Can i add chlorine to a salt pool

Today you're going to learn how to shock your salt water pool By the end of this guide, you'll know when to shock your salt water pool, how to choose a good pool shock, how to go about shocking your salt water pool, and some extra tips and tricks for getting rid of pool algae and clearing cloudy pool water.

Salt water pools , just like chlorine pools, sometimes need to be super-chlorinated to take care of some common pool problems like algae. And while a saltwater pool is still technically a chlorinated pool with roughly the same amount of free chlorine levels, its cleaning system i. A salt pool basically turns salt from its salt cell into chlorine instead of having to add straight chlorine to the water.

It's absolutely okay to shock your salt water pool , and is actually pretty important! Even though your pool system is probably equipped with an electrical function to super-chlorinate the water, it should not replace a weekly shock treatment for a couple of reasons:.

I always recommend shocking any type of pool once a week, but there are a few reasons to shock your pool even if you're not in this habit:. Chlorine is the most effective treatment to kill algae— black algae , a green pool , etc. Change your mind about the chlorine smell yet? There are a lot of good pool shock products out there including liquid chlorine and non-chlorine shock , but here's one we really recommend:.

To avoid testing and monitoring chemicals on your own time, pHin does it for you by working 24 hours to ensure a perfect chemical balance and notifying you when you need to add chemicals, even going as far as providing exact dosing instructions for most brands! Low or high alkalinity can affect the pH level which means it can throw off necessary adjustments for other chemicals. Low alkalinity requires additional sodium bicarbonate, whereas, high alkalinity needs additional muriatic acid.

The pH is the foundation for all other chemicals, so you should not skimp or rush this step. The normal pH level should be 7. If pH levels are low then add an increase of alkalinity and if the pH level is high add a pH decreaser. After monitoring the pH levels, the next essential chemical is chlorine. Again the average level for chlorine in a salt water pool is 1 to 3 ppm. Salt pools are chlorine pools.

For more reading about this very important fact you can read this article about salt water damage to pools. The next thing to know is that you do not have a salt water pool. Orcas swim in salt water pools So what is the difference? About 32, parts per million of salt. Most people do not care to say "electronic chlorine generator" so perhaps the best short descriptor would be simply to call it a pool with a "salt system".

When you say salt water pools you are actually describing something that does exists, but that is not what you have when you put ppm of salt in your pool and generate your own chlorine from this. In understanding the terminology the answer to your question about whether you can add chlorine to a pool with a salt system should become clear It does not matter to the pool water how the chlorine is introduced - just that it is introduced.

So in this sense you can add liquid chlorine, granular chlorine or even chlorine pucks to your pool if you have a salt system and this is no problem at all. There are a few considerations about which chlorine you add, and how you add it, but in short yes it is completely safe to add chlorine to a "salt pool".

In a salt water pool, the salt level may be insufficient or there may be a problem with the salt chlorinator. Keep your pool filter clean and run your system so that all the water is turned over once a day. Moving from a traditionally chlorinated pool to a luxurious salt water pool has never been easier. Whether you have a small backyard pool or a large commercial swimming pool, you can enjoy the many benefits of salt water swimming pools: comfort, convenience, and cost-savings.

Hayward makes it easy! Visit our Salt Water Pools page for helpful information to get you started and contact your Hayward Dealer for assistance today. Salt Water Pool Chemistry Tips Using a salt water pool test strip, test your water for free chlorine, salt, pH levels, total alkalinity, stabilizer, and total hardness.

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