The Two Most Important Things You Can Do for Your Pool
It is the middle of winter in Sydney. The water is cold, the cover might be on, and your pool is probably the last thing on your mind. That is fine, winter is the one time of year your pool asks less of you. But less does not mean nothing.
At The Pool Service Co, our techs look after pools every week across the Eastern Suburbs of Sydney, the Northern Beaches, and the North Shore. So we asked them a simple question. If you are not using a professional pool cleaner, and a pool owner only does two things all winter, what should they be? Every one of them came back with the same answer.
Keep your water level halfway up the skimmer box. And empty that skimmer basket. Two small habits. Here is why they matter so much.
Get the water level right and keep that basket clear, and your pool will get through winter without drama. But a pool needs more than that to stay properly healthy. That is where we come in. Every visit, our techs clean the walls, remove debris from the water, and balance the chemicals if they need adjusting. We check the filter, clean it, and look at the pressure to make sure everything is flowing the way it should. It is the kind of maintenance that is easy to miss if you are not doing it every week, and it is what keeps a pool truly ready, not just ticking over.
Keep the water level halfway up the skimmer box
Your skimmer box is where everything starts. It is the mouth of your whole filtration system. Water enters here, travels to the pump, pushes through the filter, and returns clean. For that to work, the water level needs to sit about halfway up the skimmer opening. Drop below that and the skimmer starts pulling in air along with water. Air in the line means your pump loses prime. It cavitates, strains, and runs hot. A pump running dry, even briefly, can cook its seals and shorten its life. That is an expensive repair for something a garden hose could have prevented.
Air in the system also drops your water pressure through the filter. Less pressure means less circulation. Less circulation means chemicals stop moving through the pool the way they should, and dead spots form where algae loves to settle in and wait for spring. Too high is a problem too. If the water sits above the skimmer opening, debris floats straight past instead of being drawn in.
Halfway. That is the sweet spot. Check it once a week. Sydney winter rain often keeps it topped up for you, but do not assume. Evaporation still happens on dry, windy weeks, especially in exposed pools near the coast around the Northern Beaches and Eastern Suburbs.
Empty the skimmer basket
Winter is leaf season. Anyone with a pool on a tree lined street in Mosman or under the big figs and gums of the North Shore knows exactly what we mean. Wind, storms, and bare trees send everything straight into your pool, and your skimmer basket catches most of it. That is its job. But a full basket chokes the flow of water to your pump.
When the basket clogs, your pump has to work harder to pull the same amount of water. Pressure drops. Circulation slows. The filter is not getting enough water to clean, and your pump is under strain the entire time it runs. Left long enough, a blocked basket can starve the pump completely, and you are back to the same expensive problem as a low water level.
There is a flow on effect too. Poor circulation in winter is how a pool quietly turns. The water looks fine for weeks, then one warm week in September and it is green. Most of the green pools we recover in spring started with a neglected skimmer basket in July. Emptying it takes thirty seconds. Lift the lid, pull the basket, tip it out, drop it back in. Once a week is plenty for most pools. After a storm, do it the next day.
Prefer someone else handles it?
That is what we do. The Pool Service Co provides pool cleaning and pool maintenance across Sydney, from Randwick and the wider Eastern Suburbs to Mosman, the North Shore, and up through the Northern Beaches. Every visit includes digital water testing, a clear service report, and a preventative check of your pump, filter, and equipment. You get the same dedicated pool tech each time, someone who knows your pool and catches small problems before they become big ones. No upselling. Clear advice and a pool that is always ready.
Book a free pool assessment or call and speak with a pool tech. We will keep it swim ready through winter so spring takes care of itself.
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