If you’ve ever opened your pool in the spring and found a pile of dead worms sitting at the deep end, you already know how unpleasant winter can be for an in-ground pool. Even worse, those worms often leave behind dark, rust-colored stains in the plaster that can be very difficult to remove.
Pool stains come from several sources, but most pool stains, especially the difficult ones, come from worms that release iron and other compounds into the plaster. Worms enter the pool in the fall and winter and can’t get out, so they eventually end up in the deepest, darkest end of the pool where there is no oxygen, and they die. Winter pool stain prevention isn’t easy, since there’s no efficient way to keep worms, leaves, sticks, and even snakes out of the pool. Worms can easily crawl under even the tightest covers, and strong winds can blow leaves under the cover.
The best way to prevent dead worms from staining an inground plaster pool is to install a pool worm stain shield or worm guard over the pool drain cover for winter. This plastic device, much larger than the drain cover, is made of anti-corrosive, high-density plastic that sinks in water and covers a wide area around the drain at the deep end of the pool. The device is made for in-ground plaster pools.
HOW DOES A WORM STAIN SHIELD WORK?
Worms and debris that end up in a covered pool don’t spread evenly across the floor. They sink and settle at the lowest point of the pool: the deep end right over the main drain. The worm stain shield sits in that exact zone and covers a much larger area than the drain cover itself. Instead of settling directly on the plaster, the worms and other debris land on top of the shield, which is non-permeable and does not stain. Staining compounds never reach your plaster, and debris stays off your main drain.
AN EASIER, CLEANER POOL OPENING
Without a shield, opening your pool can mean vacuuming out decayed worms, scrubbing stains, and paying for stain treatments or even an acid wash. With a worm stain shield, the mess is collected in one place. At opening time, simply lift the shield out of the pool, rinse it off, and put it away. What used to take hours of cleanup takes just a few minutes.
INSTALL IT AT CLOSING, FORGET ABOUT IT UNTIL OPENING
The worm stain shield installs in minutes when you close your pool for the winter. Once it’s in place, you don’t need to do anything else until spring. Made of anti-corrosive, high-density plastic, it’s built to sit underwater through the winter months.
Think of it as inexpensive insurance for your plaster. A few minutes at closing can save you the cost, time, and frustration of dealing with worm stains when you open your pool.
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