Safely adding liquid chemicals

[Copernicu]

I used to pour liquid chlorine standing up at arms length. I would get some splashes on my legs while wearing shorts but I didn't worry too much about that. Later on, I realized it was splashing up as far as my shirts (and ruining them). Since then, I bend over and try to get the bottle close to the surface before pouring, and that has mostly eliminated the splashing problem. I do get some small splashes sometimes, especially when first tipping the bottle over. I try to avert my head so I don't get splashes in my face.

After reading some posts, I think I am going to switch from 14.5% to 31.45% muriatic acid. I found a video online that recommends wearing safety glasses and long rubber gloves, pouring the acid into a 5 gallon bucket with a 10:1 water/acid ratio, and then pouring the mixture into the pool.

I am wondering whether the video instructions are a good practice or overkill?

How do others here add strong muriatic acid? And do you do the same with liquid chlorine?

Thank you.

 

[mknauss]

Chemical Storage and Safety - Further Reading

www.troublefreepool.com

Safety glasses are a good idea with acid. But nothing else. If it gets on your skin, you have 1000's of gallons of water right there.
Please do not dilute it in a bucket. Just another step to spill it.

As I have a small pool, I do use a plastic measuring cup. With your pool, there is no need. Just lower the bottle down to the water, float it a bit, and slowly pour the acid directly in the water. You will likely need to add at least a quart each time. Guesstimate. With our fill water and typically elevated TA, pH will moderate quickly if you slightly over add.

Liquid chlorine, same thing.

 

[Copernicu]

Chemical Storage and Safety - Further Reading

www.troublefreepool.com

Safety glasses are a good idea with acid. But nothing else. If it gets on your skin, you have 1000's of gallons of water right there.
Please do not dilute it in a bucket. Just another step to spill it.

As I have a small pool, I do use a plastic measuring cup. With your pool, there is no need. Just lower the bottle down to the water, float it a bit, and slowly pour the acid directly in the water. You will likely need to add at least a quart each time. Guesstimate. With our fill water and typically elevated TA, pH will moderate quickly if you slightly over add.

Liquid chlorine, same thing.

Thank you!

 

[pjt]

Muriatic Acid scares the bejeezes out of me.

I also use the lower strength stuff. I know it’s more expensive and I don’t care. I am usually all about saving money and saving plastic, but not here. I go through about a gallon a year so the difference in cost is not going to break me. On the other hand, the full strength stuff scares me too...

www.troublefreepool.com

Adding Muriatic

Need 59oz of Muriatic Acid to my pool? Can I add it all at once? Does it need to be diluted or can I add directly from bottle?

www.troublefreepool.com

 

[Copernicu]

Muriatic Acid scares the bejeezes out of me.

I also use the lower strength stuff. I know it’s more expensive and I don’t care. I am usually all about saving money and saving plastic, but not here. I go through about a gallon a year so the difference in cost is not going to break me. On the other hand, the full strength stuff scares me too...

www.troublefreepool.com

Adding Muriatic

Need 59oz of Muriatic Acid to my pool? Can I add it all at once? Does it need to be diluted or can I add directly from bottle?

www.troublefreepool.com

Thank you. I appreciate the info.

 

[hexabc]

After reading some posts, I think I am going to switch from 14.5% to 31.45% muriatic acid. I found a video online that recommends wearing safety glasses and long rubber gloves, pouring the acid into a 5 gallon bucket with a 10:1 water/acid ratio, and then pouring the mixture into the pool.

I am wondering whether the video instructions are a good practice or overkill?

How do others here add strong muriatic acid? And do you do the same with liquid chlorine?

Thank you.

Any precautions you take when handling 31.5% hydrochloric acid (muriatic acid) are not too much. I don't think rubber gloves are overkill. Also, careful when pouring the acid - sniffing the fumes does not do any good to your lungs!

