What is pool cyanuric acid and how do I use it?
Below, you’ll find a Pool Cyanuric Acid Calculator to help you determine the proper dosage for your pool. Cyanuric acid (CYA), sometimes referred to as stabilizer or conditioner, protects your Free Chlorine (FC) from being consumed by sunlight. CYA sort of acts like an umbrella or sunscreen for your Free Chlorine.
How much cyanuric acid should I add to my chlorine?
And if you keep your CYA at around 50 ppm, you’ll need to make sure you keep your free chlorine at around 3 ppm to help them work together optimally. Cyanuric acid is an effective chemical many pool owners use in order to keep their chlorine functioning as it should. But it’s important to know how and when to use it.
What is the difference between CYA and free chlorine?
CYA sort of acts like an umbrella or sunscreen for your Free Chlorine. Without CYA your pool will not hold chlorine and will consequently turn green with algae. On the other hand, if your pool has too much CYA, your Free Chlorine will not be effective and can also cause a green pool.
What is a normal CYA level for chlorine?
For every 10ppm of chlorine using Dichlor, your CYA will increase by 9ppm. For every 10ppm chlorine using Trichlor tabs your CYA will increase by 6ppm. Your Chlorine should be at least 7.5% of your CYA level and the normal CYA range is 30 - 50ppm.
See more
Does chlorine contain cyanuric acid?
Some solid forms of chlorine contain cyanuric acid or it can be added as a supplement. Trichlor and dichlor are two solid forms (tablet, briquette, powder, etc.) of chlorine that are commonly used. Check your disinfectant labels to know if you are using one of these forms of chlorine.
What chlorine has no cyanuric acid?
Non-stabilized chlorine types. These five types of chlorine contain no cyanuric acid: Liquid chlorine, cal hypo, lithium hypo, salt-generated chlorine, and chlorine gas.
Will adding chlorine lower cyanuric acid?
As you add stabilized chlorine to your water, the levels of cyanuric acid can build up over time, even as the chlorine levels fluctuate up and down. That's because as water evaporates from the swimming pool, cyanuric acid remains in the water.
What is normal cyanuric acid in pool?
between 30 and 50 ppmThe ideal range for cyanuric acid is between 30 and 50 ppm. Too little CYA and your chlorine will break down under the sun's UV rays.
Does shock raise cyanuric acid?
Shock does not contain any cyanuric acid, so after 24 hours, the elevated amounts of chlorine are no longer in the pool. as 90 percent of the chlorine in the water in two hours.
What pool shock does not raise cyanuric acid?
Step 2. Cal-hypo is the most popular shock used as well as the strongest shock available. Cal-hypo is a quick dissolving, unstabilized shock which means that the sun's uv rays will burn it off quickly and it will not increase the cyanuric acid level in the swimming pool.
How do you chlorinate a pool without raising CYA?
Non-Stabilized Chlorine Options to Trichlor TabletsLiquid Chlorine. Regular bleach, or sodium hypochlorite – contains no cyanuric acid. ... Salt Chlorinator. Salt Chlorinators, aka salt chlorine generator will create most of the chlorine needed for your pool. ... Cal Hypo Tablets. ... Go Low Chlorine. ... Go Tablet Free.
What level of cyanuric acid is too high?
What happens when CYA in a pool is too high? – CYA Levels exceeding a threshold of 70 parts-per-million of cyanuric acid can reduce the effectiveness of the chlorine in a pool. The amount of time it takes to kill bacteria lengthens as the concentration of CYA increases. The ideal level for CYA is 30-50 ppm.
What makes cyanuric acid High in pool?
The main reason for high CYA levels in your pool is from using too much stabilized chlorine. When the pool water evaporates, CYA remains in the water, much like other chemicals such as salt and calcium. As an example, 1 lb. of trichlor in a 10,000 gallon pool will raise the CYA level by 6 ppm.
Will cyanuric acid lower over time?
