A rule of thumb to follow to maintain good water quality in pools is to keep FAC levels between 1.0 and 3.0 ppm. The practice of adding significant amounts of an oxidizing chemical to water to destroy ammonia, nitrogen-containing and organic contaminants. Adding chlorine as a shock treatment can also control algae and bacteria, but read the label to make sure that your product can do this. The ph level to keep it betwwen 7.2 and 7.6, indicating that the chlorine is working effectively Total alkalinity to make sure that pH levels stay steady Calcium hardness to protect pool surfaces from corrosion. The guidelines set by the National Spa and Pool Institute are widely used, but to be certain, you should also check the health codes of the jurisdiction where you live.
Shock treatment adds a larger than normal amount of oxidizing chemicals to pool water.
This additional dose destroys organic contaminants and oxidizes ammonia and nitrogen compounds to rid the area of irritating chloramine odor and, if chlorine is used for the purpose, to sanitize the water. Many chlorine shock products also provide usage instructions for destroying algae and bacteria, which can be an added benefit. Superchlorination is another term that is sometimes used for shock treatment with chlorine products when 5 or more ppm of FAC is added. Superchlorination also gets rid of chloramine odor. Adding 10 times the level of combined chlorine or chloramines in the water achieves so-called breakpoint chlorination when there is enough extra chlorine to consume the irritating chloramines.