Swimming Pool Shocking: Salt Water Needs and Safety Precautions

In parts one and two of this multi-part blog series, we’ve gone over some of the various tips and steps for shocking your swimming pool. Referring to a process where you add chlorine or another chemical to sanitize your pool’s water, pool shocking is an important need for many pools that helps keep them clean and healthy at all times.

At Packman’s Pools, we’re here to not only provide fantastic swimming pool design and swimming pool construction services, but also to assist our clients with basic forms of care and maintenance for their pools. In today’s final entry into our series, we’ll go over some basic safety tips to ensure you’re following while shocking your pool, plus a quick word on shocking the pool if you have a salt water pool instead of a freshwater pool.

swimming pool shocking salt safety

Salt Water Shocking

If you own a salt chlorinator or any other form of salt water pool system, you may be wondering whether you still have to shock your pool. The simple answer: Yes, you do.

This is because these pools still use chlorine in the same way a standard pool does. The salt just acts as an electrolyte, letting you use less chlorine than would otherwise be needed to produce the same level of sanitation. Salt water systems are generally considered better for your health and also easier on your pool’s equipment, but it still needs the chlorine shock once every so often in order to keep things stable.

Safety Precautions to Take When Shocking Your Pool

Because you’ll be dealing with concentrated chemicals and your pool’s filter system, there are several safety precautions to take when shocking your pool.

First, make sure no one is in the pool. Even if it isn’t full, you don’t want anyone falling in while using dangerous chemicals. Next, close off all of your equipment. This includes the skimmer(s), any return lines that go back into your pool, and the pool pump. You’ll also want to close the filter system’s valves.

If you’re using chlorine to shock your pool, add it to the skimmer and let it circulate for at least four hours before returning the equipment to service. If you’re using another form of sanitizer, follow the manufacturer’s instructions. You should always be wearing both protective gloves and goggles when shocking your pool.

Finally, keep an eye on the water color and clarity. If it becomes cloudy or murky after shocking, you may need to repeat the process. Similarly, if the water is still a green-ish color after shocking, it may mean that the chlorine or sanitizer you’re using isn’t strong enough. In this case, you’ll need to increase the dosage and shock your pool again.

If you have any questions about pool shocking or any other aspect of pool care, don’t hesitate to contact us here at Packman’s Pools.