R & R Everclear has been in business for over 25 years?  Since the days of Andy and Scott cleaning and servicing all the pools, we have grown to a company of over 35 employees.  We are all committed to providing you with the best pool care and service possible.  To that end, we are sending out this informational letter to ensure that our policies and procedures meet your expectations and to pass on some knowledge about your pool and how it works. 

• when your pool was serviced?  You should be receiving a confirmation email each time your pool is serviced.  This email will have what was done at your pool, as well as any notes or issues.  If you are not receiving these emails – please contact the office.

• that a law affecting pool pumps went into effect in January 2012?  This law, called Title 44, requires that any newly installed pool motor being 1 horsepower or more and attached to a filter, have at least 2 speeds.  Meaning: if your existing pool motor goes out, we must upgrade your pool motor to a variable speed motor.  These new motors cost substantially more but will save in excess of $600 annually in electric costs. 

• pools need to be drained every two to five years?  In Arizona, we have very hard (high calcium) water.  Calcium does not evaporate as water does.  Over time, the water in your pool becomes harder and harder – making it more difficult for the chemicals in your pool to be effective.  It also greatly speeds up how quickly and heavily a calcium line will form on your tile or pebble at the water’s edge.  And…. Harder water requires more chlorine to keep your pool algae free. 

• that a calcium line will eventually form – even though your tile or pebble is being brushed weekly?  The sun and air bake and dry the calcium to your tile or pebble more and more over time.  Once it gets too displeasing to look at – it will require a process called ‘glass beading’ to remove the calcium and renew the surface.  This process generally costs $4-$5 per linear foot.  R & R performs this service, contact the office to schedule. 

• there are a few preventative measures that can be taken to address the formation of a calcium line?  (1) Drain your pool regularly (2) There is a chemical called ‘Scale Tech’ for chlorine pools and ‘Beau Tec’ for salt pools that can be added to your pool to slow down the formation of a calcium line on your tile or pebble.  We do charge extra for this chemical.  Contact your cleaner or manager if you are interested.  (3) Treat your tile line with vegetable oil or Rain-X.  These will help bead back the water and prevent calcium from forming.  NONE of these are fail-proof but will slow down the process. 

• that there is a mineral additive called ‘Pool Rx’ that we highly recommend?  We debated making this a mandatory added chemical, but offer it on a voluntary basis.  There is a one time annual cost for the treatment, which will last the entire summer.  This product will allow your main pool motor to run for less time (reducing electric bills), require less chlorine (more pleasant to swim in), extend the life or your salt cell, and virtually eliminate the possibility of most algae. 

• that in addition to hardness, stabilizer (aka conditioner or cyanuric acid) also does not evaporate?  What is stabilizer?  Stabilizer is a chemical that reacts only with chlorine to keep it from burning out from the sun.  If you have little or no stabilizer, the sun will burn off the chlorine quickly and your pool will get algae.  If you have too much stabilizer (which occurs in pools that have not been drained in several years – because chlorine tablets have stabilizer in them), it will bind up all of the chlorine – making it unavailable to kill algae and your pool will get algae.  High stabilizer can only be corrected by draining your pool and renewing the water.  Call the office to schedule your pool drain. 

• salt pools make chlorine from the salt in the water?  Salt also does not evaporate.  City water contains some salt in it, thus, gradually increasing the amount of salt in your pool.  Due to the fact that salt cells only work within a certain range and can be affected by the hardness of the water, salt pools need to be drained more frequently. 

• salt cells are delicate instruments?  Every time you clean a salt cell, it takes life off of the cell.  Salt cells should generally be cleaned about every 3 months – unless it is new, in which case, it can go longer.  If it is a couple years old, it may need it more frequently.  If your cell needs to be cleaned every week or even once a month, it is most likely not working correctly, or the pool hardness is very high and needs to be drained.  To extend the life of your cell, R & R may disable your cell in the winter months when you are not using your pool. 

• your pool needs to run (circulate water) as a rule of thumb, one hour for every ten degrees?  For example, in the wintertime when the average temps are 50-60 degrees, your pool should run at least 5 hours.  In the heat of the summer, you may need to run your pool up to 10 hours, especially if you have a salt pool, because you may not be able to produce enough chlorine with lower run times. 

• your pool filter needs to be cleaned generally 1-3 times per year?  This is an additional cost of $135/cleaning.  We AUTOMATICALLY perform this service when needed, UNLESS DIRECTED NOT TO DO SO.  You need to inform us if you DO NOT wat us to automatically clean your filter when needed.   [General rule:  cartridge filters 2-3 times per year, DE filters 1-2 times per year… Sand filters do not need yearly cleans.]

• the office is open daily (M-F) from 9am to 4pm and can be reached by phone 480-502-2890 or email:  accounting@rreverclear.com to address billing questions. 

• we prefer email billing (saves time, paper, and money) and have many payment options. You can always mail us a check,  call the office to pay by credit card over the phone, make a payment on our website: www.rreverclear.com , pay with Zelle (use this number:  480-431-0926), or use online bill pay through your bank.

• our entire staff receives a paid vacation between Christmas and New Year’s?  That’s our way of thanking our employees for a year of hard work.  We know it is a week that your pool goes unserviced, but it is during the cool time of year when your pool can last (chemically) for 2 weeks.  Your missed service is offset by the five other months during the year that have five weeks instead of four where we do not charge an additional fee. 

• we have a $50 referral policy?  We will credit your account for every pool service client that you refer to us who starts service – once their first payment is received.