Sodium carbonate helps stabilize the pH of pool water.
Sodium bicarbonate, more commonly known as baking soda, can help correct slightly acidic pool water. pH, which stands for potentiometric hydrogen ion concentration, provides an index of how acidic or basic a solution is. The scale ranges from 0 to 12, with acidic solutions having a low pH and basic solutions having a high pH. Proper pool maintenance requires balancing the pH levels of the water, to within a normal range.
Purpose
Pool water with a pH of between 7.4 and 7.6 is considered normal, being slightly basic. As water pH goes below 7, a number of problems can arise. Acids slowly dissolve metals in the water, which can result in stains on pool walls. In addition, plaster walls quickly become damaged, as this material is fairly soft. Chlorine, which is used to kill harmful bacteria, dissolves rapidly in acidic water, requiring more frequent chlorination. Pool equipment, such as pumps, fittings and heaters, become damaged more quickly in acidic water.
Process
Water, which is slightly acidic, can reach a desirable pH through the addition of two pounds of sodium carbonate per 10,000 gallons of water. It may be ideal to mix half of this amount in the pool at first, to make sure that the pH of the water does not become too basic. After adding the baking soda, retest the water to determine if you have added enough to stabilize the water.
Alternatives
While sodium carbonate may make an inexpensive alternative to commercial pool cleaners, a large amount of the material is required to stabilize pH. In addition, if the pH of a swimming pool falls below 7, more effective alternatives exist. Borax, often located in the cleaning supply aisle of a grocery store, acts as a better pH buffer than sodium carbonate. In addition, this material increases pH rapidly with smaller amounts.The pH of bleach is around 12.5, making it slightly more basic than sodium carbonate, which has a pH of around 11.5. Some professionals use inexpensive bleach, as an alternative to more expensive pH balancers.
Considerations
While sodium carbonate can be used to change the pH of pool water, better alternatives exist. One of the problems with using baking soda is that it breaks down faster than artificial compounds, such as Borax and bleach. An advantage of using sodium carbonate is that the pH of the water can be changed gradually, and this material offers very few risks to human health.
Warning
Whatever materials are added to decrease the acidity of pool water, make sure to add them slowly. Making pool water too basic requires additional chemicals to fix, or the pool owner will have to wait a couple weeks for the water to return to normal. Never mix chemical compounds with each other to try to create pool water stabilizers. While alkaline (basic) water is less harmful than acidic water, chlorine does not work as effectively and pool filters have to work harder.
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