Water Quality

Water Balance

It is recommended that the following water chemistry levels are maintained to keep swimming pool water balanced and sanitized, for optimum bather comfort and overall longevity of the pool’s lining and installed equipment.

Visit any of our stores for a free water test and the correct advise and AquaKing or other relevant pool product, to keep your pool water sparkling.

PPM referred to in the following levels is Parts Per Million.

pH

One of the simplest ways to understand basic pH is probably the human teardrop, which is neutral. 

If a teardrop would have been low in pH it would burn when we cried and if too high in pH it would dry out our eyes. 

This similarly applies to swimming pool water – with pH too low (acidic) it can have a corrosive effect, such as pitting of concrete surfaces or too high (alkaline) lead to scaling on the pool lining and or equipment.

Because pH in swimming pools is constantly affected – by bathers, pets, rainwater and other things entering the pool, it is important to regularly monitor and keep the pool’s pH levels balanced.

Alkalinity

Alkalinity can be seen as the bodyguard of pH, buffering it against major fluctuations. The two go hand in hand to keep the water in swimming pools within the neutral range on the pH scale.

Recommended AquaKing Products for pH and Alkalinity -

Increase pH and or Alkalinity by adding AquaKing Soda Ash to marbelite pools or AquaKing Alkalinity Booster.

To lower pH and or Alkalinity add AquaKing Liquid Pool Acid, Acid is also available in dry granular format.

Calcium Hardness

It is one of the important, but typically ignored factors to monitor in swimming pool water, especially in plastered swimming pools.

 Not having the correct calcium levels in swimming pool water can also have a damaging effect – too low and the pool water will seek to gain it, by taking it from the pool’s lining and too high, depositing excess levels on the pool’s lining or elsewhere in the system.

Recommended AquaKing Product for Calcium -

Supplement your swimming pool’s calcium demand with AquaKing Calcium Flakes.

AquaKing Calcium Flakes

Pool Salt

Although pool salt and table salt share the same make up – sodium chloride, there is a difference.

Pool salt is generally better refined, enabling it to dissolve quicker in swimming pool water and making it easier for chlorine generators to break it down into chlorine. It also does not contain iodine and anti-caking agents, found in many table salts. One should also not use agricultural grade salt or unrefined pan-salt, which can dirty a swimming pool.

Certain pool salts also contain additives, making them inedible, as well as additional agents, such as cyanuric acid (stabilizer), metal de-activators and pool water conditioner to assist with pHbalance.

The general rule of thumb is that adding 50 kilograms of pool salt to 10 000 litres of pool water will give a salt level of 5000 PPM. This is more than adequate for most chlorine generators. Please refer to the manufacturer specifications on the brand of chlorine generator installed, for their required salt PPM, in order not to overdose.

There is the perception that one needs to taste salt in the pool water, as an indication that the adequate amount is present ,It is therefore interesting to know, that the taste threshold of salt is around 3 500 PPM and that the content in a human eye around 7 000 PPM. Sea water is around 30 000 PPM.

Water Sanitation

Swimming pool water must be treated correctly and continuously, to get it as close to a similar quality, as that of potable water. This is an essential component of swimming pool care, in order to ensure the overall health safety of bathers.

In swimming pools, this is a perpetual process, due to the fact that the water in a swimming pool is constantly being contaminated by bacteria and dirt, which is either carried into the pool by bathers and pets or from the environment, such as wind and rain storms and so on.

There are a variety of products available to sanitize pool water, but in South Africa, pool chlorine is the most commonly and widely used, and supplied in various forms, such as:

Unstabilized Chlorine (Calcium Hypochlorite) – available in granular or pill form with a typically recommended dosage of 250 grams per day, early morning or late afternoon, to avoid loss through dissipation by the sun’s UV.

Stabilized Chlorine Pills – contains Trichloroisocyanuric Acid and dissolves over a period of 7 to 10 days releasing the Stabilizer component of the product (Cyanuric Acid) to protect the chlorine component and supplement stabilizer lost through splash out.

Stabilized Chlorine Granules – contains Sodium Dichlorisocyanuric Acid and dissolves completely without any residue remaining in the pools, compared to other forms of chlorine. This product can be added only every second or third day, depending on climate, stabilizer levels and bather load and is recommended in areas with high calcium levels in the water supply, as it does not contain calcium.

Other sanitizers also used and supplied are –

Metals (typically Copper and in certain instances Silver) – are contained in a variety of products in the S.A. market, but not an option that we would recommend, as they can accumulate to unacceptable levels in a swimming pool and often lead to staining of the pool shell.

Peroxide – is an excellent environmentally friendly sanitizer, but should not be used frequently and generally only as an added maintenance product, not the sole sanitation agent. It is a very strong Oxidizer that should be handled with care, in the dosing and transport thereof.

Recommended AquaKing and EcoGene Products for Chlorine Sanitation -

AquaKing and EcoGene Chlorine Floaters 1.4Kg, 1.5Kg or 1.6Kg available in 4in 1 or 5 in 1 variants.

Pool chemicals potchefstroom

Eco Gene Chlorine Floater 1.4Kg

 

EcoGene Granular Chlorine (Calcium Hypochlorite) in 10Kg or 4Kg buckets.

EcoGene Chlorine 4Kg

NB: AquaKing Metal Magic is recommended for treatment of metals in swimming pool water.

 

AquaKing Metal Magic

Algae Prevention & Control

It is not difficult for algae to infect a swimming in some manner or form over the lifespan of the swimming pool and although it can be killed it cannot be eradicated completely, considering that is perpetuated by nature.

There are typically three types of algae found in swimming pools –

Green Algae – can be either free floating, which is a mild form or generally found growing on pool steps or mosaic tiles.

Mustard Algae – appears in sheet form on the walls of the swimming pool and if not killed in time, will spread into large patches on the pool walls and floor, potentially causing stains that are very difficult to remove. It is known to appear frequently in harsh and humid weather and typically also the result of inadequate sanitation, which allows this algae to build up a resistance to treatment.

Black Algae – is probably the most resistant form of algae in swimming pools and usually noticed as black spots in the deep end and generally on the shady side first. Even if the pool water is crystal clear, this algae can occur and if left untreated, the roots become established, especially in concrete pools, making it almost impossible to kill completely.

A dual approach – the combined use of an Algaecide to kill an infestation, followed with a Floculant to remove suspended dead algae, too small to trap in the pool’s filter, provide the best result for effective treatment of algae in a swimming pool.

Recommended AquaKing Product for Control of Algae -

EcoGene DQ80 is recommended for treatment of all types of algae and AquaKing SeaBlue our best-selling dual action maintenance algaecide and flocculant or EcoGene DQ50 to prevent algae and clarify pool water – all in one.