Ultimate Pool Cleaning Chemicals Guide for Any Pool Type

Algaecides are specialised chemicals designed to combat and prevent algae growth. These microscopic plants will turn your pool green and make your pool steps slippery and unsafe.

Algaecides break down the cell walls of algae, making it easier for your pool’s filtration system to remove them.

In the big picture of pool cleanliness, algaecides act as a supportive player. Use them along with other chemicals for pool cleaning to maintain a completely healthy and clear pool.

Balancer chemicals adjust the acidity, alkalinity, stabiliser levels and hardness of pool water, enabling other chemicals for pool cleaning (like chlorine and algaecides) to function effectively. They also prevent damage to your pool and equipment.

Balancer chemicals include:

• Alkalinity increaser
• Calcium increaser
• pH decreaser
• pH increaser
• Stabilise

Alkalinity increasers raise pool water’s total alkalinity, creating a more stable pH environment when the alkalinity level is between 80-120ppm.

Calcium hardness increasers add calcium to your pool water, which is essential for preventing foamy water and protecting your pool equipment from corrosion and scaling. Most pools require between 250-500 ppm. This prevents the water from trying to leach it from elsewhere. Please note that a mineral pool will show high Hardness due to the way testing for total hardness is done.

pH increasers elevate low acidity levels to avoid swimmer skin irritation and damage to pool equipment. Meanwhile, pH decreasers lower high alkalinity, allowing chlorine to be more effective, deterring cloudy water and calcium deposits. The ideal pH level for most swimming pools is 7.2 to 7.6.

Clearly, well-balanced water helps you dodge a whole host of problems!

Chlorine sanitisers act as disinfectants, killing bacteria, viruses, and other microorganisms in pool water. They’re the primary line of defence in maintaining a clean and safe pool.

Swimming in unsanitised water can expose swimmers to various health risks like bacterial infections, viruses, skin and eye irritation, and ear infections.

Chlorine sanitisers are available in tablet, granular, and liquid form.

Chlorine levels are typically kept between 1-3 ppm.

Is your pool cloudy? Cloudy water can result from poor filtration, imbalanced water chemistry, or fine particles and contaminants your pool filter can’t catch.

If it’s the latter, you need pool clarifiers. Clarifiers work by clumping tiny, hard-to-filter particles into larger ones, making it easier for your pool’s filtration system to remove them.

Flocculents perform a very similar function to clarifiers but are more effective when your pool water is very cloudy. Flocculent particles are bigger and heavier than clarifier particles and as a result they do not get filtered through the filter system, but instead sink to the pool floor where they need to be vacuumed to waste.
Whether you are using clarifiers or flocculents, your cloudy water will transform into crystal-clear water in no time!

Chlorine sanitisers act as disinfectants, killing bacteria, viruses, and other microorganisms in pool water. They’re the primary line of defence in maintaining a clean and safe pool.

Swimming in unsanitised water can expose swimmers to various health risks like bacterial infections, viruses, skin and eye irritation, and ear infections.

Chlorine sanitisers are available in tablet, granular, and liquid form.

Chlorine levels are typically kept between 1-3 ppm.

Shock treatment for chlorine pools rapidly elevates chlorine levels to break down organic waste, bacteria, and algae.
Shocking your pool also removes chloramines. Chloramines are formed when free chlorine is used up and becomes combined chlorine. When chloramines build up, your pool has a strong “chlorine” smell and your free chlorine is not as effective.

You might need to shock your pool after heavy usage, a storm, or when you notice algae or cloudy water. Shock treatment is your go-to for heavy-duty cleaning, hitting the reset button on water quality.

Stabiliser, usually made from cyanuric acid, protects chlorine from quickly degrading by sunlight. It acts as a shield, making chlorine last longer in your pool. Without a stabiliser, your pool would require more frequent chlorine doses, costing you time and money.

Using a stabiliser helps chlorine remain effective longer for a cleaner, healthier pool.
Hy-Clor offers stabiliser in tablet or granular options

Stabliser/Cyanuric acid levels are typically best kept between 30-60 PPM.

Don’t take chances with your pool’s chemistry. For water that’s always safe and clean to enjoy, trust our comprehensive range of superior pool chemicals. We have all the chemicals for pool cleaning you need, whether you have a spa or a chlorine or saltwater pool.

Take the guesswork out of pool maintenance by switching to Hy-Clor pool supplies today!

Contact us via our online form or visit your nearest Bunnings Warehouse for our full range of products.

For more information on what pool chemicals do and how to use them, read our Pool Chemical Guide.