Arizona Pool Owners this article is for you! Or any other hard water states!

Do you suffer from hard water calcium buildup? Keep reading and I may have just the solution you are looking for! 

 Before Tile Clean

After Tile Clean

If you are a pool owner you know how hard our water is! You also know that it will leave a hard calcium stain where ever it sits for long periods of time. 

Why does it matter if my water is hard or not? 

• Your electric bills are higher than they need to be
• You have those annoying streaks all over your dishes after you wash them
• Your water heater will die long before it reaches its intended lifespan.

So what is hard water and how does it cause all this trouble to Arizona homeowners? We discuss that in this article.

What is hard water? 

It’s water that is full of minerals—specifically, dissolved calcium and magnesium. It’s these minerals that cause the problems listed above.

How does water become hard?

Water rains “soft” (without minerals). But the rainwater makes it into the ground and into the waterways, picking up minerals like:

• Lime
• Chalk
• Calcium
• Magnesium

Arizona’s hard water

So how hard is Arizona’s water?

Very.

According to the U.S Geological Survey (USGS), a large portion of Arizona contains high concentrations of calcium carbonate (see map below), one of the key ingredients in hard water.

Red means high concentrations of calcium carbonate, a key mineral that makes water hard. A large portion of Arizona is red.

How hard water secretly makes your life harder.

OK, so the water in Arizona is hard. So what? It’s safe enough to drink. What’s the big deal?

The minerals in hard water cause more problems than you realize. Hard water minerals make your life harder because they:

• Allow sediment to build up on your water heater’s heating element, causing your water heater to run longer than it needs to, deteriorating the water heater’s tank and increasing your energy bills
• Dry out your skin and hair after you take a bath or shower
• Damage your clothes over time, lowering their useable lifespan
• Leave unsightly soap scum rings in your bathtub
• Cause leftover annoying spots and streaks on your glassware and dishes after they are washed
• Reduce water flow from your showerheads because of limescale buildup

The above information from an article at http://georgebrazilplumbingelectrical.com/blog/why-arizonas-hard-water-secretly-makes-your-life-harder-and-what-you-can-do

So how does that affect my pool? 

Good question!! Have you ever noticed the white thick line around your pool, water fountains, and near mister areas?? That is calcium and mineral build up. The good news is that is can easily be removed with a professional tile clean. 

Why does it have to be done by a Professional??

Well, if you are like any other homeowner out there, I'm sure you have tried to go the DIY way. What you soon realized is that this stuff is hard as stone and it would take a hammer and chisel or jackhammer to get this baked on calcium off. 

This is where a professional comes in quite nice! They have the tile cleaning rig all setup with the necessary equipment to remove the calcium and not damage the tile or surface underneath. 

There are a number of different products used to achieve this depending on the delicateness of your tile or surface being cleaned. Such as Walnut shells, sand, soda, and maxi strip. 

What is Tile Cleaning? 

How many of you remember shop class in high school?? If so, how many of you used a sand blasting machine? I did and made some of the coolest pieces from designs on cups and mirrors to more fancy projects such as wedding glasses. 

If you have ever used a sand blasting machine you know how it works. For those of you who don't, it basically is blowing sand or a type of media from a high compressor to bead blast off the surface and yet leave the under leave untouched. It is used a lot in professional painting to remove old rust and paint from surfaces before a full paint and body restoration came be done. 

This is a very messed and dangerous job that requires proper safety attire and equipment. As most pool repairs do. I can tell you many horror stories from the pool industry. Pretty scary stuff of homeowners trying to save a little extra money doing it themselves and then end up having a terrible accident. Those systems are under extreme amounts of pressure. A number of things can take place, not to mention the chemicals used which are very dangerous if ingested. 

So please always use caution and seek professional assistance when working around your pool and pool equipment. 

Left Side Cleaned Tile/Right Side Uncleaned

Before Tile Cleaning 

After

After

Before

What about staining in the pool? 

We have a solution for that too! This is VERY dangerous and I highly recommend getting professional help on this one! 

I have been on a number of these jobs and helped. They are smelly and one wrong breath can really leave you in a world of hurt or worse laying in the bottom of the pool. 

What we use to remove the stain is called an Acid Wash or Chlorine Wash/Rinse. These are two different products and if mixed will combine to make a deadly poison. Do NOT perform this alone or without professional support. I suggest getting a company with good reviews to perform such a service. This is not for the novice pool owner or DIYer. 

How is the job done? 

The take muriatic acid and clean the pool walls and floor. If it requires more cleaning or had heavy algae in the pool and plumbing lines then a Chlorine wash/rinse is done as well. The results are truly amazing and I have included a few of our recent jobs below so you can see the side by side difference.

The pool has to be completely drained and emptied of all water before the Acid Wash, Tile Clean, or Chlorine Wash/Rinse can be performed. The chemicals have to make contact with the surface of the pool to remove the stains and chemical build up over the years. 

Before

During Acid Wash

Left Side has staining/Right Side Clean

Left Side Chemical Stains/Right Clean

Draining green pool water

 Acid Wash

During

After

Normal manufacturers recommend that you drain and refill the pool water every 3 years. So this is a perfect time to contact a pool company and schedule a tile cleaning, acid wash, or chlorine rinse. 

If you live in the Phoenix, Cave Creek, Scottsdale, and Glendale area we can take care of any pool repairs, tile cleaning, acid washes, and pool cleaning needs. We have been in the Pool Industry for over 20 years and have the knowledge and experience to complete the jobs correctly and efficiently. 

You can contact us from our website here at www.phxpoolpros.com. There you can read more about our company, see more before and after photos, and view all the services and repairs we have to offer. 

Please us the contact form on the website or you can visit the Facebook page here at https://www.facebook.com/PhoenixPoolProsLLC, where you can leave a message and I will get back with you as soon as possible. 

If you'd like to see our reviews you can view those here at https://www.thumbtack.com/profile/services/:lXy7QafNvusoA/ from jobs Phoenix Pool Pros, LLC has performed recently, 

Once you see the great results and beautiful clean looking pool, you'll be so pleased you called. 

We look forward to serving you! 
Jenny
Phoenix Pool Pros, LLC