What chemicals do you need to open an above ground pool? - Project Sports
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What chemicals do you need to open an above ground pool?

3 min read

Asked by: Louis Culbertson

We recommend that you take an inventory of the following:

  • Chlorine Tablets & Chlorine Stock.
  • pH Increaser & Decreaser.
  • Alkalinity & Calcium Increaser.
  • Cyanuric Acid or Stabilizer.
  • Algaecides, Clarifiers, Enzymes.
  • Test Kit Reagents or Test Strips.
  • Stain Removers.

What chemicals do I put in to open my pool?


Or chlorine stabilizer pool shock chlorine pucks or the sanitizer of your choice. And calcium hardness increaser.

How do you open an above ground pool for the first time?

Cover find a large clear area in your yard. And spread your pool cover flat wash your cover with water cover cleaner or car wash soap. And a scrub brush or rubber broom scrub it thoroughly.

How much shock Do I need to open my above ground pool?

Use 2 pounds of pool shock for every 10,000 gallons of pool water, or 5 gallons of liquid shock for every 20,000 gallons of pool water. This is a double shock, using twice the normal amount. This will give your pool a sanitizing whammy to make sure the water’s ready for swimming.

How many bags of shock do I need to open my pool?

You will need to quadruple shock your pool by added 4 pounds of shock to every 10,000 gallons of water. This can be expensive if you have a large swimming pool.

Should I shock my pool when I first fill it up?

At first you’ll add chlorine in what’s called “shock” levels – an extra heavy dose to start your pool off. A shock dose coupled with extra circulation will ensure that all the water gets treated properly in the beginning.

Is shock the same as chlorine?

Shock is chlorine, in a high dose, meant to shock your pool and raise the chlorine level quickly. Chlorine tabs (placed in a chlorinator, floater, or skimmer basket) maintain a chlorine residual in the water. You do need to use both tabs and shock.

How many hours should you wait to swim after shocking a pool?

In general, it’s recommended that you wait up to 24 hours to hop into a pool after it’s been shocked, depending on the size of the pool, Alan says.

How soon after shocking pool can I swim?

And how long do you have to wait before you can swim? You should wait one hour per pound of shock product added, and then test the water to confirm the pH and chlorine are in the proper range before letting anyone enter the pool.

What happens if I put too much shock in my pool?

Adding too much shock or overshocking your pool will kill off algae. The negative of adding too much shock is it will upset the chemical balance of your pool. It’s likely to do that regardless of if you overshocked the pool or not. The pH will either go up or down depending on which product you used.

Can I use bleach to shock my pool?

Calculate the amount of bleach you need based on the fact that 1 gallon will raise the free chlorine level of 30,000 gallons of water by 2 ppm. If you need to mildly shock a 30,000-gallon pool by raising the free chlorine concentration to 5 ppm, you need 2.5 gallons of bleach. To raise it to 10 ppm, you need 5 gallons.

Is liquid chlorine better than shock?

Liquid chlorine is generally less costly than granular shock and comes in refillable containers, where granular shock does not. Liquid chlorine does not need to dissolve in your water as it is already in liquid form. In addition, liquid chlorine is non-scaling and leaves no residue.