Professional water testing for a safe, balanced, and sparkling pool.
Water testing is a crucial part of pool maintenance, ensuring that your pool’s water is safe, clean, and properly balanced. Regular testing helps to avoid algae growth, prevent skin or eye irritation, and ensures the effectiveness of sanitizers like chlorine. Here’s a guide to what you should test for and how to do it:
Key Pool Water Parameters to Test:
1. pH Level:
- Why it matters: pH measures the acidity or alkalinity of your pool water. If the pH is too high or too low, it can affect the effectiveness of chlorine and cause damage to the pool surface or equipment.
- Ideal range: 7.2 – 7.8
2. Chlorine (Free Chlorine):
- Why it matters: Chlorine keeps the pool free from harmful bacteria and algae. Low chlorine levels may lead to water contamination, while high levels can cause irritation to skin and eyes.
- Ideal range: 1-3 ppm (parts per million)
3. Total Alkalinity (TA):
- Why it matters: Total alkalinity helps to buffer the pH and prevents rapid changes. If the alkalinity is too low, the pH will fluctuate, making the water more acidic. If it’s too high, the pH can rise, leading to cloudy water.
- Ideal range: 80-120 ppm
4. Calcium Hardness:
- Why it matters: Calcium hardness measures the concentration of dissolved calcium in the water. Too low can cause the water to be corrosive and damage pool surfaces, while too high can lead to scaling and cloudy water.
- Ideal range: 200-400 ppm
5. Cyanuric Acid (Stabilizer):
- Why it matters: Cyanuric acid helps to protect chlorine from being degraded by sunlight, especially important in outdoor pools. Without it, chlorine can be quickly lost to UV rays, reducing its effectiveness.
- Ideal range: 30-50 ppm
6. Total Dissolved Solids (TDS):
- Why it matters: TDS refers to the total amount of dissolved minerals and chemicals in the water. If TDS is too high, it can cause the water to become cloudy and reduce the effectiveness of chemicals.
- Ideal range: Below 1500 ppm (higher levels may require draining and refilling)
