Is there a difference between "Pool Salt" and normal table salt? Is pool salt just a gimmick so they can charge more?

Welcome to TFP.

There is definitely a difference. Table salt contains additives that Pool salt doesn't. Solar salt is usually cheaper and is usually cleaner too.

Welcome to TFP!

To expand a little on what Bama wrote, table salt contains an additive that helps it pour easily, which you don't want in your pool. However, about half of the water softener salt sold is exactly the same stuff as pool salt. You don't want the kind that contains the iron fighting additive, just plain solar salt usually sold for water softeners. It is in many areas it is significantly less expensive than pool salt.

May I ask if "solar" salt is a brand name or more of a name used to describe salt that has been dried by the sun then bagged without any more additives. Would the pool store be the best place to find that plain salt or should I look towards the Wally World type places?

Thanks for the tip!! I always purchased "Pool Salt" figuring for sure I was doing the best thing I could for my pool and my wallet.....

Bob E.

Home Depot, Lowes, etc. Like this:
http://www.homedepot.com/p/t/100172669? ... =100172669

Don't worry about if it is fine, coarse, or extra coarse; it all dissolves plenty fast enough.

Solar salt is indeed "a name used to describe salt that has been dried by the sun then bagged without any more additives".

You can use pretty much anything besides water softener salt. Pool Salt just has less additives, so it does not affect your pool water conditions.

???? I'm not clear on what you are trying to say here. There are only four kinds of salt residential pool owners have easy access to: pool salt, table salt, deicing salt, and water softener salt. You certainly don't want to use table salt, the additives tend to cause staining. Deicing salt tends to be calcium chloride, and you don't normally want to add any calcium. The only significant differences (and in many cases the only difference) between solar salt sold for water softeners and pool salt is in how finely it is ground (pool salt is ground smaller) and the price (water softener salt is usually less expensive (though not always)).

He sells pool salt for a living.

Water softner salt is fine to use.
Just don't use the expensive softner salt such as Potassium Chloride Water Softener Salt Pellets. They are not sodium chloride!

Actually, I dont sell any salt. But I should have clarified. Most water softener salt comes in pellet form. Its not as finely ground. Therefore it takes an awe full long time for it to dissolve. If you shop around, you will usually be able to find 40lb bags of water softener salt from about $2 to $4 versus most pool salt costing $5-6.

Even pellets will dissolve in a few hours, which is just fine since you ought to be running the pump for 24 hours after adding salt anyway.

Ive had many instances where pellets would not dissolve in a customers pool for more than a couple of days. Now it might have been just that brand, which i believe was Morton, but pellets do take a bit longer, and when youre in a hurry to get your pool up and running for a party the next day or whatever it may be, you do not want to waste any time for salt to dissolve.

Thanks guys for the information. Knowledge is power and over the past couple of days I feel much more able to make an informed decision infront of the bags of salt.

In my case I will be putting up the pool in a week or two, so at that point it is really nice to be able to choose what "kind" of salt I want to put in. Why not save money with slower desolving stuff if nobody will be in the pool for two weeks? However, I feel strongly someone as soon as she get's and eye on the pool will want to jump and spash around as quickly as possible.........

Bob E.

If you spread it out, the solar salt dissolves within a few minutes. Run a brush over the bottom once and it is gone. The pool salt is slightly faster, but who needs it that fast?

Not sure the pellets are any cheaper than the solar salt.

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