Chlorine takes forever to burn off...

[murray93]

Is it normal/healthy for a pool to take over a week to come back down from shock level? We have a solid auto cover that is always on our 18 x 36 vinyl pool when not in use. Followed directions to the T on shock packet. Weather is relatively cool - high 70's/low 80's during the day, 60's at night. Should I cease other forms of chlorination when I shock to get the levels back down to normal more quickly? We are currently using trichlor tabs. And CYA is about 30.

[duraleigh]

Two sources "kill" chlorine. The Sun and "bugs" in the pool. You have apparently eliminated both.

If you'd like for the Cl to come down more quickly, roll back that cover and let the Sun hit your pool. It will drop noticeably.

[Macrosill]

If you'd like for the Cl to come down more quickly, roll back that cover and let the Sun hit your pool. It will drop noticeably.

I can personally attest to this fact. I had my solar cover for 3 years and never utilized it, it was a pain to take on and off, my pool was surrounded by dirt no grass so it got really dirty. This year the landscaping around the pool is done so the cover stays clean when it comes off. In the past I would need to add 2 to 3 tabs a day to keep the cl level between 1 and 3. This year I did that for about a week and the cl levels rose up to 15ppm. It has come down slightly but I have not added cl for more than a few days. No bather load since the weather has been less than desirable lately. What a difference the solar cover makes.

Brian

[Sherra]

Yes, using a cover does help maintain chlorine longer (as long as there's nothing major in your pool to "kill off")...at least that's been my experience with my solar cover.