In our first article, we looked at the steps involved in shocking your pool. Now we’ll turn our attention to what shocking your pool actually means. To shock a pool is to add super chlorination so you can kill chloramines and other unwanted materials in the pool.
What are Chloramines?
Chloramines are combinations of chlorine and contaminants that get into your pool. Substances like urine, sweat, and body oils get mixed together with the chlorine in your pool and form what are called chloramines. Shocking kills these chloramines so your pool’s filtration system can get rid of them.
What are the Reasons You Should Shock Your Pool?
You need to shock your pool in order to get the chlorine levels up high enough to kill organisms that the regular chlorine levels won’t kill. Sometimes organisms that used to die in regular chlorine levels will adapt to the point where that standard level is no longer effective.
You should also shock your pool to build chlorine levels back up after they get depleted. This chlorine depletion can take place as a result of heavy rain or swimmers bringing substances such as perspiration and makeup into the pool. Sunlight can also cause significant chlorine breakdown. All of those extra contaminants and chlorine depletion will mean that your pool’s chemicals won’t be able to keep up with the bacteria growing in the pool water. Whenever these conditions are present, a shock is definitely needed.
How Often Should You Shock Your Pool?
When the water looks cloudy due to algae, you’ll likely realize that it’s time to shock the pool. But why wait until there’s a visible problem? If you wait that long the pool will be more difficult to clean, and you may have to spend more time out of the water making sure the shock takes care of the problem. Instead, you can take a proactive approach by shocking your pool on a regular basis.
If you schedule a pool shock once a week, you’ll have the advantage of making it a part of your pool maintenance routine. It will be easier to remember. You’ll also be less likely to develop a major algae problem. If you do get an algae overgrowth in your pool it can be a real headache to deal with. You could end up having to vacuum or even drain the pool. At the very least, you’ll have some serious scrubbing to do. So why not take care of the problem before it starts by scheduling regular weekly pool shocks?
If you accidentally forget to shock your pool on a weekly basis, you may be able to get by with neglecting it for a while. There are certain circumstances, however, when shocking your pool becomes an absolute must. In our next article in this series, we’ll spend some time discussing these instances where you absolutely need to shock your pool. We’ll also discuss some of the differences between the different types of pool shock on the market as well as their advantages and disadvantages.
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