What Does Cyanuric Acid Do For Pools

As long as your cyanuric acid is at a reasonable level e g.

What does cyanuric acid do for pools.

There s a lot of discussion around the most effective level of cyanuric acid to keep in your pool. In today s post you re going to learn how to lower cyanuric acid cya in your pool fast. That s why minimal cya is orenda s fourth pillar of proactive pool care. However the cdc recommendation does not include the level of cyanuric acid that can and in most cases is present in outdoor pools.

Why these levels matter. This chemical compound is called triazine and is composed of 3 carbon and 3 nitrogen atoms. And yet we encounter many people that are hesitant to drain or even dilute their pool to reduce cya levels. Cyanuric acid is not recommended for indoor pools that do not receive direct sunlight.

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. Recent cdc research presented at the 2015 world aquatic health conference demonstrates that even at cya levels as low as 10 to 20 ppm under hyperchlorinated conditions the current recommended remediation protocol is not. But when your cyanuric levels get too high it can cause trouble basically rendering your chlorine useless. Perhaps there are valid reasons costs structural risks labor environmental concerns.

However the cdc recommendation does not take into account the level of cyanuric acid usually present in outdoor pools. Recent cdc research presented at the october 2015 world aquatic health conference demonstrates that even at cyanuric acid levels as low as 10 to 20 ppm the current recommended remediation protocol is not. For instance if the level of cya is 5 higher than the ideal range then you need to remove 5 of pool water volume. High levels of cyanuric acid cya in pool water can cause issues.

As a general rule you should maintain an amount of 60 to 80 parts per million ppm of cyanuric acid in your pool if your pool is exposed to great amounts of sunlight. Keep your cyanuric acid levels between 30 and 50 ppm. Less than 100 ppm you may find it more convenient to raise free chlorine than replace water. For example if your pool has a current cyanuric acid concentration of 80 ppm and you would like it to be 60 ppm then you would replace 25 of your pool s current water with fresh water.

Levels between 30 and 50 ppm particles per million tend to work well although levels up to 80 ppm can be safe. It works only if the level is not really that high. Pools that contain little or no cyanuric acid are going to eat through chlorine like crazy especially if your pool is in direct sunlight for any portion of the day. Once pool owners learn of the plethora of chemicals in their pools one of the common questions we get that you might have as well relates to the proper use of cyanuric acid.

When your cyanuric acid aka pool stabilizer levels are correct it s a beautiful thing maintaining and stabilizing your chlorine levels the way it should be.