Borates in california pools

[keene3b07]

Are borates illegal for use in pools in california? I have asked distributors and retailers about getting borates and nobody has ever heard of it. Bioguard manufactures some for use in pools and the website wouldn't let me ship to california. It seems like it must be illegal but i cant find anywhere that says so. I am dying to talk to customers about adding borates to their pool but i don't want to if it isn't legal.

 

[JasonLion]

I don't keep up with the most recent rules in California, but as of a couple of years ago they had not banned it. Borates are sold under a variety of brand names, for example ProTeam Supreme & Supreme Plus, BioGuard Optimizer Plus, and Poollife Endure to name three. If any of those are available then it is most likely legal.

 

[MattM]

Hmm....the local san diego grocery store carries 20 mule team borax, I didn't even bother looking for other sources....

 

[JasonLion]

MattM, it is certainly allowed as a laundry detergent booster, but that doesn't mean it is still alowed as a pool chemical. A few small localities have outlawed using borates in your pool water and there was at least some talk about doing the same in California, though I never heard what, if anything, came of it.

 

[JamesW]

Here is a borate product with many California dealers.
http://nisuscorp.com/pool-spa/products/poolproof

http://nisuscorp.com/pool-spa/pool-spa- ... California

ACTIVE INGREDIENT:
Disodium Octaborate Tetrahydrate...................... 47.6%
OTHER INGREDIENTS......................................... 52.4%
TOTAL ................................................................... 100.0%
Equivalent boron content of:
• 86.5% as sodium tetraborate (Na2B4O7•10H2O)
• 32.3% as boric oxide (B2O3)
• 10.0% B as elemental boron (B)
http://nisuscorp.com/images/uploads/doc ... lproof.pdf

 

[chem geek]

California identifies substances with acute LD₅₀ of less than 2,500 mg/kg as "hazardous wastes" while boric acid has an LD₅₀ of 3450 mg/kg for male rats (ordinary table salt is around 3000 mg/kg). However there was a period of time where the California limit was 5,000 at which point boric acid was designated as hazardous waste so required higher transportation costs due to certain shipping and packaging requirements. Some manufacturers didn't change their MSDS or policies once California loosened their ridiculously tight regulation that would have made table salt a hazardous waste were it not for its specific exemption!