Liquid Chlorine vs Pucks, and Pucks without Stabilizer

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Chuckiechan

Well-known member
Jun 10, 2014
611
Roseville, CA
My son inherited a pool that the previous owner poisoned with Clorox pucks, running his CYA up to 250 or so giving him major algae problems. (Tip 'o the hat to Leslie's, who caught that problem when he went in to buy algacide.)

He's drained it down twice and is now zeroing in on the right numbers today, guided by Pool Math.

He was told that the only pucks without stabilizer are for commercial use.

I plan to encourage him to use liquid chlorine, but since he travels a lot, use the pucks in the floater when is gone.

Any suggestions here?

BTW: 20,000 gal, Pebble Tech 5 years old. Sand filter, pressure crawler.

Thanks in advance...
 
Cal-hypo sticks are around, though hard to come by and require a special feeder to be installed. Using them will of course raise your calcium level, potentially requiring water replacement down the road.

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Chuckiechan said:
So you are saying you cannot get non stabilized pucks?

I was looking at them as a travel supplement.
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pretty much. but you can definitely use the pucks while on vacation. just buy a cheap floater. the key is to KNOW your CYA and how adding them will increase it, and how that affects your levels of chlorine needed. and then to stop using them when you get home. Once your CYA gets to a certain level, then its gotta be lowered. knowledge is the important part. the issue with pucks is that people just keep adding them in without realizing they increase CYA and how the FC/CYA relationship works. thats not a problem here, lol :)
 
When I looked last, there were pucks that were 90% Chlorine and 10% CYA, and others that appeared to be 99% Chlorine and 1% CYA.

If you get decent rainfall during the year, you'll have some natural CYA loss.

Before TFP I was going to buy an in-line chlorination device. Now a floater when on vacation, my CYA seems to disappear between Florida's rain and "something else" which I can't figure out.
 
Being in California with water issues, you want to do all you can to avoid having to drain and refill a pool. Pucks will contain either CYA or Calcium, both of which can get too high and require draining. Calcium is often high in the western states both from the fill water and evaporation and without close monitoring of pH it will cause scaling on the walls of the pool. So all the more reason to avoid pucks and granular chlorine.

Your son should stop buying algaecide and invest that money in one of the two test kits we trust. TF-100 or Taylor's K2006C. Then use liquid chlorine or a salt water chlorine generator (SWG) to sanitize the pool.

Have him read PoolSchool articles at the top of this site. Bring back all questions and we're glad to help y'all out.
 
Alex_H said:
When I looked last, there were pucks that were 90% Chlorine and 10% CYA, and others that appeared to be 99% Chlorine and 1% CYA.
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Pucks are made of trichlor. The 90% or 99% are how much trichlor there is, not a chlorine to CYA ratio. For every 10 ppm of chlorine trichlor adds it also adds about 6 ppm of CYA. There is no "low CYA" versions of trichlor, some pucks include metals or borate mixture added but it doesn't change that CYA will be added at a constant rate to the FC added.
 

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Leslie's will tell you anything to sell you their chlorine tabs. I went in there for S&G's to see how accurate their tests are compared to my Taylor k-2006. Just really wanted to see how much I have been ripped off in the past. The guy tried telling me that even with my SWG I should be using Tabs. I told him that I will supplement with liquid during the hottest part of summer if needed. The guy looked at me like I was speaking Spanish. I think they have some kind of sales ratio in which they have to sell products for the majority of "free" water tests they perform.


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triptyx said:
A puck that had no CH or CYA in it would be a million dollar idea. ;)
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There must be a good reason for it. He still has quite a few from the last owner, and he knows the issue now. Plus if last season was any indication, we're in our wet cycle for a few years.

Regarding saltwater, it has it's own issues. Maybe down the line a salt system may be a good idea.

Regarding testing; Speaking for myself, he's getting there but it takes a special sort of anality to be truly "there" with it. :p

So for now, it's liquid chlorine and pucks while on vacation.

Since I went to borate, I haven't seen a bit of algae in my pool. Kinda forgot about it. The kid has dogs who drink from the pool, so borates I understand are not a recommended part of Rover's diet.

Thanks all for your info, I think we got the problem licked and it looks like all will be roses and rose' for awhile!

The other kid with the new pool has an inline chlorinater that I presume takes pucks, but the deal was done. His is filling as we speak...
 
DaninFLA said:
just curious what they issues with saltwater might be?
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They take some figuring out. You need salt of course, and you need to keep your TA somewhat on the low recommended level. As the SWG generates, your pH goes up and you need to add acid to bring it back down. If you don't your SWG will usually clog. The right TA level helps this up and down process stay in a narrower range.

So in short, it's an ideal system for the right owner. And it helps to really enjoy testing and being proud of your pool maintenance.

You can option to use borates to mitigate the pH rise, and there is a general procedure to follow to keep your pH balance "safe" while you set it up. A side benefit to borates is it inhibits algae growth.

Since my son's pool came without an SWG, he needs to learn to run what he's got. Maybe from there a SWG will be his choice, time will tell.

I personally don't see an SWG as a money saving issue. For me it's convenience. I'm not schlepping chlorine. But I am schlepping acid instead. Less of it, but still schlepping! But borating and good balance at start up cuts down on pH rise and you need to add as often.

I hope this answers your question fairly.
 
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