Swimming Pool Chemicals

Now that you own your very own swimming pool there are a few things you will have to routinely do to keep it healthy for people who swim in it and to look after the water to stop damage to the pool and its appliances.

Swimming pool chemicals are not only for making sure everyone using the pool remains healthy. By looking after the water you will be protecting the pump and filters from damage and thereby looking after all that money you just spent.

Chlorine is the foremost of the swimming pool chemicals. Chlorine is used to kill fungus and bacteria which can cause diseases. Chlorine can cause problems for some people with delicate skin and there are other options such as Bromide but these alternatives are usually more expensive.

Balancers are also used in conjunction with sanitizers to stop algae from growing. Algae will make the pool water go cloudy and again, this will reduce the effectiveness of the chlorine.

Stabilizer is one of the swimming pool chemicals that some folk tend do not comprehend.

Its purpose is to stop the ultraviolet rays of the sun from weakening the effectiveness of the chlorine. If you use too much stabilizer though, you will make the water cloudy.

Check the level of the stabilizer when you break out the pool in Spring and then regularly throughout the season, although it should only need more adding if you have topped up the pool with more water because it remains present indefinitely.

The correct level of stabilizer not only helps the chlorine last longer (and thereby cutting costs) but also will cut in half the use of sanitizer.

A good level of stabilizer helps conserve another of your swimming pool chemicals, the sanitizer, by cutting its consumption to around half as much as is needed in a pool with the wrong level of stabilizer.

Keeping a check on the Water's Acid Level

The pH level of the water is used to measure the acid levels. The pH scale is zero to fourteen and not surprisingly with seven being regarded the neutral figure. The optimum level for a pool though is between 7.2 and 7.6 Acidic levels in this range should ensure users with sensitive skin or eyes do not suffer any irritation. You can get swimming pool chemicals which will keep the pH levels at the correct level. This will also help protect your pool equipment.


There are certain minerals which control the alkalinity of the water. These serve as agents and aid you very easily control the pH level of the pools water. The range for most pools of between 125 and 175 parts per million should be a good level of alkalinity.

Again there are certain swimming pool chemicals available on the market that will help you maintain this density.

When a pool has just been filled it is not unusual to have a high level of hard water. Hard water can damage your pools equipment and you should aim for a level in the range of 225 to 300 parts per million.

A level of hardness within that scale will help protect your equipment and will be pleasant to swim in. Water hardness is calculated by the amounts of magnesium and calcium present.

It is the calcium that will do damage to the pools equipment, either because there is too much present or too little. Again, there are swimming pool chemicals which will help you keep the water hardness within the correct scale.