Over time, with the reduction of water (through evaporation and splashing) and topping up of water in your pool, the CYA levels should reduce. Or as mentioned above, for a quicker reduction in stabilizer levels, drain some of the pool water.
How do I lower CYA in pool without draining?
Lowering Your CYA Without DrainingAdjust Your Chemicals Levels. pH levels to 7.0. ... Clean Your Pool. Before beginning this process, ensure the pool is free of heavy debris. ... Test Your CYA Level. ... Prepare Your Filter. ... Add The Aluminum Sulfate. ... Set Your Timer And Relax. ... Vacuum. ... Retest Your Pool.
Can high cyanuric acid cause cloudy water?
Too much chlorine stabilizer such as cyanuric acid can actually result in a cloudy pool and increase your pool's susceptibility to algae. I high pH level can also result in cloudy pool water. This is because a high pH results in ineffective chlorine.
Can you buy chlorine tablets without cyanuric acid?
Description. poolife Exclusive Pool Care Collection NST is an alternative to 3" tablets and does not contain cyanuric acid. Perfect for use in a skimmer, this product will destroy bacteria and organic contaminants without over-stabilizing your pool water or adding additional cyanuric acid to your water.
What chlorine has no stabilizer?
Normal Granular Chlorine It simply means it does not contain Stabiliser (cyanuric acid) or UV Blockout as it is commonly known.
Do all chlorine tablets have CYA?
The biggest difference is that they're either stabilized chlorinating tablets or unstabilized: Stabilized tablets contain Cyanuric Acid (CYA). This protects the chlorine from dissipating in sunlight, but can also be a problem if the stabilizer level becomes too high.
Do all chlorine tablets have stabilizer?
Unstabilized Chlorine Tablets Calcium hypochlorite is the most common unstabilized tablet on the market. You can still use them in an outdoor pool, but you'll have to add cyanuric acid to the water to protect the unstabilized chlorine.
What pH should chlorine be?
The pH scale ranges from 0-14, where 7 is considered neutral. Ideally, it is recommended to keep your pH around 7.4, the same as the pH in the human eye. This also gives chlorine good disinfecting power.
How long does it take for chlorine to be lost in a pool?
It has been stated that 90% of unprotected chlorine is lost within two hours by direct exposure to sunlight.
What is the smell of a sanitized pool?
A properly sanitized pool will not have a strong chemical smell. The strong smell common to many pools, especially public pools, is chloramines. Chloramines are what’s left once chlorine interacts with all the contaminants (i.e. germs, bacteria, soap, dirt, etc.) in the pool.
Why does my pool water have a red stinging smell?
According to the CDC, “ Chloramines in the water, like dichloramine and trichloramine, irritate skin, eyes, and the respiratory tract…. ” As mentioned earlier, chloramines are the byproducts formed when chlorine interacts with all the nasties in your pool water. For red, stinging eyes, the culprit is typically urine.
What is a CC level?
Chloramines are what we refer to as combined chlorine (CC). The CC levels are chlorine that no longer has disinfecting power. Essentially, it is useless. Total chlorine (TC) is simply your FC plus your CC. Your TC should not be less than the FC level.
What does FC mean in pool?
Free chlorine (FC) shows the level of disinfecting chlorine available to sanitize your pool. FC is the part of the chlorinated water that hasn’t interacted with contaminants, yet.
What is 7.5% of 30 ppm?
For example, if your pool started with 30 ppm of CYA, then 7.5% of 30 ppm is 2.25pm of FC. As your CYA increases, higher levels of FC are needed in order to prevent algal growth. Below is a chart we pulled from TroublefreePool.Com showing the recommended relation for outdoor residential pools.
What happens when chlorine is bound to CYA?
What happened here is simple: chlorine has bound to CYA, which creates isocyanurates (represented by the blue line, Cl-CYA on the chart). The yellow line is a combination of all the chlorine that is not bound to CYA. As you can see, the vast majority of chlorine is bound to CYA at 30 ppm.
