Guide to shock a Pool

1: Test the water

Make sure your Free Chlorine level is lower than your Total Chlorine (There is more information about it below).

Also check Alkalinity (80-120 ppm), pH (7.4-7.6 ppm), and Calcium hardness (200-400 ppm)

Click here to learn how to test your pool water

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2: Prepare Pool Shock

Make sure you carefully follow all instructions on the product package and calculate how much shock is needed. If it requires pre-dissolving, fill a bucket full of pool water and slowly stir in the pool shock until dissolved as thoroughly as possible. (Wear gloves and safety glasses when using pool chemicals)

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3: Shock the Pool

Pour it slowly while you walk around the Pool, this will ensure even distribution throughout, make sure your pump is running for several hours after adding it so that everything mixes evenly. Don’t forget that some Pool shocks should be used at dusk. Wait according to the manufacturer's recommendations before taking a dip again so you can avoid irritating skin or bleaching swimsuits.

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4: Test results and wait for free chlorine levels to get to 1-3 ppm before jumping into the pool.

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Guide to shock a Salt Water Pool:

Both Chlorine and Salt water pools contain chlorine; the difference is that in one it's added directly as chlorine while the other uses a generator to convert salt into chlorine.

Most saltwater generators come with a super chlorinate button, which basically ramps up the chlorine production and shocks the pool.

If your generator doesn’t have that option, don't worry: you don’t need to get out a chemistry set and concoct some unusual solution - the process is the same as shocking a Chlorine Pool!

Avoid high chlorine shocks as they will over-chlorinate, use either dichlor or non-chlorine options. If you have an algae issue then that needs to be tackled by cal-hypo shock instead - just don't forget it's renowned for causing scale build-up.

Here is more information about Salt Water Pools

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What is Shocking a Pool

Pool shocking is the process of adding chlorine or non-chlorine chemicals into the water, intentionally raising its free chlorine level and reaching the breakpoint chlorination. That way, it can destroy any contaminants floating around like bacteria and algae.

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Safety Tips when shocking a Pool

•Don’t break the rules! If your package says dissolve in water before adding it to the Pool, then by all means follow directions for the best results

•Protect yourself from itchy eyes and skin, don't forget to put on your goggles and chemical-resistant gloves when dealing with pool shock! Especially if you're using calcium hypochlorite - this can release annoyingly small amounts of chlorine gas. Keep safe by keeping clothed head-to-toe in protective gear!

•Pool skimmers and shock don’t mix! Adding shock to the skimmer can create a dangerous gas that leads to one explosive problem.

•Avoid mixing types of pool shock, or you may find yourself in the middle of a hazardous home science experiment. Keep it safe and simple - add each chemical to your pool separately

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Free Chlorine, Combined Chlorine, and Total chlorine

Is Important to know the difference between the types of chlorine. (To measure them you can use Pool water testing kits)

•Free Chlorine (FC): Represents the amount of chlorine that is sanitizing your water. Should be between 1-3 ppm for optimal performance at sanitizing the water

•Combined Chlorine (CC): Represents the amount of chlorine that has already sanitized the water and lost most of its sanitizing effect. Should be less than 0.2 ppm. (To know the Combined Chlorine in your water subtract the Free chlorine from the Total chlorine)

•Total Chlorine (TC): It is the combination of Free chlorine (FC) and Combined chlorine (CC).

Breakpoint chlorination is the process that occurs when there is enough free chlorine in the water to break the chloramines. This is achieved by raising the amount of free chlorine (FC) ten times the combined chlorine (CC) level

Chloramines are the result of a chemical reaction between chlorine and stuff like sweat and makeup, which can hang out in pool water if not treated properly. And that's bad news for swimmers. This is what produces a strong smell of chlorine in pools and can cause red, itchy eyes and irritated skin, not to mention breathing problems like asthma.

Here is more information about chlorine in a pool and what you should know!

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When or how often should I shock my Pool?

Generally, shock it once a week or every few weeks in the summer. But also consider how much use your pool gets, as well as if there's been lots of rain or sunshine - all that affects whether you need more regular shocking too, you also know its time for a shock when you see algae starting to take over your pool, free chlorine levels dropping or combined chlorine rising over 0.5

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Types of Pool Shock

There are several products you can use to shock a Pool, which are available in different forms, granules, liquids, and tablets

It can also be Stabilized or Unstabilized:

•Stabilized: Contains Cyanuric acid which makes it resistant to UV rays and can be used during the day

•Unstabilized: Doesn’t contain Cyanuric acid and doesn’t resist UV rays. Should be used after sunset otherwise  chlorine breaks down

Here is more information about types of pool shock