Hi All - my first post here, although I've been reading the forums and help articles for nearly a year now (since before we broke ground on our 36k gallon gunite pool in TN). I also have the 'pool math' app and bought the big test kit everyone here recommends and use it at least once a week.
Anyhow... I just can't seem to make sense of using bleach instead of tablets. Maybe prices around me are out of whack?
Bleach: The cheapest I can find bleach anywhere is at home depot, where if I buy in bulk, at least 12 gallons of store brand 10% concentration, it costs $3.00/gal.
Trichlor tablets: I can get 80 tablets (half a pound per tablet) from Costco for $65. Or about $0.8125 per tablet or $1.625 per pound.
As best as I can tell, 1 gallon of bleach is equal to about 0.9 pounds of the tablets assuming the bleach is brand new. Realistically the stuff I'm getting off the shelf at home depot has often times been sitting there a while - and since I don't want to run by HD frequently, I also stock up and so the bleach may sit on my shelf for up to another month. Meaning by the time I use it, 1 gallon of bleach may only be equal to about .6 or .7 pounds of tablets.
So $3.00 in bleach ends, as far as I can tell, typically nets me the same chlorine input as $1.46 in tablets if I used brand new bleach, and possibly only $0.97-$1.13 in tablets if the bleach is 2-3 months old by the time I use it.
Over this summer is seems like about 1.25 gallons of bleach every other day is enough to keep my pool just barely above the minimum free chlorine level recommended for my current CYA (about 50). Or about 6 tablets per week stuck in the offline chemical feeder.
So while I've heard my chlorine inputs will go down in the cooler months (I'm not closing the pool, but... clouds, nobody swimming, etc), my summer time chlorine costs are about $57 per month using bleach, or $21.18 per month using tablets.
Now, I understand if I keep using tablets, my CYA levels will continue to rise, and eventually I will need to partially drain and refill the pool
Water here costs 41 cents per 100 gallons including sewer fees. So let's say I drain half my water (18k gallons). That's $73.80. Not cheap, but still not nearly enough to offset the savings of running tablets.
I know draining and refilling the pool is a 'hassle', but at least it's just a once in a long while thing.
Also while I was researching I noticed that bleach raises my pH, while tablets lower it... which reflects the results I've been experiencing. When running tablets I hardly ever had to add muriatic acid. But when using bleach I was having to pour in a quart or so of muriatic acid every week. Again, not the end of the world, but the cost and time adds up to where I don't really understand the appeal of using bleach, unless maybe my prices are unusual. Maybe the cost of water and/or tablets here is lower than normal?
Anyhow... I just can't seem to make sense of using bleach instead of tablets. Maybe prices around me are out of whack?
Bleach: The cheapest I can find bleach anywhere is at home depot, where if I buy in bulk, at least 12 gallons of store brand 10% concentration, it costs $3.00/gal.
Trichlor tablets: I can get 80 tablets (half a pound per tablet) from Costco for $65. Or about $0.8125 per tablet or $1.625 per pound.
As best as I can tell, 1 gallon of bleach is equal to about 0.9 pounds of the tablets assuming the bleach is brand new. Realistically the stuff I'm getting off the shelf at home depot has often times been sitting there a while - and since I don't want to run by HD frequently, I also stock up and so the bleach may sit on my shelf for up to another month. Meaning by the time I use it, 1 gallon of bleach may only be equal to about .6 or .7 pounds of tablets.
So $3.00 in bleach ends, as far as I can tell, typically nets me the same chlorine input as $1.46 in tablets if I used brand new bleach, and possibly only $0.97-$1.13 in tablets if the bleach is 2-3 months old by the time I use it.
Over this summer is seems like about 1.25 gallons of bleach every other day is enough to keep my pool just barely above the minimum free chlorine level recommended for my current CYA (about 50). Or about 6 tablets per week stuck in the offline chemical feeder.
So while I've heard my chlorine inputs will go down in the cooler months (I'm not closing the pool, but... clouds, nobody swimming, etc), my summer time chlorine costs are about $57 per month using bleach, or $21.18 per month using tablets.
Now, I understand if I keep using tablets, my CYA levels will continue to rise, and eventually I will need to partially drain and refill the pool
Water here costs 41 cents per 100 gallons including sewer fees. So let's say I drain half my water (18k gallons). That's $73.80. Not cheap, but still not nearly enough to offset the savings of running tablets.
I know draining and refilling the pool is a 'hassle', but at least it's just a once in a long while thing.
Also while I was researching I noticed that bleach raises my pH, while tablets lower it... which reflects the results I've been experiencing. When running tablets I hardly ever had to add muriatic acid. But when using bleach I was having to pour in a quart or so of muriatic acid every week. Again, not the end of the world, but the cost and time adds up to where I don't really understand the appeal of using bleach, unless maybe my prices are unusual. Maybe the cost of water and/or tablets here is lower than normal?