Just updating this thread for 2021. I ran out of liquid chlorine so I raided the laundry room and found some of this Target Up & Up bleach without a concentration on the label. I called the 800 number and they told me it's 6% sodium hypochlorite.
That particular bottle is no longer sold but a comparable bottle is at my local store for $3.99. That's 55¢/fl oz of NaClO. And even the ones that don't say Fabric Protection still have some sodium hydroxide and "surfactant blend."
By contrast, my pool store sells BioGuard 10% chlorinating liquid, $5.50/gallon. That's 43¢/fl oz of NaClO. Raising my pool to SLAM level costs roughly $11 with Target bleach or $8.59 with the good stuff. That's not a huge difference for one use but it's 28% more, which will add up over the course of the summer.
EDIT for those who care about the chemistry: my math is wrong. I assumed a simple linear relationship, where a 6% bleach solution has 60% as much "chlorinating power" as a 10% liquid. But this isn't how it works. You can follow this thread if you want to learn more. The outcome is still roughly the same though: using adjusted figures, the Target bleach is 25% more expensive (not 28%).
That particular bottle is no longer sold but a comparable bottle is at my local store for $3.99. That's 55¢/fl oz of NaClO. And even the ones that don't say Fabric Protection still have some sodium hydroxide and "surfactant blend."
By contrast, my pool store sells BioGuard 10% chlorinating liquid, $5.50/gallon. That's 43¢/fl oz of NaClO. Raising my pool to SLAM level costs roughly $11 with Target bleach or $8.59 with the good stuff. That's not a huge difference for one use but it's 28% more, which will add up over the course of the summer.
EDIT for those who care about the chemistry: my math is wrong. I assumed a simple linear relationship, where a 6% bleach solution has 60% as much "chlorinating power" as a 10% liquid. But this isn't how it works. You can follow this thread if you want to learn more. The outcome is still roughly the same though: using adjusted figures, the Target bleach is 25% more expensive (not 28%).
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