mjw

Thanks for sharing - very encouraging and informative. Since I also have an automatic chlorine dosing pool and I too spend several months at a time away from the house and pool I would be very interested in any tips you may have for closing the pool down especially over the winter period. I don't trust mine to maintain a sufficient water level to have the pump running whilst I am away. How about you?

Dear all - many thanks for the lively debate. The thread is by no means hijacked. To the contrary it's all adding to my understanding. If nothing else the sanitisation issue is obviously a complicated one - not helped by suppliers sticking to what they know/think most profitable as Andrew suggests. I need to go away and do some more thinking - it's important to get this right. Andrew/Hagar I may come back and send you a few questions if that is OK with you both? I really appreciate you having taken the time and trouble to answer my posts. Speak soon, kind regards, Martin.

Thanks for the posts John & Hagar - all adding to top up my knowledge on these things. As I stated earlier, i was finding it difficult to introduce a mix and match solution. The installers I spoke with (at length) seemed to want to sell their complete solution. Certainly they didn't appear too enthusiastic about me introducing the ChemiGem approach. Does anyone know if it is typical that you have to go with an installers whole solution or is it easy to find someone to install the groundworks/pool and perhaps someone else to fit your required sanitisation solution? It seems to me in France that suppliers of most things quote "insurance/guarantees" as a barrier to dividing works. I even came up against this with a stove installer - nobody wanted to fit one if I sourced/supplied it (at a much lower cost) myself. So, someone to fit the pool/pump/filter, someone else to supply and fit the sanitiser? Possible? Anyone taken this approach with success?

Thanks all for your input. I have been doing a fair amount of research around all the things that need considering when installing a pool - but it's obviously a complex area with lots to learn. Plus I'm fitting the research around all the other things that need doing when having a house built in France! I met with 2 pool installers in France and as well as getting completely differing views regarding construction in the Hourtin area (high water table apparently), I also got very different advise with the sterilisation. Having read Andrew's excellent web site I went armed with a full 39 page Chemigem operating manual - only to get it poo pooed by one of the installers as being expensive to maintain and unreliable when sensors fail.His solution being a Sterilor salty system. It seems that the suppliers package a complete solution (construction/filters/sterilisation/heating) and are reluctant (completely inflexible) to mix and match approaches. Encouraged to hear that someone has a BIO-UV system installed and is happy with it - but a bit concerned that the running costs may be a bit high. More food for though (sigh). Many thanks again all. mjw (Martin)

Hi all, In the process of commissioning a pool. One of the suppliers has recommended a BIO-UV ultraviolet unit for the water treatment. In theory it sounds great - no chemicals apart from a little dosing plus pH regulator. I'm struggling to find anyone with any experience of using this type of kit rather than the more common Chlorine units. I'm going to need to close the pool out of season and it will probably be a resin coque type. Views gratefully received. Many thanks.