How to Maintain a Balance in Small Salt Pools

Maintain the balance of a small salt pool.

Salt-filtered pools are becoming an increasingly popular choice of swimming pools, especially among those people who prefer not to use a large amount of harsh chemicals in their water. Salt pools use salt to sanitize the pool water and are easier on a person's skin and hair. When you have a salt pool, it is necessary to maintain a proper balance of salt, cyanuric acid and "free chlorine," especially in small pools where there is a potential for concentrated amounts of contaminates.

Things You'll Need

• Salt test strips
• Granular salt
• Cyanuric acid test strips
• Cyanuric acid
• Pool test strips
• Chlorine
• Bucket
• Granular chlorine neutralizer

Instructions

Salt Level

1. Check the salt level of the pool water by inserting a salt test strip, holding it in the water for 3 minutes. Remove the test strip and read the indicator.

2. Add granular salt if the salt levels are low by walking around the edge of the pool and pouring salt directly into the water. Use the pool calculator in the Resource section to determine how much salt you should use to increase your pool's salt level.

3. Drain a small amount of pool water, if the salt levels are too high, and re-fill with fresh water to the appropriate level.

Cyanuric Acid Level

1. Check the stabilizer, or cyanuric acid, level of the pool water using a cyanuric acid test strip. Dip the test strip into the pool for 2 to 3 minutes while being careful not to submerge it under water. Remove the cyanuric test strip from the water and read the results.

2. Lower the amount of cyanuric acid in the water by draining approximately 1 foot of water out of the pool and re-filling it with clean water.

3. Raise the cyanuric acid levels by adding cyanuric acid directly into the pool water, in the amount that the manufacturer specifies.

"Free Chlorine" Level

1. Check the "free chlorine" level of the pool water by inserting a pool test strip into the water of the pool for 3 minutes. Remove the test strip from the pool water and read the results.

2. Increase the amount of "free chlorine" by pouring the suggested amount of chlorine into a bucket and mixing it with water. Pour the contents of the bucket into the pool water at the deep end of the pool.

3. Decrease the amount of "free chlorine" in the water by sprinkling a granular chlorine neutralizer directly into the pool; use 6 ounces for every 10,000 gallons of water. Use the chlorine adjustments chart in the Resources section to determine how much chlorine you should add to your specific salt pool.

Tips & Warnings

• The salt level of the pool should range somewhere between 2500 to 4000 ppm, or parts per million.

• The desired stabilizer range for a salt pool is 60 to 80 ppm.

• The desired "free chlorine" level for a salt pool is 1.0 to 3.0 ppm

• Cyanuric acid is commonly sold as a pool conditioner, or stabilizer.

• Take care to protect your skin and eyes when handling any toxic chemicals.

References

• PoolCenter.com: Chlorine Generators
• Pool Plaza: Troubleshooting Salt Water Pools

Resources

• The Pool Calculator
• Pool Plaza: Chlorine Adjustments