How to Remove Foam From Your Pool (Fast & Easy)

Although pool foam can look rather interesting and seem a bit less troublesome than something like black algae, it’s pretty gross. Pool foam happens when your water is too thick, likely the result of extra particles in the water. What causes those particles and how to prevent and treat them? We can help with that.

Why Does My Pool Have Foam in It?

There are two basic ways your pool ended up with foam in it. The first is chemicals and substances that were on humans, and the second is chemicals that you poured into the pool. If you have recently had a high number of swimmers in the pool, the foam is very likely caused by their body lotion, hair products, or makeup that they left behind in your water. Not all that appealing to jump in a pool full of junk is it?

The second reason the foam might appear is if you have recently treated your pool for something, and there are too many chemicals still in the water. Specifically, if you have used an algaecide, it is common to get some pool foam. Luckily, getting pool foam out after an algaecide treatment is not difficult.

Can I Swim in A Pool That Has Foam?

Most importantly, you want to check your chemicals in the pool. If everything is in balance and there is enough chlorine, it is ok to be swimming in a pool that has some foam. Long term, this is a problem you are going to want to address.

How to Get Foam Out of The Pool?

As we mentioned earlier, the foam is caused by two different reasons, humans and chemicals.

Let’s break down the way to proceed for each cause.

1. An Overabundance of Chemicals Creating Pool Foam

Luckily, if you just treated your pool with algaecide and you see foam, you can follow a few simple steps to get rid of it. The algaecide has not had ample time to break down, therefore, causing it to foam and bubble at the surface. The best thing to do is to keep your filter running and let the chemicals continue to break down.

If you are ready to get rid of that foam, you can skim some of it off the surface while you wait for it to break down.

As always, make sure to check the chemicals in your pool as well to make sure there are no other underlying issues that you may be unaware of. Proper pH and chlorine levels will help this process move along quicker.

2. High Swim Load Creating Foam

The process of removing foam caused by people and all of their runoff can be a little more extensive.

Again, you are going to want to check your pool chemicals and make sure that you are working with the correct levels.

Next, you will want to shock the pool. You do not need to do a hard shock, just a light shock (1 pound per 10,000 gallons). Keep the filter running the entire time you are shocking the pool, and always start this process at night. Making sure that the sun doesn’t burn off the power of the chlorine is a crucial step in the process.

Balancing the chemicals along with the shock should remove the foam; however, if it does not, there is another step you can take. Sometimes the water has been treated so many times, and it is still just too thick. At this point, some of the pool water needs to be drained. After draining some water and then refilling the pool, go ahead and shock it again.

If all of the above methods have not worked for removing foam from your pool, there is a Pool Anti Foam Chemical that you can put in the pool. Anti-foam is usually a quick and easy process. It is designed not to alter the chemical levels in the pool or cloud the water.

If you are battling foam in the pool as a long-term problem, you can use the anti-foam as a preventive treatment as well.

Keeping Foam Out of My Pool From The Start

Now that you have your pool all cleaned up and looking a little less like a science experiment, it may be helpful to have some ways to keep foam out from the start.

Asking people to shower or rinse before getting into the pool will make a big difference when it comes to combating the foam issue. Installing an outdoor shower by a pool is a huge benefit to keeping your water clear throughout the swim season. It’s one of the reasons why every hotel pool has a sign asking bathers to shower before entering. We all know how often people follow this rule, but hopefully, you can keep a closer eye on the guests of your pool.

If algaecide is what caused the foam, make sure to choose a non-foaming algaecide. This product will effectively treat your black, green, and yellow algae issues without leaving behind an additional problem for you to clean up.

Lastly, to prevent pool foam, make sure to clean your pool continually. If you just hosted a party and lots of people swimming, it may be worth doing a quick shock on the pool as a preventative treatment. If nothing else, turn that filter on and let it run through the night to process all the hairspray that Aunt Karen generously shared with you.

Recap

As pool owners, we can be faced with some tricky issues when it comes to making sure a pool is always clear and swimmable. Although foam in the pool is a bit gross, it is a simple fix. Make sure to keep the pool clean to begin with, always check the chemicals, and if you need to, there are anti-foam treatments that you can pour in for a quick fix. Let us know how this worked to help clean the foam in your pool.

Featured Image Credit: makamuki0, Pixabay