Chlorine Tablets have become an efficient and dependable way of adding chlorine to small aboveground or large inground pools that can be used in automatic feeders that are attached to the effluent side of the pool pump or like most pool owners used in a floating dispenser that bobs around in your pool keeping it clean. What’s the best way to use chlorine tablets?
Unless your pool is equipped with an in-line chlorinator that holds Chl tablets use a floater-type plastic dispenser that works well with chlorine tablets inside the pool but never put Chl tablets into the skimmer baskets/filter baskets of the pool as this will cause damage to your filtering system.
When you own a pool there is a lot of work involved like testing and maintenance chores that need to be taken care of daily so it’s nice to know that there is an easy way to keep chlorine residual disinfecting 24-7 in your pool while you are busy with other things like a cold beer and a water raft. Yea Chlorine Tablets are definitely worth the cost!
How to Use Chlorine Tablets
The first thing you must do is figure out the size of your swimming pool to determine how many Chlorine tablets your swimming pool will need on a weekly basis based on the pool’s water capacity. For every 10,000 gallons of water in your pool, you will need to use 1 or 2- 3″ chlorine tablets.
Bigger inground swimming pools with larger surface areas need more than one chlorine floater dispenser. Check your chlorine residual and determine if the chlorine tablets are doing the job. Always keep the pool’s free chlorine levels between 1 and 3 ppm. Chlorine pool floaters can keep a large or small pool clean and disinfected if the chlorine tablets are changed at least weekly.
I always use 2 chlorine floater dispensers with two 3-inch chlorine tablets for keeping a strong residual for my big (40,000 gallons) inground pool because the surface area was large and the pool was busy with kids. There were summers when temperatures got very high I added a 3rd chlorine floater depending on the chlorine residual.
How Long Do 3-inch Chlorine Tablets Last in Floater
Normally 3-inch chlorine tablets or Pucks will last 3- 5 days inside a chlorine floater dispenser. This depends on a few variables that can dissolve the pool chlorine tablets at faster rates.
- A Chlorine Dispenser sometimes will drift over to the suction skimmers where pool water will draw hardest in the pool
- The vents on the bottom of the dispenser will sometimes close down from activity in the pool
- Pool Pump run time can determine how long pool chlorine tablets last
- Pool water temperature- warmer water temperatures will dissolve chlorine tablets faster toward the end of the season
These variables will help dissolve the chlorine tablets faster than normal. You can’t stop these things from happening. Checking the vents and location of the floaters regularly should be added to the maintenance daily.
Can You Add Chlorine Tablets to Skimmer Basket
No, Chlorine tablets are made up of condensed chemical acids, other byproducts binders, and inert ingredients that are meant to dissolve in pool water over days in large quantities of pool water.
If you put Chlorine tablets in the skimmers and filter pump cycles which they should then the chlorine tablets in the skimmer will sit and dissolve creating a strong residual of acid and chlorine concentrate.
Put Chlorine tablets in the pool Skimmer basket or the pool Pump Basket introduces too much chlorine product into the swimming pool in too close proximity to the swimming pool equipment.
Why Shouldn’t You Put Chlorine Tablets In Your Skimmer Basket
To start with, you must understand that chlorine tablets, in combination with pool water, turn into a corrosive and harsh acid and oxidizer. That means it can damage materials like plastic, metal, and rubber like the material in your pool filter.
That’s why when administering chlorine to a pool, experts suggest distributing it equally. Otherwise, the surfaces in areas with particularly high concentrations of chlorine may get bleached or damaged. That’s the main reason why some pool owners don’t put chlorine tablets in skimmer baskets it may damage the skimmer and filter.
Put simply, putting chlorine tablets in the pool skimmer baskets is a fairly convenient method to clean and filter a pool but not very smart. Pool chlorine poses the risk of damaging your pool equipment and can be a health risk.
Chlorine tablets have a low pH level, making them highly acidic, especially in concentrated doses. As the Chlorine tablets dissolve and the chlorine builds up in the pool skimmer, so does the acidity level. When the acidic water travels through the pool pump and pool filter, it will start to corrode the metal components of your equipment. Over time, the corrosion will cause serious damage to your pool equipment, resulting in costly repairs and replacements.
A floating chlorine pool dispenser is a device that can float on top of the water and where you add chlorine tablets. It has a large space at the center where you put a 1” or 3” chlorine tablet. Then, you simply let it float and wait until the chlorine tablet dissolves.
