Swimming pool calcium build-up?

[That Guy]

Our new pool in Havasu has two spillways that flow from the jacuzzi to the pool. They have gotten a build up of white chalky calcium (I am assuming) on the tile because the water is so hard out here....Anyone know of an easy way to clean that stuff other than scraping it off? It is a real bitch to scrape ....any ideas??? :idea:
Thanks.

[riverroyal]

he would know a chemical,is the water Ph messed up?

[HOOTER SLED-]

Clr

[HOOTER SLED-]

Yea should be from chemical imbalance. Ph is prob off. Or the water out there is just harsh.

[riverroyal]

is harsh for sure,but you can get it good with proper chemicals,weathers changing out there,getting cooler at nite,my guess its out of balance.Or you need a new pool guy!

[jscarab]

I have a pool tile cleaning business in LHC. Very effective and does not hurt tile. I use glass beads with regulated compressed air. 100's of satisfied havasu customers. Also apply a sealer to help resist calcium from building up.(cannot stop this from happening with our water content). If interested in price quote contact Jesse at Dezart Elegance Pool Tile Cleaning- 928-453-2313.

[That Guy]

I checked the chemicals when I was out last time and they looked fine....I have a call into the pool guy as well. I had the same problem in Huntington Beach in our pool where the water is also really hard.....

[riverroyal]

that maybe the answer,seal those areas that can stain.

[BadKachina]

I have a pool tile cleaning business in LHC. Very effective and does not hurt tile. I use glass beads with regulated compressed air. 100's of satisfied havasu customers. Also apply a sealer to help resist calcium from building up.(cannot stop this from happening with our water content). If interested in price quote contact Jesse at Dezart Elegance Pool Tile Cleaning- 928-453-2313.
I had my pool bead blasted last winter, the tile looks new again. There are products that will remove the calcium from the tile but they are super pricey and you have to use them monthly. Sounds like Jesse is you guy in LHC. Oh and don't use a pumice stone, you'll put micro scratches in your tiel and dull the finish.

[HOOTER SLED-]

I have a pool tile cleaning business in LHC. Very effective and does not hurt tile. I use glass beads with regulated compressed air. 100's of satisfied havasu customers. Also apply a sealer to help resist calcium from building up.(cannot stop this from happening with our water content). If interested in price quote contact Jesse at Dezart Elegance Pool Tile Cleaning- 928-453-2313.
Nice first post. :D

[76ANTHONY]

pumise stone and clr, works everytime, not for a big job though it takes some work :D :coffeycup

[That Guy]

I have a pool tile cleaning business in LHC. Very effective and does not hurt tile. I use glass beads with regulated compressed air. 100's of satisfied havasu customers. Also apply a sealer to help resist calcium from building up.(cannot stop this from happening with our water content). If interested in price quote contact Jesse at Dezart Elegance Pool Tile Cleaning- 928-453-2313.
Thanks Jesse...it is only a few months old so I am keeping up with it right now....so, there is no way to avoid this with the water in Havasu? However, we may be talking in a few more months. Thanks for the info....

[jscarab]

DO NOT USE PUMICE STONE. Will scratch and damage tile. I can clean tile with water in the pool or will drain, clean and seal for the same price. :supp: sorry for the "spam" I have been lurking here forever. We also provide full pool maintance.(my father and I) Thanks and again sorry for the 'spam' :D

[2Driver]

I have a pool tile cleaning business in LHC. Very effective and does not hurt tile. I use glass beads with regulated compressed air. 100's of satisfied havasu customers. Also apply a sealer to help resist calcium from building up.(cannot stop this from happening with our water content). If interested in price quote contact Jesse at Dezart Elegance Pool Tile Cleaning- 928-453-2313.
Calcium will build up no matter what you do. I have had the above process done on our pool twice in 5 years and it worked great.

[riverroyal]

no need to apologize on here,you can get a bunch of accounts from big baller home owners out there!!

[jscarab]

Total Dissolved Solids- How much mineral content is in you water. Havasu has a TDS and the hose of about 800 at my house, my pool after draining in feb. now has a TDS of 2100, recommend TDS is between 600-1800. :mad: Need to look into draining your pool once a year or every other year. just a recommendation :wink: We also travel to bullhead(just did one on the parkway today). some pools I have tested have had a TDS of over 5000 :cry: - just means it will get bad at the water line very fast.

[76ANTHONY]

DO NOT USE PUMICE STONE. Will scratch and damage tile. I can clean tile with water in the pool or will drain, clean and seal for the same price. :supp: sorry for the "spam" I have been lurking here forever. We also provide full pool maintance.(my father and I) Thanks and again sorry for the 'spam' :D
im sorry to argue but ive cleaned our tile for 12 years with pumice stone and it has not scratched anything yet.

