How To Lower Alkalinity In Pool Naturally

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Swimming pools are easy to maintain but they involve so much more than just cleaning.

So here in this post, I will share what I know on how to lower the alkalinity in a pool naturally to keep it safe.

See, one thing that is very important when maintaining or keeping the swimming pool clean is the chemical composition of the water.

You have a combination of many chemicals that help eliminate debris in the pool.

HOW TO LOWER ALKALINITY IN POOL NATURALLY

One example of these chemicals is an algaecide, which obviously, removes the algae inside the swimming pool.

There are also some other chemicals that remove certain types of debris.

Alkaline is the buffering system within the pool’s chemical reactions so that the acidity in the water is neutralized.

This will still remove the dirt and debris but it can be harmful to the users if the pool is too acidic.

See, when you put too many acidic chemicals into the water, they will get the job done by removing the debris.

However, they can also damage the pool by creating scales on the side.

If you have seen your pool with the white stone-like stuff on the sides, it can be a sign that the alkalinity is too high.

That is why you need to balance the acidic and alkaline chemical composition in the pool and keep it safe for swimming.

Aside from that, your body can have reactions when you expose yourself to too much alkalinity. It can cause skin and eye irritation making the swimming pool virtually impossible to swim in.

Keeping the pool clean or maintaining it also means that you not only clean it but also keep it safe for the swimmers as well.

This will give you a better pool in terms of cleanliness in the long run.

So if you are experiencing this or if your pool is showing some signs that lead to high alkalinity, then you can follow this post and read on as we tell you what the best solution is for that.

Table of Contents

Purely Natural Process Of Lowering Alkalinity

If you have all the time that is needed, you can wait it out and the alkalinity of the water will naturally go down.

That is the most natural way to make it go lower without using anything at all.

See, acidic materials have the tendency to evaporate faster than the water in the pool.

So when they are exposed to open air, you can be sure that they will eventually go away from the water.

The alkaline chemicals in the swimming pool are meant to balance the pH levels in the water.

However, they do this in a very slow process before they can actually get to the right balance.

It is also harmful to the pool and the swimmers if the pH levels changed abruptly and frequently.

That is why alkaline chemicals are responsible for preventing the pH from changing too quickly.

With that said, waiting out for the alkalinity to go down will take a very long time, usually days.

Now, if you want to swim right away, you cannot wait for that long before you enjoy the pool.

So the process of waiting out the alkalinity may be the most natural way to do it but it is not the most viable option for most people.

But do not worry as there are other ways to do that.

What Causes High Pool Alkalinity?

There is no clear reason for high alkalinity that can generalize the cause of this situation.

However, the most common reason is the lack of control when adding chemicals. Too much exposure to chemicals such as sodium bicarbonate can cause high alkalinity.

This is also caused by the user when they are putting the chemicals into the water making it unsafe.

In order to keep this from happening, you need to slowly put the chemicals in the pool and increase them in small increments so as to have more control over the amount of the chemical.

You should also constantly check the water, usually every after 24 hours in order to make sure that the level of alkalinity has reached the balance that the water and the pH in it need.

Another reason for high alkalinity in the water of the swimming pool is the source of the water itself.

You need to check the details about the water source to know how much alkaline it needs.

All water distributor companies are required to release statements about the curing or the process they do in order to clean the water.

Check that before putting any chemical in it.

This can also affect other components of the water in the pool so you need to call your supplier and they should tell you because they are required to disclose their processes and tests.

How To Lower The Alkalinity In The Pool?

The process of lowering the alkalinity in the water is pretty easy but you need to consider what you want to attain.

Depending on that, you will need to change the process of lowering the alkalinity.

One example of that is when you want to lower the water’s alkalinity but you do not want the pH level to go lower.

That is a tricky thing to do but it can be done with proper tools and processes.

However, in this step-by-step guide, we will just be talking about the process of how you can naturally lower the alkalinity in the water without worrying about the other chemicals.

First, Test The Water

If you just see signs on the pool about high alkalinity, do not be too quick to try and lower it.

Be sure that the alkalinity is the problem by testing the water in the pool with a simple test kit.
First, you need the pool pump to stop distributing the chemicals into the water.
Turn off the pool pump and then set the test kit on a bright area to see all the colors as accurately as possible.

Then, get water from the surface of the swimming pool.

From there, you can use the water to test the alkalinity by putting the reagents into the sample and wait for a little bit for them to work.

Follow the directions on the product to see how you can read the alkalinity in the water, based on the test. The Total Alkaline (TA) should be always between 80 to 120 parts per million.

