Is it important to maintain TCL

[Nauman]

What is the effect of total chlorine? is it somehow related to the chlorine smell.

Is there any other reason to maintain Total Chlorine (TCL), besides the smell issue.

 

[Dirk]

Hi, and welcome to TFP!

A simplified explanation:

Total Chlorine (TC) is the sum of Free Chlorine (FC) and Combined Chlorine (CC). We measure FC to determine the amount of chlorine available in the pool. And we measure CC to determine if any of that chlorine is currently working to sanitize the pool. It is the CC that we smell. It is not necessary to test or "maintain" TC, as you put it. Testing FC and CC is all you need to do to monitor what's going on with chlorine in your pool.

The way to test for FC and CC is to use a test kit that contains the FAS/DPD chlorine test, such as this one.

Read more about it here: ABCs of Pool Water Chemistry.