Chlorine tablets can be a great and effective way to keep your water sanitized as long as you are using them properly. You should never rely solely on chlorine tablets for your chlorine reading in your pool water. Chlorine tablets should be more of your helping hand and below are some tips on how to use them properly.
Dos:
1. Put chlorine tablets in the chlorinator or floater.
We always recommend using a chlorinator or floater for your chlorine tablets. A chlorinator will automatically disperse chorine into your pool at the rate you set it to. There is an adjustable setting on the unit that you should be able to change when needed. A floater has a similar concept. It is a plastic vessel that holds your tablets and floats around in the pool. These can also be adjusted to let more or less chlorine be released into your water.
2. Check chlorinator or floater weekly and refill as needed.
Adding chlorine tablets to your chlorinator or floater should be part of your weekly maintenance. Every week when adding your other maintenance chemicals, you should be checking your chlorinator or floater to see if any tablets need to be added. If your chlorinator or floater is empty, you should refill it with the appropriate amount of tablets.
3. Add one three-inch tablet for every 10,000 gallons of water in your pool.
You should never rely on your chlorine tablets for a chlorine reading. Chlorine tablets should only be a helping hand. Instead of filling your chlorinator or floater to the top with tablets, use one three-inch tablet for every 10,000 gallons of water in your pool. If you are shocking your water weekly, this amount of tablets should be perfect to maintain a good chlorine level.
Don'ts:
1. Put your chlorine tablets in the skimmer.
We never recommend adding your chlorine tablets to the skimmer or pump. Your pump and filter are the two driving forces that keep your pool clean and healthy. If you put your tablets in the skimmer, the tablets will dissolve and form highly acidic water. This acidic water can go straight into the filter and compromise its internal parts. This will force you to replace these internal parts earlier than necessary.
2. Rely on your chlorine tablets for a chlorine reading.
Like I mentioned earlier, never rely on you chlorine tablets for a chlorine reading. This will cause your chlorine reading to be way higher than necessary and it will also cause your water to become acidic which causes another list of issues for your pool. Tablets are a helping hand and you should still shock your pool weekly in order to get a good chlorine reading.
3. Fill the chlorinator or floater with tablets.
One mistake a lot of people make when it comes to chlorine tablets is adding way too many. Your chlorinator or floater should never be filled to the top with tablets. This would be considered overuse of tablets which plummets your pH, causing your water to become acidic. This can cause burning eyes, itchy skin, and ruin your pool equipment. You will also begin to save money once you realize that one tablet for every 10,000 gallons is effective!