Swimming Pool Professionals Cleaning, Maintenance, Repair Services & Supplies
Call Mark 966 482 453 or 659 999 044 Buying a Villa with a Pool
Piscina Care
You like the villa, but is the pool cool? Make sure you’re not getting in over your head. When you make an offer on a villa with a pool, you imagine a future of long, lazy summer afternoons lounging by the water. But for the unwary buyer, a pool can mean only headaches.
Don’t assume that a pool increases the value of the home. In fact, it will scare off more buyers than it attracts. Give your prospective pool a thorough inspection, ask an independent pool specialist to come and have a look.
You can start with these steps:- • Ask who installed the pool and who has been looking after it. • Imagine what the pool area will look like in summer, or ask to see photos. • Does the pool get lots of light or is it blocked by trees or the villa? Overhanging trees can mean leaves in the pool. • Ask for a written assurance from the owners that the pool equipment all works. If you’re confi dent you know what you’re looking for, do the inspection yourself and consider the following:- • Does the pool appear as well-maintained as the villa? • If covered ask for it to be removed.
• Ensure easy access to your pool from your villa, or entertainment area. Consider how patios, decks or walkways are positioned to provide a safe and simple entrance and exit between your villa and your pool especially if children are going to be swimming in it.
• If it’s a vinyl-lined pool, look for tears. Stains may be an aesthetic concern, but they could also mean a problem. • For a concrete or gunite pool, look for cracks or loose tiles around the perimeter. • If there are no obvious tears or cracks, look for water-saturated soil in the area around the pool, pump or plumbing. • Is the water level the same on the tiles on both sides of the pool corner, view from shallow end to deep end. • Check that the pool lights work. • How old are the mechanical components? • When was the sand/glass last changed in the pool fi lter? • Be wary of tiles missing from inside the pool. • Get an explanation if the water is not crystal clear.
• Check the cleaning port is working (if installed) by carefully putting your hand over it when the cleaning valve is open and checking the suction (the bottom drain and top skimmer valves should be closed).
• Run the pump and ensure the fi lter has water in it (seen through the glass lid), turn off the pump and the water level should remain the same, if it starts to empty the system is drawing air which is a problem with one a seal or the piping. • Make sure the pool heater & salt system is working (if installed).
• While the pump is running, look for bubbles from the jets. This could mean a leak in the suction side of the fi ltration system. If the pool is losing water when the pump is running, it means there’s a leak on the return side.
• With the pump running, turn the skimmer valve off and leave the bottom drain valve open, then turn the skimmer valve back on and turn the bottom valve off, the water suction should be exactly the same, if it is different this indicate a blockage or a problem with the piping.
Finally, review the operating costs with the vendor. For an average 8 x 4 metre pool, the pump shouldn’t cost much more than an average of 40€ a month to run. The heating costs shouldn’t exceed on average 100€ a month and the chemicals should be approximately 180€ a season. If the costs are higher, it could mean that the equipment will soon need to be replaced, or that the whole pool needs a professional inspection.
If you have questions regarding your pool contact Mark on:
966 482 453 or 659 999 044 or email:
mark@yourpiscinacare.com www.yourpiscinacare.com
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