As a pool or hot tub owner, you get to be the party house all year long as friends and family join you for fun in the sun or spa relaxation in the evening. The chance to own a pool or hot tub comes with many benefits, but there are also certain things you need to do to maintain cleanliness.
Not sure where to start with swimming pool chemicals and supplies? Check out our pool and hot tub maintenance guide to learn the best pool and hot tub chemicals for your needs.
Why Your Pool Needs Chemicals
Before we get into pool maintenance, we want to explain why it’s so vital to the upkeep of your pool or hot tub. Your pool may have been originally filled with fresh, clean water, but that water quickly becomes contaminated. Natural elements like leaves, twigs, and dirt may fall into the pool, and human bodies leave behind body oil, skin particles, hair, and more. Sounds pretty gross, right?
Luckily, pool chemicals work to sanitize the water so you don’t have to drain the pool every time you use it. The right pool chemicals will be balanced in pH, alkalinity, and calcium hardness.
Best Pool & Hot Tub Chemicals
Now that you know why chemicals are so important, let’s talk about the best pool and hot tub chemicals. Here are your options, and what you need to know about them:
- Stabilized chlorine. One of the most popular forms of pool chemical, stabilized chlorine is necessary for outdoor pools. This keeps the sun from burning off the chlorine, sot that it remains in the water 3-5 times longer than unstabilized chlorine.
- Unstabilized chlorine. If you have an indoor pool, unstabilized chlorine may be right for you. This chlorine is susceptible to the sun’s rays, but you won’t need to worry about that if your pool is inside.
- Bromine. This chemical remains active longer than chlorine, but it also creates waste products called bromamines, slightly reducing the effectiveness. Bromine is commonly used in hot tubs more than pools, because it is more stable in warmer temperatures.
- Biguanide. A chlorine-free sanitizer originally used as surgical disinfectant, this chemical is easy for the filter to grab, is gentler on skin, and doesn’t degrade in the sun. But it is also more expensive, not as effective, and can cloud your pool water.
- Minerals. Pool mineral systems utilize metals like silver and copper to sanitize pool water. They’re usually not meant to be used on their own, but can be a supplement to chlorine.
Get Your Pool Chemicals Today
Make it easier on yourself to keep your pool and spa in tip-top shape. Get SpaGuard and BioGuard pool chemicals today from Aqua Rec’s Fireside Hearth N’ Home.