[jscarab]

Just remember we lose about 15ft. of water a year to evaporation :idea: Minerals don't evaporate. :smile:

[jscarab]

Need to clarify- most pumice stones ar subject to operator error :frown: Is your pool in havasu or on the colorado river?

[76ANTHONY]

nope im in the palm springs area

[Not So Fast]

Why not try "Shower Power"? if it works as well as it does on scaley outdrives (and exhaust tips)where it has been burned on by heat (the white crap) form the Havasu water then it should work on the tile?????? Every single person I tell about this stuff comes back with a smile and says they can not believe how well it works on their outdrive, and no gloves either. worth a shot!! Good luck!!! :D NSF

[jscarab]

Keep your water chem. in mind :(

[jscarab]

I had my pool bead blasted last winter, the tile looks new again. There are products that will remove the calcium from the tile but they are super pricey and you have to use them monthly. Sounds like Jesse is you guy in LHC. Oh and don't use a pumice stone, you'll put micro scratches in your tiel and dull the finish.
BadKachina- let me know if we did your tile- discount for repeat cleaning :cool:

[NashvilleBound]

Puma stone to the tile....to get it clean them. Ad stain and scale remover.... and dont forget to drain and refil at least every three years......

[BigDoug]

How about the magic eraser ?

[jscarab]

magic eraser will tear apart and I dont think its stong enough :confused:

[KineticoH20]

Total Dissolved Solids- How much mineral content is in you water. Havasu has a TDS and the hose of about 800 at my house, my pool after draining in feb. now has a TDS of 2100, recommend TDS is between 600-1800. :mad: Need to look into draining your pool once a year or every other year. just a recommendation :wink: We also travel to bullhead(just did one on the parkway today). some pools I have tested have had a TDS of over 5000 :cry: - just means it will get bad at the water line very fast.
It is recommended that the water should be changed if the TDS gets over 2,000ppm, it is also hard on your pool chemestry.

[BadKachina]

BadKachina- let me know if we did your tile- discount for repeat cleaning :cool:
I'm in Phx but I know the beead blasting is the only good solution to remove the deposits. You should also do a water change every couple of years to remove your solids like posted earlier. Your pool will use lees chemicals to maintain proper levels after a water change as well.

[Broke_Richard!]

I used Jesse at Dezart Elegance Pool (JScarab) and his father before him. They always make the pool look perfect.
1 to 2 times a year and you will never have to waste a weekend scrubing.

[jscarab]

Broke- Thanks for the endorsement :wink: :wink: :wink: Anytime your ready :cool:

[BoatPI]

Aside from bead blasting I found the answer is to use a gas powered presure washer. If it is super thick it may not all flake off. Twice a year I get into my pool and fire up the 2,400 pound washer and focus the stream to a pinpoint. It blows the calcium away. It takes about 30 minutes to complete the job. Use an Aquaserve unit to minimize the build up and feed the plants near the pool.

[Debbolas]

pumise stone and clr, works everytime, not for a big job though it takes some work :D :coffeycup
What Tony said :D

[Broke_Richard!]

JScarab-You should probably explain the importance of draining the water once/twice yearly.

[jscarab]

JScarab-You should probably explain the importance of draining the water once/twice yearly.
Broke- The issue was pretty much addressed in an earlier couple of posts, minerals dont evaporate, and rising TDS(total dissolved solids) make keeping you pool chemistry harder to balance. Changing the water will give you a fresh start, it is also a good time to use any stain treatments prior to draining. Its the "nature of the beast" here in havi.
Also for the price of a 2500psi pressure washer you could have your tile cleaned and sealed more than twice a year-all while you watch and have a frosty one :supp:

[HavaPaul]

Some advice from a 15 year pool man.
Before the bead blasting you should try this first. Bead blasting does work. You should try this first because this will continue to occur. Yes change your water every year out here.
The stronges chemical availablr to the public for this is called Biodex 300, made by Biodex. Available at any pool store, or can be ordered. It is real cheap, I can do most pools with one half of a quart bottle. Application:
Use gloves and eye protection, Use a small dishwashing sponge. Soak the sponge with the Biodex 300 over the pool so no spillage. Just wipe the sponge over the area, you will notice the foaming occuring, this is the Biodex removing calcium, No foaming no removing of calcium. Keep applying on same area until foaming stops. At that time you have done what can be done. Move on to the next section to be cleaned. Do about a 3 or 4 foot section at a time. This is chemicaly removing calcium so no rubbing or abrasion is needed. By the way a pumice stone can realy scratch the heck out of your glaze. This is what you dont want to scratch as it is much harder to remove calcium from scratched tile. ( reglazing after a beadblast is a must).
Now here is the scoop on removability. If the tile is new, say 1 year old. The biodex300 will work. If the calcium has been laid down over several years in thousands of thin layers it will not work. Beadblasting is in order.I have of coarse tryed to clean tile that has never been cleaned over several years and found that the foaming stops before all the calcium has been removed. If it has only been a yaer it will come off. Never let a whole year pass before cleaning your tile. Even if you cant see it it is there. The foaming will verify this. Clean regularly as this stuff is real cheap. I have cleaned a lot of tile in 15 years and it usualy never costs me over 15 bucks for the chems.
Hope this helps.
Wow, I found something to post about.
Quote: Welcome to our OOL. Notice there is no P in it. Please keep it that way.
P.S. If anyone has small kids peeing in there pool, or dont know about it. ask me. This is realy BAD BAD BAD!.