How to determine chlorine strength?
Let's look at a chart many of us are familiar with, showing the strength of chlorine being determined by pH. The lower the pH, the higher the percentage of strong chlorine, Hypochlorous Acid (HOCl). The higher the pH, the lower that percentage, as HOCl is in equilibrium with the much weaker form of chlorine, the Hypochlorite Ion (OCl - ). These charts were recreated and borrowed from Richard Falk's white paper about chlorine and CYA. The information originally comes from a study done in 1974 by J. O'Brien et.al., cited at the end of this article. 1 You can view the full set of charts in our image gallery for this article.
What is the pH of a pool?
Second, in the presence of CYA, most chlorine has to detach prior to sanitizing or oxidizing, which increases contact time (CT). Since swimming pool pH should [normally] range between 7.2 to 8.2, as you can see, there is almost no difference in HOCl percentage between 7.0 and 9.0 pH. That bears repeating.
What is the FC:CYA ratio?
The free chlorine to cyanuric acid ratio (FC:CYA) is paramount for effective disinfection in swimming pools. It matters more than just free chlorine ppm! In short, cyanuric acid fundamentally changes the chlorination game.
Is pH a factor in chlorine strength?
That means pH is no longer a relevant factor in controlling chlorine strength; CYA controls it now. And that's part of the reason why having minimal CYA is our fourth pillar of proactive pool care. The free chlorine to cyanuric acid ratio (FC:CYA) is paramount for effective disinfection in swimming pools.
Does cyanuric acid affect chlorine?
Cyanuric acid controls chlorine strength. There have been numerous studies published online that show the impact that CYA has on chlorine. Specifically about how CYA drastically lowers killing speed (which increases Contact Time, or CT), and how it plummets HOCl concentrations (chlorine strength).
Is HOCl the same as FC:CYA?
Notice the effective HOCl concentration is virtually the same, provided you maintain the FC:CYA Ratio. Source: CMAHC Ad-Hoc Committee for Cyanuric Acid
What Does Cyanuric Acid Do?
Chlorine performs its own slightly complicated process in your pool. And even if it measures within range, only part of it is free to sanitize.
What is combined chlorine?
Combined chlorine is what has already been used killing all the bad stuff in the water. And total chlorine is the sum of both free and combined.
Why does chlorine kill sanitizer in pools?
The heat from the sun also plays an important part in this process. Because heat causes bacteria to grow faster, your pool uses more of its chlorine to kill it . So, sunny days with high temps can zap your pool’s sanitizer levels almost as fast as you can pour the stuff in. That’s where CYA comes in.
What is the best chemical to use in a pool?
Cyanuric acid is an effective chemical many pool owners use in order to keep their chlorine functioning as it should. But it’s important to know how and when to use it.
What is the chemical compound that protects chlorine from the sun?
Cyanuric acid is a chemical compound that forms a weak bond with the free chlorine in the pool water, protecting it from the sun’s ultraviolet rays to reduce chlorine loss. [ source ]. This chemical compound is called triazine and is composed of 3 carbon and 3 nitrogen atoms. Another derivative of the compound is melamine, ...
How to lower CYA?
So, there are a couple of other options you can use to lower your CYA levels. One is to wait for a big rain. If you live in an area that gets frequent rainfall, you’re in luck. One or two big rains will probably bring that level down pretty quickly. The second thing you can do is purchase a cyanuric acid reducer.
Can you use chlorine tablets with a CYA level of 30?
In other words, if your CYA levels are between 30-50 ppm, you’ll only add straight chlorine instead of the tablets. This will help you avoid adding too much of the acid.
What is the most potent form of stabilized chlorine?
The most potent form of stabilized chlorine is Dichlor. For every 10ppm of chlorine using Dichlor, your CYA will increase by 9ppm.
Why use liquid chlorine in pool?
If you have hard fill water, use liquid chlorine because you don't want to add more hardness to your pool water.
