This is Poolside Chat, where every week
we answer your questions on how to fix 
and maintain your swimming pool.
Poolside Chat is presented by INYOpools.com
helping pool owners find the right parts since 2001.
Now here's your hosts, Matt and Rob.
Hello, welcome back to the raise roof episode of Poolside Chat, presented by inYoPools.com
I'm Rob.
And I'm Matt.
"O frabjous day! Callooh! Callay!”
Lewis Carroll. Nothing?
Nothing. Nothing.
Okay, Jabberwocky? Okay...
read.
How old are you?
Cut me open. Look at the rings. See what happens.
Our question today is going to be dealing with rust
and luckily enough it's from a guy named Rusty.
We’re not making this up. This is 
truly from a guy named Rusty.
Yes, an actual e-mail.
I don't call people asking about welcome mats.
No.
It's... whatever.
The question is:
“Is there any way to keep bolts, screws, 
and pool walls from forming rust
on an above ground pool that 
has a salt chlorine generator?”
Rusty, there is. I'll briefly explain why this rust happens.
When you have different metals in a salt water pool
it creates a battery effect
and there's a current between these metals
and small bits of these metals leech out
and usually it's the weakest metal 
in the water that's the first to rust.
So we have what they call sacrificial zinc anode
and basically you drop this in your skimmer.
You can install them inline.
And the zinc anode, it's a weak metal, so it breaks up quicker than stainless steel or copper would.
So that will rust before anything else.
And they're also pretty easily replaced.
You either bolt them into the side of the pool or..
it's basically like a saddle that you put on top of a pipe
and you just pull it out to replace and put a new one back in.
But that was the scientific explanation.
I'll give the layman's explanation that helped me understand.
Give us a good analogy.
I think I can do that.
Think of your pool as a tree,
and with any tree in the wild, the lowest hanging 
fruit always going to get gobbled up first.
That's basically what zinc is.
It's going to be that low hanging fruit 
preventing or keeping away
those nasty little animals, A.K.A. rust,
from gobbling up your expensive stainless steel rail.
So make sure, if you have a salt chlorine generator
and you didn't have a marine grade stainless steel,
and you don't want to change out all your 
railings for salt-friendly equipment.
You put in that zinc anode and 
it's going to make it a lot easier.
It's going to help your stainless steel equipment last.
And it's a must have for above ground pools with all the steel.
Yes.
Steel walls, the top rails. So you 
definitely want to think about that.
Yes.
How much is a zinc anode? Probably 
like 50, 100 bucks, possibly less.
That depends on where you’re getting it from.
It’s more or less where you are in the country,
but that's going to save you a good bit of money of 
replacing a pool wall, or a skimmer, or a top rail.
But I think we answered all questions 
about galvanic corrosion.
Yes. I don't think we could possibly expand anymore.
I call it GC just because I have trouble with syllables.
That's the industry term.
Yes.
The OG C.
Yes, the OG C.
We're smart.
Yep.
But, it's been another wonderful explanation 
of pool facts and pool wonderment.
Yes.
And thank you for joining us.
If you have any questions you can 
always contact us at 877-372-6038
or visit us online at inYoPools.com.
You can e-mail us at upload@inyopools.com
Also subscribe to this video and to our newsletter
where you can also get a free 
pool maintenance guide.
128 pages. So they tell me.
How many?
A hundred and twenty eight.
That’s about 125 more than I could probably fill.
Yes. 
Yes.
We’re talkers, not writers.
He’s the talker. I’m the walker.
But thank you for joining us.
And, it’s been a good one. 
Yep.
Byyyye. 
Byyyye.