[ROZ]

Most pool guys don't do a tile scrub with weekly visits around here, but I will say that it really helps.
The only problem I have( I mostly do commercial pools), is with sunscreen at the retirement homes... It puts an oily line on the tile.. Those bluehairs use too much of the crap...
Once you get it clean, make sure your new pool guy takes care of it each week. It only takes a few minutes. I do it and it helps a ton..

[mmered8299]

Would adding a salt system or Aqua-Docs help?

[Nord]

I use a pumice(sp?) stone on my spillways from the spa, but it doesn't get rid of all of the buildup.
What I want to know is how to get stains off my steps from Fertilizer pebbles sitting on them???? It has created a dark stain, someone told me trichlor????
Any recomendations?? :confused:

[jscarab]

Would adding a salt system or Aqua-Docs help?
I do lots of saltwater pools. Saltwater pools dont change the mineral content, just makes the calcium hardness less.
Havapaul- are you currently doing pools in havi?? :mix:

[INSman]

Jesse did my pool last week after about a year of the typical Havasu hard water build-up and it looks great !!! He applied some tile sealer as well to help fend off the inevitable. ;)
Jesse at Dezart Elegance Pool Tile Cleaning- 928-453-2313.

[INSman]

Biodex 300 is the ticket. Poolman for 23 years.
I am sure it does, just did not want to do the work ;)

[Pheelin Phroggy]

I have a pool service and repair company in the High Desert, we have the same hardwater problems, bottom line is unless you keep your mineral deposits down, at some point in time you will get the water line build-up, up here it gets so bad that some pools have it floating in the water.. the only real answer is draining at least every other year. My personal pool is salt chlorinated.. I recommend this to anyone with a pool, it is an up front cost, but you save in the long run on chemicals and usability ( as well as just being cool swimming in salt water) but wont help you mineral levels.
Depending on the severity of the water line build up, there are several options, we have tried the pumice, and a whole bunch of different "miracle" removers... but as stated above, make sure your pool guys brushes the tile every service for preventive measures, and two things that you WILL get results with... 2500 psi pressure washer for minor build-up, and glass bead tile cleaner for the tough stuff... if you think about what your time is worth trying to do it yourself, it is always better to hire a pro and hold them accountable for the results.
Just my two cents worth..
PP

[BigDoug]

Jesse is a good dude !! :D

[BoatPI]

There is NOTHING you can do to stop this with the Havasu water. I tried a few things that did help.
1. ALWAYS have a large filter inline for your auto pool fuller line.
2. Use Aquaserve as it bleeds off some water into your planters daily keeping fresh water coming in.
3. ALWAYS drain and fill yearly. Fresh water pulls calicum off of the pool walls.
You plaster will be going away at perhaps 10 or so years. I replastered my pool last year with 3m quartz crystals mixed into the plaster. This stuff is smooth and does not seem to hold the calicum like ordnary plaster.
Have a good pool company clean it weekly. Your water fall tils will always collect some calicum. And DO NOT use a pumice stone!!

[jscarab]

Thanks Ins.man and Big Doug:D :D Members let me know if you have any questions- we give free estimates..........Jesse

[Seasday]

Our new pool in Havasu has two spillways that flow from the jacuzzi to the pool. They have gotten a build up of white chalky calcium (I am assuming) on the tile because the water is so hard out here....Anyone know of an easy way to clean that stuff other than scraping it off? It is a real bitch to scrape ....any ideas??? :idea:
Thanks.
Electronic pulse technology originally used for home water systems and converted to pool use by a company in Phoenix. Had several pools in High Desert, Palm Springs area and a few friends in Havasu with calcium shortly after build. (used a lot in AZ, even Shasta uses them) Clean tile once, install and it never returns.....EVER! Well maybe not ever, just started two years ago. So far, so good though.