If you’re using muriatic acid, simply measure the liquid and pour it directly into the deepest area of your pool near an active return jet. Some pool owners prefer to dilute muriatic acid beforehand, but that really isn’t necessary. It is crucial to know how to lower alkalinity levels, but you should always start by understanding the optimal level to target and how to measure alkalinity. When alkalinity is too high in your swimming pool, your chlorine won’t sanitize the water as effectively. And it can lead to calcium buildup, and cloudy water and irritate a swimmer’s eyes and skin. How do you lower alkalinity without lowering pH? Total alkalinity in pool water is not as volatile as pH or free chlorine level. However, it is still essential to test it at least once a week.

It leads to calcium scaling. Calcium can be a problem when it falls out of solution because it settles on your pool surfaces and equipment. This is known as ‘calcium scaling’ and it takes some work to remove. You’ll know if your total alkalinity is truly too high when your pH is no longer stable, and more specifically, starts to increase alongside it.

How to Lower Alkalinity in a Pool

While not as problematic for vinyl pools, sulfates can damage concrete or plaster pool surfaces, be corrosive to metal pool parts and fixtures, and even degrade your saltwater generator if you have a salt pool. Recommended TA Level is 80-120ppm. If a 2nd dose is required place in a different area of the pool away from any equipment. Put on your protective gear. Wear a long-sleeve top, rubber gloves, goggles or other eyewear, and a face mask to prevent inhaling fumes. Fortunately, the causes for rising pH are well established so it shouldn’t be difficult to maintain both your pH and alkalinity by taking some precautions. The first step to maintaining proper pH and Alkalinity is completing a water test. Water can be tested with a DPD/OTO droplet test kit, water test strips, or digital testing. Once a water test has been completed, we want to begin with alkalinity. Alkalinity is the buffer for the pH. If alkalinity is high, use granular pool pH reducer to adjust the alkalinity between 80-120ppm*. Once your alkalinity is within range, adjust the pH.

If you’ve tested your water and the results show a high pH level, it was probably caused by one or more of the following: Note: Cyanuric acid is also often used in pools to stabilize the chlorine. While it does lower pH, it should never be used primarily for that purpose because too much cyanuric acid will reduce the sanitizing power of chlorine. How to Lower pH in Your Pool (6 Steps) However, if the amount is lower than 7.2, you need to increase the alkalinity in your pool. Moreover, if the alkalinity is more than 7.6, you need to decrease the alkalinity 2. Determine if the Alkalinity is High or LowTotal alkalinity is a measurement of the concentration of all alkaline substances dissolved in the water that can both attract and release Hydrogen ions (H +). This interference with Hydrogen is why alkalinity buffers against change in pH. Total alkalinity is primarily bicarbonate, carbonate, and hydroxide, along with a few others like cyanurate alkalinity. When acid is added, these alkali have the ability to neutralize some of the acid. In simpler terms, total alkalinity is a measurement of the water’s ability to resist a reduction in pH. Our chlorine tablets for pools are 3 inch in size, individually wrapped in easy-open bags, and work great in chlorine floaters and automatic chlorine feeders.

Rashes, swimmer's ear, or in more extreme situations, bacterial infections, such as salmonella or E.coli

Conclusion

This acid is fast-acting and very effective at lowering alkalinity (as well as pH), and it’s easy to find in your local area. What’s more, it’s also very affordable as far as pool chemicals go.

The high pH isn’t good for your swimsuits or goggles. Over time, the chemical imbalance may cause your swimsuit to fade, or degrade the fabric to the point where you can’t wear the suit anymore. Goggles may weaken and break sooner than you’d expect. Damages Pool Equipment At this stage, you should have your current pH level and total alkalinity readings, as well as your pool volume in gallons. By itself, total alkalinity isn’t that bad for your pool. However, consistently high levels will eventually create a domino effect of issues. It’s not uncommon to see your total alkalinity rise over time because pH naturally rises over time, and we know alkalinity always increases with pH. Sprinkle 15g per 1000 litres of spa water over the whole surface of the spa, with the pumps and filtration running.Technical explanation: The more of your water’s surface area is exposed to air, the faster it outgasses carbon dioxide. Since carbon dioxide is acidic, reducing the amount of this substance in your water naturally leads to a rise in pH. It reduces chlorine’s effectiveness. Free chlorine works best at lower pH, so the higher your pH, the less sanitizing power chlorine has over contaminants. This can result in dirty or under-sanitized water. However, aside from being more expensive, it works slower and can cause temporary cloudiness in the water. More importantly, it adds sulfates to the water which can corrode your pool surfaces in high concentrations.