One of the most critical parts of owning a pool is routine pool maintenance. In addition to getting rid of your pool’s dirt and debris, you must understand its chemistry. Without proper pool maintenance, your pool water may turn to a cloudy or green color resulting from a buildup of algae. This change in color is often an indication that the level of free available chlorine in your pool is too low to sanitize the pool properly. This is why you need to know how to shock your pool and when the best time of day to shock pool is.
What Is Shocking A Pool?
Shocking a pool is simply increasing the concentration of free available chlorine. You can do this by adding more chlorine to the pool or using a commercial product that works by freeing up chlorine that has already formed compounds with contaminants. Adding more chlorine to your pool will kill bacteria, pollutants and any other unwanted organisms in the water.
Most people wait until they have a cloudy pool or pool algae to shock their pool. However, adding shock to your pool on a regular basis can help you avoid pool water problems.
Once you’ve shocked your pool, it’s important to wait for recommended time – usually about eight hours for shock treatments that are based on chlorine. In the case of non-chlorinated shock treatments, you’ll probably have to wait only about 15 minutes.
Note: Swimming in a pool with a high chlorine concentration is dangerous, so be sure to counter check the amount of free chlorine in your pool to ensure it’s within the recommended range before swimming.
Best Time to Shock Your Pool
The best time of day to shock pool is when the sun is down. So, experts recommend shocking your pool in the evening or at night, to make sure it does its job. Shocking during the day can be ineffective as UV rays from direct sunlight significantly reduce free chlorine levels.
If you really have to shock your pool during the day, Ironman Pool Care recommends using a chlorine stabilizer, which works by prolonging the life of chlorine.
Frequency of Pool Shocking
The frequency of pool shocking depends highly on how much you use your pool. As a general rule of thumb, shocking every two weeks is considered good practice. There’s no harm in doing it every month or so but that’s usually not recommended, especially if people are using your pool daily.
Besides shocking for regular maintenance and upkeep, there are other times when you should consider shocking your pool:
- When the water temperature rises above recommended levels
- After heavy rains
- When the free chlorine goes below recommended levels
- When the pool water is used frequently or heavily
- During extended periods of hot weather
Bottom Line
Keeping your pool in its best condition may seem like an arduous and time-consuming process, but all you need is regular pool maintenance. Shocking will help you to avoid bigger messes and headaches down the road. When it comes to shocking and when the best time of day to shock pool is, be sure to do it frequently, when the sun has set and ensure the pool is safe for swimming before jumping back in.