You shouldn't take care only for the interior, but also of the real estate exterior. Cottages, holiday homes built on the coast should be arranged both from the outside and from the inside, especially if you plan to rent them. Guests want to spend their vacation on a location where they can relax and enjoy the surrounding environment. Nowadays it is more and more important that new and quality accommodation also offers pool service. 

 

If you would like to obtain a good price when renting or selling the real estate itself, it is recommendable to further invest in buying a pool that can be fixed or demountable. Of course, the pool needs regular maintenance so that it can be used for the intended purpose. It is also necessary to maintain green areas and herbs located in the yard of real estate.  

Below you will find tips and procedures that you should take into account to maintain your green areas and pools. 

 

What is horticulture and how important it is 

Horticulture represents the science of growing flora and fauna in the garden and refers to plant production of a smaller scale, unlike agriculture. With horticulture we take care of the soil and it often has a narrower meaning regarding the design and care of the ornamental garden.  

Every house owner wants his garden and yard to be representative and that not only owners and guests, but also accidental passers-by enjoy them. In order to achieve this, it is necessary to regularly maintain green areas, plants and trees in the garden itself.  

It is necessary to have money for maintenance, but this activity also takes a lot of time to do it seriously. As the real estate environment is in a better state it will attract more potential guests. 

 

How to maintain green areas 

The maintenance of green areas includes, among other things, the following activities: lawn mowing, lawn plowing, cropping plants and trees, hedging of hedges and chemical weed maintenance. Maintenance can be done daily, monthly and annually. It all depends on the needs of the garden and the type of herbs. You should not neglect your garden, but you must regularly take care of it because then it is easier to maintain it.  

Also, in order to add value to your real estate, you can further shape the environment by building smaller facilities such as booths, fireplaces and canopies. At the seaside, the fireplace is an inevitable addition to the garden that allows guests to prepare their own meals outside the kitchen. 

 

Pool maintenance depending on pool type (fixed and demountable) 

The swimming pool is no longer considered as an addition but as a basic part of the yard of a property rented on the Adriatic. In order to achieve a higher rental price during the rental period, we advise you to allocate several thousand Kunas for installing the pool.  

Depending on your preferences and financial capabilities there are two basic pool types, which are fixed and demountable. To install a fixed pool, you need to excavate the earth at the desired location. As a rule, they are considerably more expensive than demountable pools and require more effort to make them work. On the other hand, today's increasingly popular, demountable pools are settled on the ground and don't have to be buried. That's why they are easy to assemble and disassemble and can be placed anywhere in your garden.  

There are various dimensions and depths, from an ordinary children's pool to a pool deep up to 1.30 meters and size of 30 m2. 

 

Making the pool functional 

Whether it's a fixed or demountable pool, every pool type implies taking certain steps to make it work. At the beginning, equipment testing, and potential malfunctions are corrected.  

As months pass by, a corrosion or poor storage can cause equipment malfunction. Therefore, it is necessary to clean the equipment well before filling the pool and test its work. Once you have made sure that all equipment works well as in the previous season or if you have removed all the malfunctions, you will need to fill the pool with water.  

The pool requires a large amount of water and we advise you to find the cheapest possible source of it, keeping in mind that it is safe for health. Some of the options are water from the water supply and taking water from the lakes and rivers. Water from the water supply has already been processed and it is not necessary to treat it so much in the beginning as water from the river and the lake. Water from the river and lake should be treated with chlorine and the pH value should be adjusted to an ideal level, i.e. between 7 and 7.6.  

Once you have filled the pool with water, it is necessary to continue to maintain the pool by cleaning the filter pump and taking into account the water’s pH value. 

 

pH range of water and disinfection 

For high-quality and clean water, it is necessary to take into account the pH of water, chlorine, alkalinity and water hardness. The pH value indicates the degree of acidity or alkalinity of water. The pH value ranges from 0 to 14. From 0 to 7 it is acidic water and 7 to 14 alkaline water. Value 7 represents neutral value.  

The ideal pH value in the pool is between 7 and 7,6 because at this value, the water does not cause irritation or deposition of lime, and the efficiency of the chemical products that treat the water is optimal. pH lower than 7.6 will cause corrosion of the metal and irritation of the mucous membrane and eyes, and pH higher than 7.6 will additionally boost the smell of chlorine. Water will take on the look of milk, the stem will collapse on the stairs of the pool, and the water treatment chemicals will cease to be effective.  

Also, filter problems may occur, especially if you use a sand filter, because the lime will settle in the filter. Regarding chlorine to disinfect water, it is recommended that its amount is between 0.9 and 1.2 ppm and that it is evenly distributed throughout the pool. The granules of chlorine should not be thrown directly into the pool, but must first be dissolved in water and then be poured into the pool.  

Alkalinity is the amount of dissolved salt and represents total mineralization of water. Its ideal value is between 80 and 120 ppm. Hardness shows the concentration of calcium bicarbonate and magnesium dissolved in water and its ideal value is between 100 and 400 ppm.  

When using chemical preparations, use certified substances and do not mix two different types of products. Disinfecting chemicals are strong toxins and therefore you should seriously understand how to handle them. 

 

Cleaning the bottom of the pool and filters 

You can clean the bottom of the pool with a brush and vacuum cleaner, and use a mesh on the surface to collect all the dirt. Fixed swimming pools carry a skimmer that collects dirt from the surface of the water directly into the filter and then does not fall to the bottom. We recommend that you build this skimmer also in demountable pools as this will help you to clean the pool.  

Also, if your pool is bigger, you can also get the robot that will do the job of cleaning for you. In any case, to be sure of the cleanliness of the pool and preserve the health of the bathers, it is necessary to discharge it at least once a year and thoroughly clean and check that its equipment is fully functional.  

In fixed pools it is recommended to leave the water in them even though they are not being used in that part of the year. This will protect the walls and the ceramic from decay. Also, we recommend to cover the pool itself.  

As far as the filters are concerned, there are two basic types in this case: carton and sand filters. Carton filters are cleaned on a weekly basis, and one cartridge can be used several times until it loses its ability to filter. Sand filters are cleaned much rarely, only once a year, and quartz sand used can be used for several seasons in a row. Such types of filters also have several work programs and it is important that you take care of the pressure of the filter itself. For too high pressures, you can turn on the self-cleaning program and dirt will come out of the filter itself.  

In low-pressure pools, a pressure gauge must be installed that can easily control the working pressure inside the pipe installation and the filter. The pressure gauge is usually located at the top of the filter or on a multipurpose valve, and the newer ones have the option of setting the minimum and maximum working pressure markers. This adjustment should be done by an expert person who is qualified to maintain the pool. 

 

Help of specialized horticulture and pool maintenance agencies 

For renters who during a tourist season are not able to spend a lot of time at the place they rent their property, most often due to business reasons, there are specialized agencies involved in maintaining horticulture and swimming pools. Their services can help you to keep your garden and swimming pool in perfect condition. Also, pool maintenance can be quite demanding and sometimes requires expert work. Therefore, contact them for help when you need them.