 

[Bperry]

Any precautions you take when handling 31.5% hydrochloric acid (muriatic acid) are not too much. I don't think rubber gloves are overkill. Also, careful when pouring the acid - sniffing the fumes does not do any good to your lungs

Nothing wrong with rubber gloves, but I’ve never found it a big deal if a little splashed on my arm. I just dip it in the pool water to wash it off. Lowering the container down into the water virtually eliminates splashing. The fumes can be bad, but haven’t found it difficult to avoid them.

 

[reggiehammond]

Nothing wrong with rubber gloves, but I’ve never found it a big deal if a little splashed on my arm. I just dip it in the pool water to wash it off. Lowering the container down into the water virtually eliminates splashing. The fumes can be bad, but haven’t found it difficult to avoid them.

I’ve never had an issue once I started just opening the MA jug next to pool, popping seal, and pouring in very close to pool surface. The Home Depot MA seals never peel off, so I have to push a finger into them every time. Just a quick dip in pool, and it’s gone, no issue.

The fumes being terrible are a feature, not a bug.
There’s no way, outdoors, that I can imagine your brain would allow your body to stay too close.

 

[Klutz14159]

I have some kickboards, and I that to keep my knees off concrete, and just pour into a 16oz cup, and then bend over and slowly pour the cup contends into the pool while kneeling on the kickboards over the returns. Muriatic Acid does bad Darn to myeyes and breathing passages, so I wear glasses and 3M carbon gas filter while messing with this stuff. Have never let it touch my skin wearing thick heavy rubber gloves.

 

[Bperry]

I have some kickboards, and I that to keep my knees off concrete, and just pour into a 16oz cup, and then bend over and slowly pour the cup contends into the pool while kneeling on the kickboards over the returns. Muriatic Acid does bad Darn to myeyes and breathing passages, so I wear glasses and 3M carbon gas filter while messing with this stuff. Have never let it touch my skin wearing thick heavy rubber gloves.

Like I mentioned above, the carbon filter can be a dangerous idea. Your nose telling your brain that there’s fumes around you will save your eyes. With your nose covered up, your eyes are vulnerable without you being aware of it.

 

[pjt]

just pour into a 16oz cup, and then bend over and slowly pour the cup contends into the pool

It's recommended to pour straight from the jug into the pool. It's safer that way since every time MA is handled, it increases the risk of a splash or spill. Pouring straight from the jug reduces the chance of skin or eye contact to almost nothing.

 

[Klutz14159]

@pjt How do you judge the amount of acid poured? I also find it a bit hard to handle a gallon jug of MA when it's full.

 

[pjt]

For 12 oz, I visualize a soda can.

A gallon is 128 oz, so 12 oz is around 1/10th of a jug. You don't need extreme precision. You can always add more MA or LC if needed.

You can rest the jug on the surface of the water and use its buoyancy to assist.

 

[reggiehammond]

@pjt How do you judge the amount of acid poured? I also find it a bit hard to handle a gallon jug of MA when it's full.

Accuracy isn't that important with acid additions. If you're at 8.0, and targeting 7.4 - a bit too much and you hit 7.2, too little 7.8. Neither are a problem and will be corrected with either time, or your next addition.

 

[sacredcow]

Everyone has a different comfort level with handling chemicals.

I've worked as an analytical chemist in water treatment since the late 1990s so I have a different work method than most. For my acid, which I usually add 12 oz at a time, I fill my graduated container with about 24 oz of pool water then add 12 oz acid to that and slowly pour the mixture close to the water's surface in front of a return. I can usually see the density striations as it mixes with the water and disperses.

Yes, I know that it's recommended to pour straight from the jug, but lab habits of aliquoting my reagents into more manageable volumes are hard to break. Plus, I keep my acid in a box well away from the pool and the house and I'd much prefer to carry a smaller volume of a weaker acid than an entire jug of 31.45 (which can and will split open if you drop it- been there, unfortunately).