How To Add Soda Ash To a Swimming Pool

Adding soda ash to water is a common way to change its pH and make it more alkaline. It can also suppress acid in pools. It boosts the pH and raises the alkalinity.

Soda ash can raise the pH in freshwater fish tanks and marine aquariums. But, be cautious when using it. Soda ash might be a good option if you want a general water enhancer. But, its doses are much lower than sodium bicarbonate’s.

Soda Ash

Pool supply stores sell soda ash as a pH enhancer. Soda ash is made of sodium carbonate. It raises your pool’s pH and alkalinity when added.

How To Use Soda Ash

Use the proper test kit to determine your pool’s pH right before you want to add soda ash. Next, figure out how much product you’ll need to use in your pool. Here’s where this alkalinity calculator can be useful.

To find out the dosage for your product, always refer to the package. Never add more soda ash than 10g per 1,000L of pool water at once.

Once the appropriate amount of soda ash has been measured, combine this product with a pail of pool water. When the filter is operating, pour the dissolved mixture to the pool next to the pump system intake.

Before retesting the pH, let the pool run for four to five hours. Longer waiting periods—up to a most of 24 hours—should be followed when adding a higher dose.

Must Read: Pool Phosphate Remover – What Does It Do?

Pros And Cons Of Soda Ash

The cost of soda ash is not too high, at roughly $6 per kilogram. You might get a better price per item. You can if you buy this product in large amounts. It can target pH without much changing the alkalinity. So, it is very useful.

One drawback of soda ash is its strength. It can make you overcorrect pool pH. This shift turns the water from acidic to alkaline. But, this implies that you won’t need a lot, making it a cheap choice.

Side Effects of Using Soda Ash

Adding chemicals might harm your pool’s chemistry. You must test your pool’s current chemical composition. Do this before adding more chemicals. Cloudy water might happen to your pool if soda ash is introduced.

If you add soda ash to your pool, without dissolving it in a bucket of water first, the water may end up cloudy. Undissolved soda ash will stay in your water. There isn’t enough circulation to dissolve it.

Your pool will turn murky if you add calcium chloride and soda ash to it at the same time. There’s a chemical reaction behind this. Never mix chemicals in your pool. Always add and store them as the manufacturer instructs.

The pool’s alkalinity will rise too much. Then, the water will look hazy if you add too much soda ash. When this happens, you will need to reduce your pool’s alkalinity. Do this by adding sodium bisulfate or muriatic acid (hydrochloric acid).

How To Add Soda Ash To Your Pool

When it comes to pool chemistry, adding items to your water can be done well or, like most things. The procedures listed below are for using soda ash to elevate pH:

Step 1. Test Your Pool Water

First, test the water in your pool to find its current pH and total alkalinity levels. Many methods are available for this. The most common are test strips. They give a fast and accurate reading. You get the reading by dipping them into a sample of pool water.

Invest in a liquid test kit or even a digital test kit if you want greater accuracy. You can find the exact amount of soda ash to add using this. It will give you precision down to the decimal point.

Step 2. Calculate The Dosage

Adding 6 jots of soda ash to a 10,000-gallon pool will raise the total alkalinity by 5 ppm and the pH by 0.2.

Find how much pH needs to be high in the water to get it to 7.4 to 7.6. Then, gauge the pool’s water volume for the right dose.

For example:

·         7.2 to 7.4 in a 10,000 gallon pool = add 6 ounces of soda ash

·         7.2 to 7.4 in a 20,000 gallon pool = add 12 ounces of soda ash

To a 20,000-gallon pool, add 24 ounces of soda ash at a pH of 7.0 to 7.4.

The number of rings you need to add soda ash will depend on how much you need to lift the pH level.

Be careful when counting chlorine in your pool. Putting over 16 ounces (1 pound) per 10,000 gallons of water perils clouding it.

Step 3. Suit Up And Make A Solution

Handling soda ash is usually safe. But, we tell dressing. This includes wearing long covers, pants, caring eyewear, and rubber gloves and shoes. Making a solution to thin out the soda ash is now necessary. Fill half of a five-gallon plastic bucket with water by dipping it into the pool. Next, add the soda ash to the water. Mix until the soda ash dissolves. Use a wooden stick.

Always put chemicals in water instead of water in chemicals. The safest approach to solving a problem is this one.

Step 4. Pour It in

You can add the soda ash to the pool once it has completely dissolved. Make sure it’s completely dissolved since if not, the pool water may get hazy.

To spread it more across your pool, pour it in around the perimeter. Approach the return jets as you can. But, avoid pouring it in front of the skimmer. It will be drawn into the filter and become useless.

Step 5. Retest And Adjust

You should wait for the pool to disperse any chemicals for about six hours. You can then test the pool’s water and, if necessary, add more soda ash.

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