Cleaning Swimming Pool Water With Common Household Products
- 1
Use a pH testing strip to determine the pool's pH.bandelette test image by YvesBonnet from Fotolia.com
Dip a pH test strip in the water to test your pool's pH. Follow the instructions on the package to interpret the results. - 2
Measure the size of your pool.measure tape #3 image by Adam Borkowski from Fotolia.com
Estimate the amount of water contained in your pool. Multiply the length times the width times the average depth times 7.5 to obtain an estimate in gallons. - 3
Baking soda will control your pH and alkaline levels.vintage measuring cups image by Scott Williams from Fotolia.com
Add the recommended amount of baking soda to the pool water. Arm and Hammer recommends that if the pH level is less than 7.2, you should add 3 to 4 lbs. of baking soda per 10,000 gallons of water. If the pH level is between 7.2 and 7.5, add 2 lbs. of baking soda per 10,000 gallons of water. If the pH level is above 7.5, do not add baking soda to the water. - 4
Bleach will chlorinate the pool.measuring cup image by Antonio Oquias from Fotolia.com
Add bleach. Clorox recommends adding 1/8 cup of bleach for wading pools holding less than 100 gallons of water. For pools with between 4,000 and 6,000 gallons of water, use 3 to 4 cups of bleach. For pools holding between 6,000 and 8,000 gallons, add 5 to 6 cups of bleach. For larger pools, use 1 cup bleach per 1,500 additional gallons of water. - 5). Wait for 6 hours.
- 6
Test your pool's chlorine concentration.Test Kit image by Cinneman from Fotolia.com
Use the pool chlorine test strip to evaluate the chlorine concentration in your swimming pool. - 7). Repeat the bleach dosage as needed to obtain 0.6 to 1.0 ppm available chlorine.
- 8). Clean your pool weekly for best results.
