Pool Operator's Test Questions and Answers Updated 2026/2027 Version | Verified Answers

Pool Operator's Test Questions and Answers Updated 2026/2027 Version | Verified Answers 1. backwash - ANSWER the reverse of flow of water through the filter tanks in order to clean the system 2. valves - ANSWER control the flow of water in the system: ex. gate, floating, ball, butterfly 3. free available chlorine - ANSWER chlorine that is available for disinfection in the water 4. priming the pump - ANSWER process that provides a system enough water to being filtering prior to the pump being turned on 5. chloramines - ANSWER aka combined chlorine. chlorine that has already connected with ammonia or nitrogen and is no longer useful for disinfection, high levels leave strong odor and cloudy water 6. influent lines - ANSWER lines that bring water into the system (main drain, skimmers, vacuum) 7. combined chlorine - ANSWER ineffective chlorine (aka chloramines) which level is found by subtracting the free available chlorine from the total available chlorine 8. total dissolved solids - ANSWER TDS; matter that is in the water that is unable to be reduced or eliminated with chemicals 9. sequestering agent - ANSWER a chemical that is added to water which PREVENTS staining by keeping minerals and metal in the water color free 10. hair and lint strainer - ANSWER serves as protection to the motor by preventing large debris from damaging the impeller; located before motor 11. superchlorination - ANSWER process of surpassing breakpoint by raising the free available chlorine level to at least 10 to 15 ppm 12. slurry feed - ANSWER adding DE to the filter while the pump is running 13. sodium hydrochlorite - ANSWER chemical name for liquid chlorine 14. scaling - ANSWER mineral deposits on the wall or in the pipes 15. breakpoint - ANSWER the point at which the chlorine is raised to 10 times the combined chlorine level and all of the chloramines are oxidized 16. flow rate - ANSWER amount of water per minute that is returning back to the pool 17. MSDS - ANSWER This stands for Material Safety Data Sheets and are required by OSHA (Occupational Safety and Health Administration). These sheets provide complete information on the chemicals being used 18. impeller - ANSWER instrument inside the motor that creates the vacuum pressure that pulls the water through the system 19. total alkalinity - ANSWER the buffering capacity of the water to maintain its current level of pH; defined as amount of carbonates and bicarbonates in the water 20. gauges - ANSWER used to measure the pressure in the system 21. causes of scaling - ANSWER too high alkalinity, pH, calcium hardness 22. causes of corrosion - ANSWER too low pH, alkalinity or calcium hardness 23. phenol red - ANSWER used to measure pH 24. parallel - ANSWER valves are open if handle is ______ to the pipe 25. pH - ANSWER how acidic or basic a solution (pool water) is 26. 60 to 180 - ANSWER acceptable range of Total Alkalinity in a pool 27. 7.2 to 7.8 - ANSWER acceptable range of pH in a pool 28. 150 to 400 - ANSWER acceptable range of calcium hardness in a pool 29. 1500 - ANSWER maximum reading for total dissolved solids (TDS) 30. 7.5 - ANSWER pH of a human eye 31. 15 minutes - ANSWER maximum time someone should spend in a spa 32. 8 hours - ANSWER maximum turnover rate for a main pool 33. 2 hours - ANSWER maximum turnover rate for a wading pool 34. 30 minutes - ANSWER maximum turnover rate for a spa 35. 104 - ANSWER maximum temperature for a spa is _____ degrees 36. -0.5 - +0.5 - ANSWER acceptable range for the Langelier Saturation Index 37. flow meter - ANSWER instrument that measures how fast the water is returning to the pool after it has been cleaned 38. parts per million - ANSWER the rate of flow is measured in...