Failing to maintain your swimming pool can hurt your rental property’s appeal. As you probably know, with rental investments, first impressions really do matter. They can make or break your investment.
As a landlord, pool maintenance is your responsibility. This is per the general duty landlords have to properly maintain common areas as well as make the premises safe for habitation. And while specific laws vary state by state, you can be liable for injuries that happen to your tenant in certain circumstances.
That is:
- If you fail to take reasonable steps to remedy or repair a maintenance issue
- If you know of a dangerous situation
- And if the condition causes a serious and foreseeable injury to your tenant.
And since a swimming pool is viewed as an attractive nuisance, it may also be upon you to make the pool safe even for non-tenants.
While maintaining your swimming pool can seem daunting, it’s often a quite simple task. It’s something you can do once you have educated yourself on the basics.
The following are some tips to help you keep your swimming pool sparkly and clean for your tenants.
Regularly clean the pool filter.
Swimming filters are useful for the following reasons. To remove dirt and any other debris from the pool. A pool filter also helps distribute chemicals to help combat bacteria.
Without proper cleaning, it will get clogged and become less effective. As a result, the pool water will become cloudy, encourage bacteria growth, and generally be of poor quality.
So, how often should you clean your swimming pool filter? Well, you should do so every two to six weeks.
Maintain proper water levels.
Regularly check the water level of your swimming pool, as problems may arise if the water levels get too low. Pools naturally lose water through splashing and evaporation. However, if the pool is losing too much water, there could be a problem.
In such a case, find help from a professional swimming pool expert.
Maintain proper pH levels.
Another key part of maintaining your swimming pool is ensuring that the pH levels are good. According to experts, the ideal reading should fall anywhere between 7.2 and 7.8. If it’s below this, it means that your pool is becoming acidic or basic.
When your pool is acidic (lower than 7.0), it could start corroding away your pool equipment. And when basic (higher than 7.0), it could cause scaling on the plumbing equipment as well as on the pool’s surface.
Fix any leaks as soon as possible.
As aforementioned, as a landlord, you have the responsibility of ensuring that your rental premises are safe for occupation. Besides being a safety hazard for your tenants, a leaking swimming pool can lead to abnormally high water bills and cause bigger, more expensive problems to your property in the long term.
And since fixing swimming pool leaks requires a fair level of expertise, make sure to hire a professional.
Regularly vacuum your pool.
Vacuuming your pool is critical. When done regularly, vacuuming a swimming pool helps improve circulation. And, better circulation leads to consistent water balance and more efficient chemical use.
So, how often should you vacuum your pool? While it depends on how often it’s being used, you should vacuum it at least once a week.
Regularly skim your swimming pool.
This is a basic pool maintenance task. Basically, skimming a pool involves taking out all of the floating debris and detritus, which is basically leaves and branches that may be floating on the surface of the pool.
Dangers of Failing to Maintain Your Swimming Pool
Failure to maintain your rental property can negatively impact your bottom line. Perhaps the most obvious one is having difficulties finding suitable tenants to fill your vacant rental property.
What’s more, you risk getting a lawsuit being filed against you for ignoring your tenant’s repeated maintenance requests. And depending on your state, you may also risk having your tenant terminate their lease early. Or, getting part or even no rent at all until the maintenance problem is resolved.
Another danger of failing to maintain your pool is that it can especially be a safety risk to kids. According to the Consumer Product Safety Commission, 400 kids drown in swimming pools or spas every year.
Did you also know that drowning is the #1 cause of death among kids aged between one and four years?
Swimming pool maintenance, just like the many other maintenance tasks in your rental property, is key to running a successful rental investment. Use these nuggets of information to keep your swimming pool looking clean, safe and inviting.