Where to buy boric acid?

I was researching the possibility of using boric acid instead of borax or tetraborate pentahydrate (what I've been using up until now). I really like the idea that I don't have to add acid with boric acid, but not if it means paying alot more.

I read in another forum (post was from 2010) that using borax + acid costs about 1.50 per pound total (much cheaper than the current prices for Bioguard Optimizer Plus that I've been using). Another post in the same forum provided this link to a source for boric acid:

http://www.aaa-chemicals.com/boac50poinba.html

At $60 for a 50# bag it's a great deal, but shipping is about $44 to where I live and makes it more expensive; 58 cents a pound more assuming the $1.50/pound figure for borax + acid is accurate.

It would be great if I could find this locally and save the shipping cost. Any ideas where I might find boric acid in quantity locally? If I cannot find it locally, I'll have to think about if the cost difference is worth the convenience to me.

Boric Acid? I thought that was for eye-wash and sold in pharmacies.

We generally suggest Muriatic Acid, which is sold in hardware stores, for lowering pH. It's Hydro Chloric acid so it doesn't add anything to your water you don't want. Borax is what we recommend for raising pH and that adds borates.

Lots of people like about 50ppm of borates because it inhibits algae, some, and makes the water feel better, but, unless you CONSTANTLY are fighting algae problems, it's not necessary to have a borates pool. I don't, but I have no good reason, at this time, to go to borates.

Carl

Carl,
boric acid can be used instead of borax to raise borate to 50 ppm and Proteam Supreme Plus achieves it's pH neutrality by being a mix of about 90% boric acid and 10% sodium tetraborate pentahydrate. Pure boric acid will slightly lower pH but, as we know, it will tend to rise on it's own so it is not really a major issue unless one adds it while the pH and TA are low and use a stabilized chlorine source, which will further lower pH. It's other drawback is that it is much more expensive than borax and muriatic acid. In reality, at normal pool pH range most of the borate in the water is in the form of boric acid with only a small percentage as borate ion.

Borate does a bit more than just fight algae. It also introduces a secondary pH buffer which is very useful with pools that have a SWCG or other form of aeration that tends to create pH rise from outgassing of CO2, which I consider to the the primary reason to add it to a pool.

Current price for a 50lb bag of boric acid from The Chemistry store is $81 + shipping so 20 mule team and muriatic acid is still the easiest on your wallet but a bit more work.

Thanks, Evan!

So...one can use Boric Acid but only if one wants to burn a hole in ones wallet.

I don't discount borate pools at all. We have too many people who have had them fix other problems nicely. I merely don't go through the hassle of setting it up because I am lucky and vigilant so I don't have those other problems.

Not really a matter of being lucky or vigilant. More a matter of pool design, water features, attached spas, SWCGs, very long swim seasons, etc.

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Originally Posted by CarlD

Thanks, Evan!

So...one can use Boric Acid but only if one wants to burn a hole in ones wallet.

I don't discount borate pools at all. We have too many people who have had them fix other problems nicely. I merely don't go through the hassle of setting it up because I am lucky and vigilant so I don't have those other problems.

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Carl, my favorite Thomas Jefferson quote... "I am a great believer in luck, I find the harder I work, the luckier I get."

Not knocking anything, just love the quote!

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Originally Posted by PBLsQuad450

Carl, my favorite Thomas Jefferson quote... "I am a great believer in luck, I find the harder I work, the luckier I get."

Not knocking anything, just love the quote!

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I think a few others have expressed it similarly! If I had to work SO hard on my pool...I'd take the darn thing down! But that's the whole point of the B-B-B system: Crystal clear pools for very low cost and very little work!

And adding borate makes the work even less in the long run!:p

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Originally Posted by CarlD

...Lots of people like about 50ppm of borates because it inhibits algae, some, and makes the water feel better, but, unless you CONSTANTLY are fighting algae problems, it's not necessary to have a borates pool.....

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The first season with our new pool (installed 2004) we had a continuing problem with the liner getting slick (nothing visible, but was told it's algae starting to grow) despite FC levels of 7+ (CYA at 60-80). I would shock and brush per pool store instructions, but it would quickly return. The following season, my pool store said they've had good results from adding a product called Bor-X or Bioguard Optimizer Plus (I've since learned both are borates) to the pool. They also suggested I use a polyquat (poly 60). Since adding those things to my routine the slick liner issue has not returned.

Fast forward to now, based on information on this forum it's not clear to me that I need both the poly60 and borates to control algae. However, it is apparent to me that I need something since maintaining good FC levels wasn't enough. I'm thinking about stopping the poly60 treatments to see what happens (I may put that experiment off until next season since I've already purchased enough poly60 [bought online] to last the entire season).

Jim,
There's no harm in going both the Borates and Polyquat route together. You shouldn't need to add more than a shot glass of Polyquat every week now that the problem is cleared up. At that rate a quart should last you 21 weeks--all summer. Polyquat is the ONLY algaecide we recommend. I like the stuff a lot.

You've got it fixed. It ain't broke. Why fix it?

Carl

My feeling is that is is overkill to use both and the borate only needs to be dosed once per season (or year in most cases!) and is going to cost less in the long run.

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Originally Posted by CarlD

Jim,
There's no harm in going both the Borates and Polyquat route together. You shouldn't need to add more than a shot glass of Polyquat every week now that the problem is cleared up. At that rate a quart should last you 21 weeks--all summer. Polyquat is the ONLY algaecide we recommend. I like the stuff a lot.

You've got it fixed. It ain't broke. Why fix it?

Carl

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I've been dosing the polyquat per the label; for my 20k gal pool it turns out to be 8oz per week. Including the initial dose I put in at the beginning of the season (1qt) I go through about 7qts per season (about early May to early Oct here in SE VA).

So you think I can get by with much less each week?

I completely understand and usually agree with "if it ain't broke...". That explains why I'm hesitant to change my routine. But if I can save a bit of money, that's motivation to consider changing. In this case, if I can greatly reduce or eliminate the need for polyquat, that would save me about $125-$170 per season. And speaking of saving money, I just found out that my routine of shocking every two weeks is unnecessary, so there's money to be saved there as well (I spend about $100 per season on cal hypo).

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Originally Posted by waterbear

My feeling is that is is overkill to use both and the borate only needs to be dosed once per season (or year in most cases!) and is going to cost less in the long run.

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I'm wondering the same thing. Perhaps instead of going cold turkey on the polyquat, I might try gradually using less and less to see what happens.