How to Clean a Cloudy Swimming Pool Using Chlorine

A cloudy pool may need to be shocked with a chlorine treatment.

Swimming pools are besieged all year by airborne contaminates, body oils and wastes, and other bacteria. These contaminates get into the pool water and turn the pool cloudy and murky. Proper sanitizing treatments are necessary to keep pool water clear. Chlorine is the most common form of sanitizer used in swimming pools. Chlorine kills out contaminates and keeps bacteria in check. A regular chlorine shock treatment boosts the chlorine levels of the pool temporarily to eliminate any cloudiness and murkiness in the pool water.

Things You'll Need

• Gloves
• Chlorine shock
• Vacuum equipment or water hose

Instructions

1. Ready the chlorine shock for application to the pool water. Take a 5-gallon bucket and fill it with water. Open your pool shock and pour it into the 5-gallon bucket. Use a stirring utensil to mix the chlorine shock with the water in the bucket until most of the shock is dissolved.

2. Pour the shock mixture into the pool by walking around the outside edge. This evenly distributes the shock throughout the whole pool. Run your pool pump continually for at least 12 hours or until the pool water is no longer cloudy.

3. Take your pool's vacuuming equipment or use a water hose to suck up any debris off the pool bottom. Debris left on the pool bottom will result in the pool water becoming cloudy again.

Tips & Warnings

• Use a pool pole with brush and push around any shock that settled onto the pool bottom to help it mix with the pool water.

• Avoid letting pool shocks directly touch your skin. Wear gloves or other hand protection when handling shock.

• Do not mix pool chemicals. Mixing different pool chemicals unless instructed otherwise can result in hazardous reactions occurring.

References

• Pool Chemical Information