How Does a Swimming Pool Work?
Understanding how your pool system works is crucial for efficient maintenance and helps you troubleshoot potential problems with ease. This guide will walk you through the pool's circulation system, similar to how the human body's circulatory system works.
So, how do they work?
Just like the human circulatory system, your pool has a complex system ensuring water is efficiently circulated, filtered, and sanitised. The water in a pool is constantly in motion thanks to the heart of the pool system, a pump powered by an electric motor.
- The pump moves the water through the skimmer located at the top of the pool and the drain located at the bottom of the pool. Skimmers and drains act as veins, leading the water to the filter.
- Once the water is drawn through the filter, equivalent to the kidney of the pool, it becomes clean and filtered.
- This purified water is then circulated through a series of small valves known as return jets, which are strategically placed around the pool.
Diagram of a swimming pools inner workings.
To prevent the pump from clogging, the water first passes through a skimmer basket designed to catch leaves and other debris that might block the filtration system. After leaving the pump, the water flows into the filtration system, where it undergoes a process to remove most small particles of dirt. The clean, sparkling water is reintroduced into the pool through the outlet pipe.
How Pool Pump Works
The pool pump plays a crucial role in the pool's circulation process. It ensures water flows throughout the pool and passes through the filter to remove dirt and debris effectively. By doing so, it boosts the effectiveness of pool chemicals. Additionally, if you have a pool heater, the pump will circulate heated water back into the pool.
The pool pump has three primary parts: the pump basket, impeller, and water discharge. The pump basket collects debris and leaves, while the impeller serves as a fan-like mechanism that moves the water through the system. Finally, the water discharge is the connection point that pushes the water from the pump into the filter's housing.
When selecting a pump, you can choose between a single speed, two speed, or variable speed pump. Out of these three, the variable speed pump is the most energy-efficient. It can automatically adjust its motor speed to operate at lower, energy-saving levels based on the filtration system's immediate needs. As a result, you can save on energy costs compared to single and two-speed pumps.
How Pool Filter Works
The filter works alongside the pump to trap unwanted debris, such as dirt, sand, hair and other fine particles that can't be seen. As pool water enters the filter, it moves through the filter medium and exits the filter tank clean and clear.
Media Pool Filters
Media Filters are an excellent choice for pool owners who want to reduce maintenance efforts. These filters are circular tanks containing different filtering media types, such as pool filter sand or glass pool filter media. These particles trap even the tiniest particles of dirt, allowing only clean water to pass through to the other side. However, with time, the filter bed will accumulate more and more dirt and need to be replaced every one or two years.
Cartridge Pool Filters
Cartridge pool filters are a popular and affordable choice for pool filtration. They use a surface filtering method to remove debris and dirt from the water. The filter element is housed in a cylindrical tank and can be easily removed for cleaning. Cartridge filters have a large surface area, which allows for a slower and more thorough filtering process. They can capture particles as small as 10 microns, making them highly effective at keeping your pool clean and clear. And, unlike other filters, cartridge filters don't require backwashing, making them even more eco-friendly and cost-effective in the long run.
How Salt Chlorinator Works
Sanitisation is another core function of your pool system that directly destroys any bacteria and algae that enter your pool. To ensure continuous and accurate chlorine dosing, you can install an automatic chlorinator, as shown in the diagram.
Salt Chlorinators are cost-effective and keep your pool safe and healthy by measuring and dosing the right amount of chlorine into your pool. Additionally, saltwater pool chlorinators create their own chlorine, eliminating the need to manually add chlorine to your pool. These chlorinators use an electrolytic cell to sanitise your pool. By adding a small amount of salt (sodium chloride) to your pool water, the cell converts the chloride contained in the salt water into chlorine. This is an efficient and cost-effective way of sanitising your pool.
Understanding your pool system not only makes pool maintenance easier but also empowers you to identify and troubleshoot potential issues with ease, ensuring your pool remains in mint condition. We recommend visiting our Where to Buy page for those looking to upgrade or maintain their pool with reliable pool equipment. You'll find a wide range of Baracuda pool products designed for everyday Aussie pools.