Cleaning pool tiles with calcium

Calcium on pool tiles usually becomes visible on pool tiles at some stage during the life of almost every pool.  It is a very common issue that pool owners face for various reasons.  To help you understand why calcium is forming on your pool tiles the following information may be of help.

Thin white calcium film on tiles

When tiles get wet, the water evaporates which leaves any calcium and minerals in the water to solidify on the tiles. This picture shows what calcium looks like on waterline tiles. This type of calcium formation is unavoidable as it is a simple function of evaporation.  This buildup occurs because the calcium in your water needs to go somewhere after the water evaporates. Calcium chloride is part of balanced water and this will become visible on tiles after evaporation occurs, particularly if your calcium hardness level is high.  This type of calcium formation will almost always happen on waterline tiles (and water feature tiles) due to heat, wind, and fast evaporation, particularly in summer.  If the pH of your water is consistently high, this will accelerate the formation of calcium on your pool tiles.

Calcium from cement in coping tiles

Calcium can seep out through the cement that binds the top coping tiles (horizontal tiles at the water’s edge) above the vertical waterline tiles. Without a doubt, this is the most common cause of calcium formation in swimming pools.  In this case, the calcium comes from the chemical reaction within the cement. This type of calcium is called calcium hydroxide and is produced during the hydration (curing) of cement. Remember, white cement is made with around 31% calcium and this can cause calcium scale in tiles (particularly when wet) to seep out of the joints and run down the pool tiles.  This calcium will often start right under the coping tiles and run down toward the water. It is very hard and is often quite thick in places. Our treatments help with this issue.

Band of horizontal calcium from static water level

Another way calcium can form on tiles is in a single thick band along the waterline.  If your pool design means that the water level is constant because of an infinity edge, indoor pool, or auto water top-up device, then it is very likely that this band will appear on your pool tiles.  In these cases, the water level does not move up and down like ordinary pools and this causes the calcium to form a very hard and narrow horizontal band around the waterline.  Brushing the waterline tiles regularly and, if possible, adjusting the water level will help reduce the formation of calcium on your pool tiles.

How to clean swimming pool tiles

The best way to clean swimming pool ties is to treat your pool for several weeks with our calcium dissolving products.  It is best to do this before trying to remove it manually. This is because our treatments soften hard calcium which makes removal much easier and simple to do.   If you attempt to remove calcium without our pre-treatment is as hard as concrete and strongly adheres to the tiles. This means that you will likely cause severe damage to the tiles in trying to scratch it off.  This can lead to chipped, scratched, and broken tiles.  We do not recommend using rubbing blocks, paint scrapers, or pumice stones on tiles as these can scratch or crack the tiles permanently.  Our calcium treatment kit is the best treatment option for softening waterline calcium buildup on swimming pool tiles.