If the alkalinity goes over the 120 ppm mark, then you should start with the process of lowering the alkalinity.

Get your materials ready and then start by putting the right chemical in the pool.

How to lower alkalinity in pool Naturally

If you want to lower the alkalinity in the pool naturally then this natural aeration is highly recommended to lower the alkalinity.

This is a process of preventing any unnatural speeding up of the process with the help of other tools in the pool.

Such tools are skimmer jets, spa jets, air compressors, return jets, fountains, waterfalls, and other pieces of equipment that help in speeding up the process of lowering the alkalinity.

If you let the water aerate naturally, the pH level will have a better chance of climbing up once again if it went lower after adding the acid.

That is why it is important to let the process go naturally.

From there, you can test the alkalinity once again after 6 hours.

How To Lower Alkalinity In Pool without lowering pH?

Alkalinity and pH are kind of very similar but it is different and you need to understand it correctly to balance the pool pH.

pH is the measurement of how acidic the water is in your swimming pool. It is tested on a scale of 1 to 14 with 7 to 7.6 being the safest reading to say that the pH level is balanced.

Alkalinity is the measurement of the concentration of all the alkaline substances in the water. A pH above 8 means water is alkaline.

This is measured in parts per million which also affects the pH level if it went lower.

In order to reach the right balance of pH levels in the pool after adding acids to it, you need to keep the pool naturally aerated.

If you want to speed up the process, then you can use the pool pump and other pieces of equipment such as air compressors to make the chemicals mix faster within the water.

You can also add soda ash to the water if the pH levels refuse to go up after two days.

Then, start circulating the water once again to mix it all evenly within the pool’s water.

Is High Alkalinity in Pool Dangerous

It is not dangerous to swim in a pool with high alkalinity. On the other hand it is extremely dangerous if you swim in a pool that is highly acidic.

Increased alkalinity only means that the free chlorine concentration in the pool water is less and hence the pool tends to get cloudy and dirty easily.

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Lowering The Alkalinity With Muriatic Acid

If the Alkalinity is too high, then it is most likely that the acidic levels are too low to kill the germs and bacteria in the water.

So what you do is add more acidic chemicals to the pool’s water. Muriatic is usually a component in household products.

But in this case, you need muriatic acid that is higher in concentration hence you cannot use household products containing it.

Most household products are not acidic enough to be used in my opinion, if you have tried any household products that worked then leave them in the comments below!

Vinegar is a weak acid, hence vinegar cannot be effective to lower the alkalinity of the pool. Vinegar is useless in this case, so just avoid using it.

Turn the pool pump off and wait for about an hour to make sure that the water has stopped moving.

Get your muriatic acid ready and a small bucket to mix the chemicals in.

Read the directions on the bottle to make sure that you add the right amount of acid into the water.

The goal is to reach the alkalinity of 120 but it is safe to play around 100 to be sure.

By still referring to the instructions on your muriatic acid bottle, dilute the acid just to be safe before adding it to the water.

Or if the muriatic acid is already diluted, then pour it into the pool.

Remember to put small amounts at first in order to not overdo the process.

Go with small increments when adding the acid to the water so you have the best control over the levels.

Let Sit Then Circulate

Once you put the muriatic acid into the pool, make sure that you let it sit in the water first.

Allow it to settle for about an hour at the deepest part of the swimming pool under the open air.
After one hour, open the pool pump to circulate the muriatic acid in the water.
Run the pool pump for at least 5 hours or until the water return has been attained once or twice.

After that, test the water once more to see if you have achieved the right level of alkalinity.

Then, test the pH levels in the water as well to make sure that they did not go too low after adding the acid.

The alkalinity of the water usually affects the pH levels directly.

That is why you have a second job to do and that is testing the pH levels if they are still within the safe level for the pool.

Conclusion

Too high alkalinity in the water can cause problems such as scaling on the pool liner.

This is a common problem that not only makes the pool ugly but also can be unsafe for swimmers.

Too high alkalinity means that other microorganisms can proliferate within the water.

You need to reduce the amount of that product in order to make the water crystal clear at all times.

Microorganisms can harm the pool liner when they build up.

They are also the main causes of diseases and irritations that you get from the murky water in the swimming pool you are in.

So if you want to lower the alkalinity in the water, then you should follow the instructions above.

They will help you in doing what you want without actually using up energy from other tools.

Natural aeration is important and you should always keep that in mind.

It not only helps in lowering the alkalinity of the water but also keeps the pH levels balanced.

Make sure to use the pool pump just to mix the chemicals but do not overdo it.

Use it only if the pH levels refuse to rise and your pool will be as clean as ever!

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