The pool vessel is not a watertight compartment, but is subject to constant water inlets and outlets. This happens well because the rain enters on a stormy day, either because you fill it with water from the general bring, or because it evaporates on a day of sun and bath. With these continuous changes in their levels, the proportion of treated water also changes and, with it, the values of certain parameters such as free chlorine and pH. These variations make it necessary to know how to regulate the chlorine and the pH of your pool .
What are pH and chlorine for?
- The pH measures the acidity of the water . Its scale varies from 0 to 14 and its value depends on the stability and action of all chemical products used in the maintenance and tuning of the pool . The pH should be adjusted between 7.2 and 7.6, its optimum value, which would be practically neutral. Not being in these values causes the entire disinfection system to be damaged.
- The chlorine that you put in the pool is responsible for the elimination of the microorganisms present in the water . Its function is disinfectant. But free residual chlorine not bound to organic matter is also lost by evaporation, as it is a gas. It is important that for the bathroom its levels are between 1.0 and 1.5 ppm or parts per million. When the pH is adjusted up, the chlorine tends not to fulfill its function.
If you want to enjoy the pool water in perfect conditions, it is essential to treat it correctly so that it is free of pathogenic organisms and substances in an amount or concentration that may pose a risk to human health. But to be able to treat it as necessary, it is important to know how to analyze the key parameters mentioned above.
How to analyze the pH and chlorine of the pool?
There are several methods for water analysis and pool maintenance .
- Analyzers with liquid reagent or tablets . Using analyzers with liquid reagent or tablets is easier than you think. Simply take a representative sample of the pool glass with the cuvette that comes in the kit and add the reagent indicated for the parameter you want to analyze. After a few seconds and after stirring, the water becomes a color that you should compare with the color chart that incorporates the analyzer. This way you will know the numerical value of the parameter.
- Analytical paper strips . Although the principle is the same as in the previous method, the mode of use is different. In this case, dip the analyzer strip a few seconds directly into the water you want to analyze. When you take it out of the water, you should compare the color with the table provided by the manufacturer.
- Photometer or digital analyzer . It is more expensive but much more accurate and easy to use. Depending on the digital analyzer model , it can cover one or several parameters.
The control of these values must be done periodically, with a minimum sampling frequency of once a week.
How to regulate the chlorine and the pH of the pool?
If after using the analysis methods, you check that the values are out of adjustment, you must take corrective measures that return the parametric values to their optimum levels.
In the case of chlorine , you can find two different situations.
- Chlorine levels are low, below 1-1.5 ppm . It is not an adequate value for the bathroom. This is what happens when you have just filled the pool with the feed water from the public distribution network or after heavy rain. Potabilized water suitable for consumption does not have sufficient concentration of free chlorine to cope with all the microorganisms that are provided with the bath. The solution to the problem is to pour the granulated rapid chlorine glass diluted previously in a little water and in an amount proportional to the volume of water in the pool. It is fast dissolving and is used mainly in the start of the pool and in shock treatments.
- Chlorine levels are high, above 1.5 ppm. Bathing is not recommended when 5.0 ppm is exceeded. To reduce the concentration of free chlorine, use the following three measures, which are not exclusive. First, you can stop the contribution of chlorine to the glass. You can also pour water from the brought water or from a natural source like a well in the glass, but keep in mind that the pH is adjusted, so you have to adjust it again. Finally, the weather and the sun cause the free chlorine in the water to gradually volatilize spontaneously.
In the case of pH, the situations you can face are the following.
- The pH is above 7.6. Pool water tends, in general, to raise pH values. With a high pH the water in the pool becomes cloudy, the chlorine loses the disinfectant power and forms chloramines with organic matter, causing the irritation of the eyes and mucous membranes, as well as the characteristic smell that the water gives off. The solution is to use a pH reducer , which is in liquid or granulated presentation. Apply milliliters or grams per cubic meter of water as recommended by the manufacturer to lower the pH 0.1. For example, if in a sample you have a pH value = 8.0, multiply by 4 that amount that the manufacturer recommends to lower the pH 0.1 points, that is, 8.0 of the sample minus 7.6 of the optimal value is equal to 0.4.
- The pH is below 7.2 . The procedure you must follow is the same as in the previous case, but using a pH booster . Interestingly, chlorine works at 100% with a pH equal to 5, but it would be unfeasible for bathing.
To know more details about how to regulate the chlorine and the pH of your pool , learn in this video how to keep the water in your pool.
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