The Effects of Sun and Heat on Your Pool: Chlorine Demand
It’s sunny, and it’s hot. These two things together are great for summertime swimming, but there are some things you need to know when it comes to your pool and chlorine demand.
In this article, we look at the effects of sun and heat on your pool. It’s important to watch your pool during our hot, cloudless days as you can bet your chlorine levels are having a hard time staying level. Your pool simply uses more chlorine on hot days.
What’s more, the sun can make your pool water cloudy. This means you need one of our filter cleaning services or a sand filter change.
First, let’s look at the benefits of chlorine.
Chlorine is Beneficial
You might know that chlorine is good for your pool because it kills bacteria and algae. Green and cloudy water that no one wants to swim in are the results of low chlorine levels.
Adding chlorine and keeping it at the appropriate levels are key to optimal pool performance.
Sometimes, though, the bright sun and summertime heat wreak havoc on a pool. Know what your levels should and make sure to keep them there for the best pool water.
Chlorine Demand is a Problem
When your pool struggles to maintain its chlorine levels, you’ve run into chlorine demand which is the consistent inability of your pool to maintain proper levels.
Chlorine demand is often caused by a high level of inorganic and organic contaminants in your water. Chlorine must work overtime to oxidize them, so this leaves little chlorine in the water to protect your swimmers.
To get proper chlorine levels back, you must remove the contaminants.
Chlorine demand is also caused by hot temperature and sunlight, so let’s examine those issues.
Hot Weather
Indirectly, the high summer temperatures can cause chlorine loss because bacteria usually grow better in warmer water.
As the bacteria multiple, your chlorine ramps up to kill it. The result? You lose free chlorine.
In the heat of the summer, consider adding twice as much chlorine to your pool so you maintain an adequate level.
Sunlight
As the sun’s ultraviolet rays hit your pool, chlorine is released into the air causing chlorine loss. On the brightest of days, you may even lose up to 90% of your pool’s chlorination in just a few hours.
You want to maintain your stabilizers and chlorine daily to avoid this problem.
Fighting Chlorine Demand
Feel free to bring us a sample of your pool water. We can test your water and provide a computer-generated analysis, to determine the extent of your demand.
One of the best products to fight chlorine loss is Burnout 73. You can shop for it online and pick up in store!
We also offer a complete pool service with expert technicians who are happy to help! We carry BioGuard pool products! Contact us today for the best pool chemicals in Little Rock!