The best alternative for chlorine tablets in your pool is using a chlorinator. It’s a device that can distribute chlorine equally through the entire pool. You just have to load it up with chlorine tablets, adjust the chlorine level depending on the pool chlorine level needs, and wait for the result.
Chlorine is an inherently corrosive and harsh chemical. Unless you can find a non-toxic alternative, it will also pose a threat to your pool equipment. That’s why it’s not surprising that putting chlorine tablets where they are supposed to be and stored is important
Checking Chlorine Tablets as Part of Pool Maintenance
Pool Chemicals and high levels of chlorine close to the pool pump, pool filter, and pool heater can damage the pool equipment. The pool heater is especially susceptible to having the copper in the heater get into the pool water and ruin the paint and the pool plaster.
Used a dependable pool test kit with fresh reagents that are changed every season for the best results before Testing Pool Water.
If you are not getting the residual work in your pool from the chlorine floaters then an in-line chlorinator can be the very best way to evenly distribute chlorine in your pool. But pool chlorine floaters can be added if 1 or 2 tablets don’t cut it.
Their function is to dilute chlorine mixed throughout the entire pool as far away from the pool swimming pool equipment as possible. The chlorine dispenser or chlorine pool floater is not perfectly distributing chlorine tablets as an in-line chlorinator but is still a great way for swimming pool water chlorination if you set them upright and keep chlorinator tabs in them during pool maintenance.
Chlorine Tablet Not Dissolving
- Inspect your Chlorine level and Chemical feeder at every pool maintenance to identify any potentially obvious reasons that you are using pool chlorine tablets that are not dissolving. Check for clogs in the chlorine feeder pool check-valve when you add chlorine.
- For the floating chlorine dispenser, check the vents on the bottom of the floating dispenser (adjustable slits or vents) during regularly scheduled pool care or daily pool maintenance.
- Take the pool water temperature. If the water temperature is fine, then it might be something else.
- Switch to a different type or brand of chlorine tablets. It could be that you are using the wrong-bargain 1 or 3″ chlorine tablets that were contaminated with moisture from last year and you ended up with them.
- Buy regular-price reputable pool chemicals like pH and cya and store chlorine every year and do it strategically, so that there is pool chlorine left over at the end of the season, especially chlorine products that always go bad.
Most often, if your chlorine tablets aren’t dissolving, it’s because there is something wrong with the chemical feeder. Most commonly, it’s because the chemical feeder is clogged up or dirty, so pool water isn’t reaching the chlorine tablets properly, and therefore they aren’t getting dissolved into the pool. Most likely you will notice that they are sitting there in the feeder, with not much water.
If that’s not the problem, switch to a different type or brand of pool chemical tablets. It could be that they are bad, or you are using the wrong ones for your type of swimming pool. Try a new pool product but don’t let the chlorine tablets sit in the pool floaters at the very least swap them out with fresh chlorine
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How Many Chlorine Tablets for a 10ft. pool
Number of Chlorine Tablets for Intex Above-ground PoolsA normal pool‘s chlorine level ranges between 1-3 ppm (parts per million). A 3-inch tablet of chlorine weighs about 8 ounces (227 grams), while a 1-inch tablet weighs about 0.4 ounces (14 grams). One part per million (ppm) of chlorine will produce a volume of 7,500 gallons (34,096 L) of water.When using your chlorine floater or chlorinator for the pool, the recommended chlorine level is always higher. The compatibility of different types of chlorine cannot be determined. The rule of thumb for smaller above-ground pool is to start small, using between 5 and 10,000 gallons apply a 3″ tablet.Intex Pools (Types & Sizes) Water Capacity 3 Inch Chlorine Tablets Needed 10 ft X 30 in Easy Set Pool Set 1,018 gal (3,854 L) 1/4 chlorine tablet 10 ft X 30 in Easy Set Pool 1,018 gal (3,854 L) 1/4 chlorine tablet 8 ft X 30 in Easy Set Pool 639 gal (2,419 L) 1/4 chlorine tablet 6 ft X 20 in Easy Set Pool 232 gal (878 L) 1/4 chlorine tablet -
For more great informative articles on Chlorine tablets like this one stay right here at MyWaterEarth&Sky-when the swimming pool’s usage is on a different day today, the temperatures can be extreme. Which way is the best way to add Chlorine to your swimming pool chlorine …………………………………………………………… Continue reading
JimGalloway Author/Editor
