The Realities of Swimming Pool Maintenance Costs for New York and Connecticut Homeowners

Remember going to the swimming pool as a kid? It was nothing but fun in the sun, with inflatable rafts, dive rings, and deck chairs ringing the edge.

No doubt you had visions of these memories when you made the decision to install a new pool in your landscape — but you also know there’s a lot more to having a backyard inground swimming pool than simply enjoying a dip on a warm, sunny day.

There’s a lot of responsibility that goes with swimming pool maintenance!

The average cost of pool maintenance will vary depending on the size of your pool, material, and type of pool, as well as how regularly you use it. And, as you’ll see, pool maintenance costs involve more than just money. We’re talking about your valuable TIME!

How much time, effort and cost are involved all depend on being equipped with the right tools for the job — and being willing to take the necessary preventive steps.

We’ve got some general guidelines for the time commitment that swimming pool maintenance will require, regularly, seasonally and annually.

DIY Swimming Pool Cleaning and Maintenance

Every week throughout the swimming season, you’ll need to be outside regularly skimming, checking for cloudy water, alkalinity, pool chemicals and chlorine levels with a test kit. Depending on your pool’s water levels, you’ll need to purchase and balance the chemicals with chlorine tablets. (Proper chemical maintenance and balance in your swimming pool water is paramount — improper balances can ruin vinyl liner or plaster finish in as little as one to two years!) 

You’ll also want to monitor your equipment like the pool heater, pool pump, and pool filter system; as well as all the upkeep duties of cleaning the skimmer basket, changing out the cartridge filters, vacuuming the inground pool, and more.

You can expect to spend anywhere from four to six hours every week on your swimming pool maintenance, which adds up to 16 to 24 hours every month.

Maintain a Swimming Pool in the On and Off-Season

Opening your inground or above ground pool for the season can take up to eight hours in itself, from removing the cover, cleaning and storing it, filling the pool, cleaning filters, starting up the pump and doing the initial water chemistry checks.

In reversing the process at the end of the warm season, winterizing your swimming pool can also take up to eight hours.

Schedule Your Routine Maintenance With Our Pool Service Company Today

During the winter, you should be outside regularly monitoring your swimming pool cover for rips and tears, continually brushing debris off the cover and watching the water ph levels. Truly comprehensive off-season swimming pool maintenance services will take anywhere from four to six hours a month.

You’ll also want to reassess your pool’s surroundings periodically, from the plants and hardscaping to your pool accessories, and make repairs as necessary.

Total swimming pool maintenance efforts for pool owners can be anywhere from approximately 128 hours to 208 hours per year.

And that’s just a glimpse of bi-weekly services for your pool. If you run into any kind of issues or problems with your pool, you can count on quite a few more hours added on to that number.

When you’re trying to figure in the national average price for maintenance pool costs of pool cleaner tasks, repairs and occasional renovations to the mix, maybe it makes more sense to bring in the pool cleaning service. They have the right tools for the job, know the preventive steps to take and will let you enjoy your fun in the sun!

If you’re in Hudson Valley, call (845) 463-0592. Westchester, call (914) 271-7996. Cold Spring, call (845) 463-0592, and in Connecticut, call (203) 212-4800. Or fill out our web form, and our pool company will get in touch with you to schedule a complimentary swimming pool consultation.