and automatically turn off after a set number of hours. This will ensure that your pool gets the circulation it needs every day and that it is sanitized properly, saving you money in expensive chemical usage as well when you forget to turn on your pool pump and your pool gets invaded by algae! Couple this with an ECO pump, then your pool circulation problems will be a thing of the past!

SEE ALSO: Investing in an ECO-Friendly Pool

By making sure that all of your pool equipment is regularly maintained, you’re making sure that you’re not losing time and money when they break down completely. While it may sound inconvenient, small repairs are there to make sure that you get the best performance from your pool equipment. A small damage can lead to a complete system breakdown if left unattended, this is what many pool owners have learned the hard way.

By following everything listed above, you can save time, energy, and money when it comes to your pool easily. Granted, some of the options may cost some money up front, but if there’s one thing that money can’t pay for and that’s the time saved and the long-term stress and expenses trying to do everything manually and saving money in the short-term. Trust us, the long term benefits far outweigh the short term savings.