It’s been a long ordeal with this baby pool, and each year it seems like no one knows what to do to fix it…hopefully this is different this year! Last year, we discovered that the baby pool was not being filtered properly, and therefore wasn’t being chemically treated properly – and had to be shut down often. We rented a pump to try and fix the issue, even had crews come out to pressure test the lines, scope the drains, and do their best to combat the lack of flow. Everything seemed to point to a blockage of some kind, somewhere in the lines.
Keep in mind that the baby pool sits about 150 feet from the pump room. By itself, this is probably poor design and planning, but it’s something we have had to live with for years, and it would be very expensive to change it at this point. More on that later. Two long pipe runs sit three feet under ground, and run back to the pump house and then return to the baby pool deck. This makes it difficult to maintain proper flow, even in the best of times. What was happening last year, we feel was a combination of factors – and we hope we have resolved them for the near future.
So – what’s up with the baby pool now? The pool support staff has decided to make some changes to hopefully ‘cure’ the baby pool of it’s ills, and we have discovered some things we didn’t test before – that again will hopefully make things more stable for this season.
First, the sand in the filters has been changed out, and the full capacity of the filter has been cleaned and exchanged. We were able to remove a significant amount of debris that may have been part of the issue (those cottonwood trees!) Second, we went ahead and replaced the diverter and seals on the multi-port valve that controls filtering and backwashing capability in the pool system. Again, this may have been one symptom that was causing issues in combination with others. Lastly, we decided that one of the bigger causes of the flow problem is likely related to an under-powered pump. That (the pool pump) will also be replaced, and upgraded to a larger version that should help to draw and push more water through the filter.
All of these things, each by themselves hasn’t caused the pool to be under-powered, but in combination, they are likely to complete the picture as to why the pool hasn’t worked really well for a year or two.
The hope is, that by the beginning of next week, all these changes will be made, and that all the baby pool systems will be updated and restored to their original working condition. Now that the weather is hopefully heating up – we can look forward to more consistent operation.
This investment isn’t a small one, but it is a much more effective use of funds at this point. Should these solutions not work, or if we are looking for a ‘better’ solution, we could consider moving the pump and filter for the baby pool closer to the pool itself. One idea is to build a small shelter (like a mini-pool house) out near the baby pool with power and water. It has been estimated that the permits alone for a project like this would cost $6-8,000. This is definitely something to consider, long-term, but requires significant planning and permitting.
Let’s hope our pump, filter, and cleaning updates work for now!
Thanks again for all your patience and understanding – we will be glad to stabilize that system. We hope to have that pool up and running asap – rest-assured it’s not for a lack of trying! Here’s to finally enjoying the sun!