Swimming pool cleaning is one of the most significant responsibilities of owning a pool. It can be much work if you don’t have the expertise to do it right.
There are several steps to follow when cleaning and maintaining your pool. Pool Maintenance is an essential part of owning a pool.
You don’t need to go to extreme measures to maintain your pool well, but it’s imperative to keep it clean to ensure safe swimming conditions.
A small amount of bleach may be enough for a small pool, but the amount of bleach you need for pools greater than 15,000 gallons will vary.
If you want to keep your pool clean, it’s vital to use the right amount of bleach. Improper usage can expose you, your family, and your friends to the dangers of public health.
Your pool water is filled with a lot of bacteria and algae. When you use the wrong amount of bleach, it can cause skin burns, eye injuries, and more.
Table of Contents
How Much Bleach for a 15,000 Gallon Pool?
You need almost 30 ounces of bleach for a 15,000-gallon pool. If you have an above-ground swimming pool 20 feet wide, it takes about 12 ounces of bleach to keep the water clean and clear.
This means that you need a lot less than 30 ounces if the size of your pool isn’t very large or more significant than 15,000 gallons.
If you have a large above-ground pool that is 20 feet wide and 15,000 gallons in size, then 12 ounces of bleach is the amount you need to use for every 5,500-gallon pool.
Moreover, the bleach you need to use for the pool depends on how often you will be using it.
When bleaching a swimming pool, make sure that you don’t add too much chlorine. It can damage your vinyl liner and concrete coping of the pool, so only follow directions as stated above.
What is bleach?
Bleach is a colorless chemical compound. It’s available in different forms with varying concentrations, which you can use to clean your pool or even disinfect and de-chlorinate it.
The most common bleach is sodium hypochlorite, a type of chlorine. It’s not recommended to use it for cleaning your pool because you can’t always control how much you pour into the water.
This might be dangerous for your family when misused.
It’s essential to keep bleach away from children and pets when you clean the pool because it can irritate skin, eyes, and mucus membranes.
When you use bleach for the first time, it’s recommended that you use a chlorine or bromine formula. This is because they have different effects on your pool and algae growth.
It can take at least three to five days before bleaching your pool entirely and rinsing it with water for the chlorine to be wholly rinsed from your pool.
You can always opt for a chemical-free alternative if you don’t feel like using bleach. This may not work as effectively and lead to other problems.
What does bleach do?
It’s a common misconception that bleach kills all the bacteria and algae in your pool.
This is not true; however, bleach can be used as an effective disinfectant, but it doesn’t kill everything left behind by the previous users of your pool, even if they were using chlorine or saltwater shock treatments to kill algae and bacteria.
After you clean your pool with bleach, it’s recommended that you pour in some chlorine or bromine formula.
So that the chlorine and bromine can penetrate through all of the dirt on top of your swimming pool walls.
Chloramine is another type of chlorine added to your pool when professional swimming pool service experts maintain it.
However, this type of chlorine isn’t potent and doesn’t work as effectively.
Why use Bleach for Pool Cleaning?
Bleach is a popular choice for pool owners because it’s inexpensive, simple to use, and effective. It can also be used in conjunction with other cleaners. This includes bromine or chlorine products available at your local hardware store.
When you clean the swimming pool using bleach, it’ll help remove old dirt and other stains from your swimming pool walls.
It will also help kill any algae or bacteria present in the water. This makes it easier for you and your kids to enjoy time at the pool without worrying about getting sick after a swim.
It’s important to note that bleach only works when you pour it into the pool and let it sit there for a bit before swimming.
This will ensure that bacteria or algae are dispersed throughout your swimming pool.
How To Use Bleach?
There are a few different ways to use bleach.
Most people who want to know how long they should wait between cleaning their pool with bleach will pour 1-3 tablespoons of the solution into the pool, let it sit for 20 minutes, and then swim.
You can leave this mixture in your swimming pool for a couple of hours, but you’ll want to be sure and stir it up so that the chlorine particles within the water aren’t suspended in one spot and will kill any algae or bacteria present.
Some people prefer to use bleach as a part of their regular maintenance plan when cleaning their pool. They’ll pour the bleach into a bucket or another container and then dip a garden hose in it to ensure they don’t have any chlorine leftover.
After this is done, they’ll pour the chlorine into their swimming pool and then swim. The other benefit of doing this is that it will sanitize your water heater as well!
How much does bleach cost?
The cost of bleach will vary from one store to the next, but typically you’ll find that 1-3 gallons of cleaning solution can range in price somewhere between $15 and $35.
The more products like pool chlorine generator kits work with it, the more they can save you money in the long run.
If you’re starting to get a few algae in your pool, the simple fact is that it’s going to cost you money.
If this has been happening for too long, and if there isn’t anything else wrong with the pool, like high levels of chemicals or debris from leaves floating around, you may want to consider purchasing a pool chlorine generator kit.
Benefits of using bleach in your pool
Costs less:
If you’re looking to save money while still keeping the pool clean, there’s no better option than using bleach in your pool.
You may not be able to get rid of all those little free-swimming bacteria in a short amount of time, but with bleach, you can cut down on the free-swimming bacteria and keep your pool clean for much longer than it would if you were to use chlorine alone.
Keeps you sanitary:
If there’s one thing that everyone hates, it has dirty hands. If you’ve been using any pool chemicals or have had many people swimming in your water, it’s no secret that they’re going to leave behind chlorine and other chemicals on their hands.
You can’t put your whole family through the experience of getting into a substantial smelling crystal clear pool only to have a bunch of germs and bacteria floating around your water.
Helps prevent algae:
As long as there’s chlorine, there’s also a chance you could have some algae growing in your pool.
This is just because free-swimming bacteria will start eating away at all of the oxidizing agents and other chemicals in your water if they’re left unchecked.
By using bleach regularly, you can keep these free-swimming bacteria at bay and prevent your water from turning green.
Prevents free-swimming bacteria:
So, you’ve got a pool full of algae, and it’s just making everything look terrible. What can you do to prevent the situation from getting any worse? Well, using bleach will get rid of all chlorine in your water that’s sitting there waiting for algae to turn it green.
This will prevent free-swimming bacteria from growing again, and you’ll never have to worry about getting a bunch of different types floating around your pool water again!
Helps you keep your pool water clear:
With chlorine, the main problem is that it only keeps free-swimming bacteria and other chemicals in check.
To get the best results when using this chemical, there needs to be a lot of oxidizing agents in your water. They can eliminate the free-swimming bacteria and other chemicals.
By using bleach as a part of your pool’s water conditioner, you can keep a lot more oxidizing agents in your water because it will be able to kill off most of those same free-swimming bacteria all by itself.
Final Thougths
Bleach is a great way to keep your pool water clean and clear. It can kill off most free-swimming bacteria, which means you won’t have to use as much chlorine.
If you are going to be using bleach regularly, make sure that you don’t exceed the recommended amount, and you can also bleach your pool for 2 or 3 days if necessary!
