Having trouble with water bugs in your pool? Have you googled how to get rid of them and something outrageous came up i.e. using dish soap or cooking oil? Stop what you’re doing! We have a couple of solutions and pool products you can use without having to pour cooking oil in your pool!
Tip #1: BUG OFF!
“Oh, Bug Off!” she said to the little black back swimmers enjoying the pool on a bright and sunny day! It is a normal occurrence for water bugs to go swimming when the weather makes it hard for them to find other water sources. The frustration is that chlorine has no effect on water bugs. The remedy is simple: Add 150 ml to one of our favorite pool products (made right here at Aqua-Tech!), “BUG OFF!” per 40,000 L of water. Repeat up to 72 hours until the bug issue is done. Within 24 hours, you will expect to see the bugs start sinking to the bottom of the pool where they can be vacuumed and physically removed from the pool. If your pool requires more than 2 treatments, bring a 1 L water sample to Aqua-Tech for analysis and let us know what is happening.
Tip #2: Old School Algaecides
Water bugs have a little pouch (similar to a kangaroos pouch) that gets filled with air and that is how they float at the top of the pool. The only way they die is if their pouch is trapped and doesn’t have access to air. Some of our old school algaecides such as Clear Rebound, Polygard, and Algae 50 have surfactant which is isn’t in some of our newer algaecides. The difference in our older algaecides is because it has surfactant in it, it puts a layer in the pool. The layer covers the top, the side walls, and the bottom of the pool. By putting a bottle (or the appropriate amount for you swimming pool) of one of the pool products recommended above, you will make it impossible for the water bugs to get air therefore filling up their pouches with water instead of air making them die and sink to the bottom of the pool. After that all you’ll need to do is vacuum them right up!
Tip #3: Chemical Free Solution
If you’re looking for a chemical free way to get rid of water bugs, we’ve got just the solution! Water bugs are attracted to light so when it’s dark out, put your underwater light on or use a flashlight and all the water bugs will swarm around the light. While all the bugs are around the light, you’ll need to scoop them out and put them into a pail with a lid (something like an ice cream bucket) so they die in there. If you just put them back onto the grass, they’ll fly right back into your pool.
And just like that, your water bugs are gone! Now you can enjoy a water bug free pool! Happy swimming!
