How long do pucks last?

[JBfromNJ]

I left a bucket of triclor pucks outdoors after last season and through the winter. Pail was securly closed. Are these pucks still good? Are the affected by time or freezing temperatures?

[aylad]

Does the lid on the bucket appear to be bulging outward at all? If so, don't open it, and discard immediately. If not, then they should be okay to use this season. I don't think you need to worry so much about time and freezing as you would exposure to moisture. I have used trichlor in the past that has been stored as long as 2 seasons, and have had no problems.

Janet

[JBfromNJ]

Thanks Janet .............. nope, no bulging.

Have a great season!

[Sumo1]

Janet, is there a responsible way to dispose of old chlorine? A landfill just seems to be out of sight, out of mind.
Hal

[aylad]

The best way to dispose of it is in your pool...the only downside to it being "old" is that it may lose a lot of its strength as a sanitizer, but at least you still get some effect from it. The danger to opening a bucket of trichlor that has gotten wet is the pressure that builds inside the container from the heat let off by the pucks as they dissolve...and after several months of buildup over winter can turn a plastic bucket into somewhat of a missile, increasing the chances of injury by plastic shards, or by partially dissolved puck bits flying into the eyes.

I live in a very rural area of Northwestern Louisiana, where we have one major landfill open in the area but several satellite dump sites where things are sorted into bins and then picked up by the major disposal companies and dealt with accordingly. There is a bin at my satellite site for things marked with hazardous material labels that is separate from the other garbage or things that are recycled. However, I still think the best way to dispose of it is to put it into the pool.

Janet

[chem geek]

If you cannot or do not want to utilize the chlorine in your pool, then it should be taken to a hazardous waste facility. Usually, such a facility is located at the same place as your garbage collector / recycler "dump". It's the same place that would take your partially or fully empty paint cans, motor fluids, etc.

Such facilities know how to handle various wastes. In the case of chlorine, they will likely neutralize it by dissolving it and adding a reducing agent turning the chlorine into salt. Just be sure to tell them exactly what it is or have it in its original container with its label.

Richard

[Sumo1]

Thank you!
Hal

[CarlD]

Hey! As a mod I, too, learn something new all the time here at PF. Thanks, Janet!