Straight answers about pools, hot tubs and keeping them running
Pools Shop Editorial Team 
Most residential pools should be brushed at least once a week, and more often during hot weather, heavy use, or when algae risk is higher. Brushing loosens material that filters can’t pull off surfaces on their own, so it works alongside circulation and chemistry rather than instead of them. How often should a pool actually … Read more
Phosphate is a nutrient that washes or blows into pool water from leaves, dust, fertilizer, and some tap water sources. It does not harm swimmers directly and isn’t a sanitizer or pH issue. It matters mainly because it can act as food for algae, especially when chlorine levels slip. What exactly is phosphate? Phosphate is … Read more
Algae takes hold whenever chlorine drops too low to keep up with the algae spores that constantly enter the water, usually combined with weak circulation, warm temperatures, and nutrients like phosphates or nitrates that give it something to feed on. Fix any one of those and a bloom is far less likely to establish. How … Read more
Rain changes pool water chemistry mainly by diluting it. Fresh rainwater has none of the chlorine, pH buffers or dissolved minerals that pool water does, so a heavy downpour waters everything down at once. Rain can also carry acidity, dust, pollen and runoff into the pool, which pushes readings further off balance. Does rain really … Read more
Yes. A saltwater pool still relies on chlorine to sanitize the water — it just doesn’t come out of a jug or a bucket of tablets. A device called a salt chlorinator uses electricity to convert dissolved salt into chlorine, continuously, right in the plumbing. The chlorine itself works exactly the same way once it’s … Read more
A saltwater pool is still a chlorine pool. Dissolved salt passes through a cell in the equipment pad, and an electrical process called electrolysis splits it apart, generating chlorine on the spot. The pool never runs on salt alone — it runs on chlorine the system makes itself, continuously, instead of chlorine added by hand. … Read more
Test strips are faster and easier for a quick daily check, while liquid test kits give more precise readings for the numbers that matter most — chlorine, pH, and alkalinity. Most pool owners get the best results using strips for routine glances and a liquid kit for weekly, more careful testing. What’s the difference between … Read more
Liquid chlorine, tablets and granules all sanitise pool water, but they differ in strength, how they’re added, and what else they bring with them. Liquid works fast and adds nothing extra. Tablets are slow-release and usually contain stabiliser. Granules dissolve quickly and vary by type. The “best” one depends on the pool and the routine. … Read more
Shocking a pool means adding a large, one-time dose of a chlorine-based (or non-chlorine) oxidizer to raise chlorine sharply above its normal level. The jolt breaks down built-up waste — sweat, oils, urine, algae — that regular daily chlorine dosing hasn’t been able to keep up with. It’s done periodically, not every day. What does … Read more
A strong chlorine smell with a low test reading almost always means chloramines, not too much chlorine. Chlorine reacts with sweat, oils, urine and other nitrogen compounds and gets used up forming smelly byproducts, leaving little active chlorine behind to test for. The smell signals used-up chlorine, not fresh chlorine. Why does the pool smell … Read more
About what you read here. Everything on Pools Shop is general information and our own editorial opinion. We research carefully and we say when the evidence is unclear, but we can be wrong, things change, and no article can know your particular situation. Please do your own research and make your own judgement rather than treating anything here as the final word. Prices, products and specifications around pools, hot tubs and their upkeep change constantly, and what suits one person will not suit another. Check current details yourself, and where a decision involves real money, safety or something you cannot undo, it is worth confirming with a qualified pool or electrical professional before you act.