Chlorine Pool Care
The following is a general schedule of maintenance for a pool using chlorine tablets as it's primary sanitizer . Some things are listed as being done daily. This is only the case if you are completely new to maintaining a swimming pool. Once you have built confidence in your abilities, then you may scale them back to once or twice a week. This is by no means a comprehensive schedule. Your pool and location may require more or less attention. This schedule does provide good universal fundamentals which are always useful and make up the core of Pool Care.
Yearly
Every spring, when you have opened the pool, run your pool for 24 hours, then bring in roughly a
12 Oz. bottle of your pool water to Best Pools to have the following tested.
Calcium Hardness: Ideal Range is 175 - 225 PPM. This chemical prevents scale deposits from developing on your liner.
Total Alkalinity: Ideal Range is 100 - 150 PPM. Total Alkalinity keeps your PH from bouncing up and down.
Chlorine Stabilizer (Cyan uric Acid): Ideal Range is 40-60 PPM. This chemical makes the chlorine released by your tablets more resistant to depletion by way of the sun.
Weekly
Add 1 Lb of Shock (Active Ingredient: Calcium Hypochlorite) per 10000 gallons. As with all granular chemicals, shock must be dissolved in a bucket of water before being added to the pool. Shock granules can bleach vinyl liners and also cause leaks, if not properly dissolved. DO NOT use the pool for 8 to 10 hours after shocking. Swimming in this time can bleach hair and skin. It can also irritate the eyes and the skin. (The evening is the best time to shock once you are done swimming for the day. This way the shock can do it's job while you sleep.)
If using a weekly algaecide, add your proper dosage. If you are unsure what to add, your friendly neighborhood pool store can help!
Check your chlorine floater or automatic chlorinator. Be sure you have a few tablets inside. If you are unsure how many to add, put 2-3 three inch tablets in and continue reading to find out how you can figure out your perfect amount.
Daily
Test your chlorine level. This lets you know whether you are using too many tablets or too few. If your level is low, adjust your chlorinator to a higher output. (Floating chlorinators usually have a vent on the bottom that twists to change the output.) If it's VERY low, check your chlorinator to confirm that you do have tablets inside and add 1-2 more tablets. If chlorine is to high, adjust your chlorinator output or remove tablets.
Test Your PH Level: Maintaining proper PH prevents many problems and allows your other chemicals to function optimally. PH is adjust with two chemicals, PH Up and PH down, to bring the PH up or down accordingly.
Always dissolve granular chemicals! Mix them in a bucket of water before adding to the pool!