Do I Need Calcium Hardness In My Vinyl Pool

Call it an admission of guilt.

Do i need calcium hardness in my vinyl pool.

Calcium for a liner pool can be a bit lower than a plaster pool in the range of 150 250 ppm. Calcium hardness is also very important to the chemical balancing of your vinyl liner swimming pool. The recommended range is 150 400 ppm parts per million with an often cited stricter range of 200 400 ppm. This article will attempt to explain the urgent need to understand and manage proper levels of calcium hardness in our pools.

Calcium in your pool is similar to the car analogy. If calcium hardness goes above 400 ppm you will likely see a white flaky crust on the liner and pool equipment. For vinyl pools calcium should be between 150 250 ppm. Having begun my career in the pool service industry in 1984 i have a confession to make.

A common belief which i shared was i do pool repair not chemicals. If a vinyl liner s calcium level is too low this soft water situation could lead to foaming and other water problems and can harm the vinyl. Be sure to carefully follow the instructions on the package in order to obtain the best results. This can be a very expensive problem so pool owners need to address low calcium quickly.

To add the proper amount of hardness increaser you ll need to know your pool s volume which you can easily determine with a pool calculator. In addition to ph and total alkalinity calcium hardness must be kept in balance so that your pool water does not become too corrosive or end up scaling the surface of your pool. A low level can result in foaming which is unpleasant but shouldn t harm the liner. All you need to do is add a calcium hardness increaser to your pool.

It also produces itchy skin. Calcium on the low and high end of the scales will eventually cause problems and when they do be ready for some serious problems. Neglected calcium levels in your pool often are low but can be skewed high as well if you re not doing some routine monitoring. Pool stores will give you an amazing song and dance about why you need calcium in your vinyl pool.

Keeping your calcium hardness in the midpoint. If you have a heater with a copper heat exchange and your hardness is low it can destroy your heater.