Can You Over Shock a Pool?
If you know a thing or two about pool maintenance, you’ve probably already asked yourself the question: can you over shock a pool? the short answer is yes and no. Getting to know the most common pool maintenance mistakes can teach you how to avoid this common pitfall. A few tips should help you to keep your pool clean, safe and running efficiently without all the headaches and frustration.
Can You Over Shock a Pool?
This article discusses whether you can over shock a pool. We discuss how important it is to make sure you use the right amount of liquid chlorine according to the volume of water in your pool.
So why is the answer to over shocking your pool yes and no? Well, that’s because the excess chlorine will burn off in about 48 hours. However, there’s also the possibility of under shocking.
Putting too much chlorine into your pool means you’ve over shocked it and this will bleach the pool liner. Hence, it is extremely important to know how to add liquid chlorine to your pool and how much to add as well. You’ll also have a ring around the pool and there’s no way to fix this besides replacing. The chlorine will bleach out the liner. Eventually, the bleached areas will become brittle and start leaking. Once the pool liner starts leaking, you’re probably going to have a tough time trying to patch it up.
If you have a vinyl pool layer, never add shock directly to your pool water as it will completely ruin the pool. Instead, pre-dissolve the shock in a bucket of water before adding it to the pool.
Fixing Too Much Shock In A Swimming Pool
Step 1
Start by testing the pool to determine the free chlorine levels. An over shocked pool will have a high level of free chlorine.
Step 2
Get everyone out of the pool.
Step 3
Turn on the pool filtration pump. You’ll need to add sodium thiosulphate (half an ounce per 1000 gallons of water) directly to the middle of the pool and give it about half an hour to circulate in the water.
Step 4
Turn off the pump, unplug it then test the free chlorine levels. If the levels are too high, repeat step the step above. If not, remove the pool filters and replace them with new ones.
Step 5
Finally, plug the filtration pump in and turn it back on.
Be sure to test chlorine levels weekly and know when the best time of day is to shock your pool. Your pool needs to be kept at a free chlorine level of about 20 PPM to ensure a stable pH. Sodium Thiosulphate is very effective at neutralizing excess chlorine.
Bottom Line
So, can you over shock a pool? Swimming water that causes itching or burning of the nose and eyes, and smells too strongly of chlorine has too much chlorine. This is an over-shock of the pool due to dead skin cells, urine, blood and sweat being broken down in the water to form combined chlorine. Using the steps mentioned, you can fix an issue of over-shocking and enjoy a clean and clear pool.