How to reduce CYA?
When the CYA gets this high the only way to reduce it is a partial drain and refill. There's no chemical to reduce the CYA. If your CYA is at 100ppm, and the range is 30 - 50ppm, then by draining 1/2 of the water and refilling it you'll drop the CYA to 50ppm. The first thing to do is remove any chlorine tabs.
What happens when you add cyanuric acid to pool water?
When you add cyanuric acid to chlorinated pool water, the cyanuric acid gets converted to those chlorinated isocyanurates.
How much bleach is in a 2.2 ppm pool?
2.2ppm FC in your pool is equivalent to 81oz (2 quarts and 2 cups) of 8.25% bleach.
How long do tri chlors last?
As long as they are stored dry, they will last indefinitely. If they are TriChlor, you will get 6 PPM Cya for every 10 PPM FC derived from the pucks.
Can you use a salt water chlorine generator in a pool?
As for your specific situation (traveling engineer), you should consider either a salt-water chlorine generator or a liquid chlorine Stenner pump to automate chlorine additions to your pool. I believe it would be a big benefit to your lifestyle and allow you to leave your pool for extended periods without having to worry about how to chlorinate without ruining your water.
Is chlorine a disinfectant?
So, while chlorine is a wonderfully powerful disinfectant, sanitizer and oxidizer, it is by no means easy to work with and we are stuck with having to work with its various stabilized solid forms.
Is potassium hypochlorite a solid?
Potassium hypochlorite is similar. Hypochlorites of lithium and calcium are solids but they are also very reactive as well. A 1-lb bag of 73% cal-hypo contains a significant amount of chlorine which is a very powerful oxidizer.
Is bleach a liquid?
Sodium hypochlorite (bleach) only exists in a reasonably stable form as a liquid mixture of water and sodium hypochlorite. It is still very reactive which is why the high grade stuff (>12%) breaks down so quickly. Potassium hypochlorite is similar.
How long does it take for chlorine to be removed from a pool?
Half the chlorine in the pool can be eliminated in under one hour by UV rays from the sun. Low stabilizer leaves the pool water vulnerable to organic contaminates and bacteria without proper sanitation.
How does high stabilizer affect chlorine?
High swimming pool stabilizer affects chlorine by putting it in a locked state, preventing the chlorine from combining with contaminates in the water. High stabilizer also leaves the pool water vulnerable to organic contaminates and bacteria only this time the sanitizer is present just unable to oxidize the contaminants.
Why is CYA important in pool?
When using a chlorine pool, actively maintaining the stabilizer levels in the water is very important. Cyanuric Acid (CYA) has no disinfection properties; it is needed to stabilize the Free Chlorine (FC) extending the sanitizing active life, that is why CYA is referred to as "stabilizer.".
Does chlorine shock affect chlorine?
Lots of chlorine shocks and tablets all have some small amount of stabilizer in them. Stabilizer is a dissolved solid so it will build up in the water over time as various shocks and tablets are used. High swimming pool stabilizer affects chlorine by putting it in a locked state, preventing the chlorine from combining with contaminates in the water. High stabilizer also leaves the pool water vulnerable to organic contaminates and bacteria only this time the sanitizer is present just unable to oxidize the contaminants.
Is chlorine free water a stabilizer?
Oxygen Pools chlorine free water treatment program is a great pool stabilizer alternative because it doesn't require the use of stabilizer at all. That equals a healthy pool and one less chemical to buy, measure and balance. The Oxygen Pools Program uses two components: A Dynamic Oxygen Generator and a weekly dose of the nontoxic, non-chlorine additive.
Does chlorine have stabilizer?
Chlorine with Stabilizer: Some types of chlorine have stabilizer included in the mixture, like Trichlor and Dichlor. Stabilizer is a dissolved solid and does not evaporate. When using chlorine with stabilizer added its important to keep an eye on the stabilizer levels to prevent it from getting to high.