In the pool maintenance, shock treatment is an important part to keep the pool clean and hygienic. We talked about chlorine shock in the previous article. Today, we will discuss non-chlorine swimming pool shock.
Learn more: How to Shock a Swimming Pool Properly
What is Non-Chlorine Shock?
Obviously, non-chlorine shock is a method of swimming pool shock that doesn't rely on chlorine compounds. This method is mainly to destroy ammonia nitrogen compounds and organic pollutants in the water by adding a large number of non-chlorine oxidants (usually potassium peroxymonosulfate), so as to achieve the water purification.
Potassium Peroxymonosulfate (MPS), usually in the form of powders, is a powerful and odorless oxidizer effectively breaking down chloramines that have accumulated over time in the pool. If you want to make your pool sparkling without using harsh chlorine disinfectants, then using MPS for non-chlorine shock is a good option.
Benefits of Non-Chlorine Shock
After using MPS for pool shock, you can swim soon. Chlorine shock will quickly raise the chlorine level in the pool in a short time, but you need to wait more than 8 hours before you can swim. While MPS is a gentle alternative, you only have to wait 15 minutes to start swimming.
MPS is a strong oxidizing agent that can easily solve the chloramine problem, so that the water will not contain the irritating chlorine smell. Whenever you use chlorine in your pool, it forms chloramines with contaminants like urine and sweat from swimmers. However, if you use MPS, you don't have to worry about this.
Using MPS will not cause strong chlorine odors or over-stabilize the pool water.
Drawbacks of Non-Chlorine Shock
Unlike chlorine shock, MPS is an oxidizing agent that can only be used to remove ammonia nitrogen compounds and organic pollutants in the pool, so it does not actually kill bacteria or algae. If you want to use MPS, it is best to use it in the water that is less polluted but free of algae.
MPS is acidic, and using it for shock will reduce the pH level and total alkalinity of the pool water. So you can add 4 ppm sodium carbonate after the shock treatment to stabilize the pH.
In addition, non-chlorine shock is more costly than chlorine shock.
How to Shock Your Pool With Non-Chlorine Shock
- MPS is not as irritating to respiratory tract as chlorine, it is still necessary to wear gloves and goggles when handling it.
- Measure the required MPS according to the instructions. Each 10 mg/L MPS can eliminate 1 mg/L of combined chlorine. Generally, 10-15 mg/L MPS is sufficient.
- Pour MPS powders evenly into the pool. If it is a plastic lined pool, MPS should be dissolved in advance before shock treatment, otherwise undissolved chemicals falling on the liner will cause damage.
- After that, you only have to wait 15-30 minutes, then you can start to enjoy a perfect pool.
To sum up, while non-chlorine shock has advantages, there are also some problems and shortcomings. In practical applications, you need to choose the appropriate shock treatment method according to the specific situation.