Resources

You’ve heard the buzz or maybe you have swam in a salt water pool, but what is it? How does it sanitize? Salt Water Pool vs Chlorine Pool; which is better or better yet which one is safer?

What is a Salt Water Pool?

Food grade quality salt (99.5% pure) is added to your pool water. As the salt water passes through the salt chlorine generator is get a small electrical charge that creates Free Chlorine. YUP you read it right, it creates chlorine.
The chlorine created by a salt water pool is the same needed from a traditional chlorine pools, to maintain proper pool chemistry.

• Swimming in a salt pool is like swimming in soft water, the water beads off
  • You don’t get a sticky feeling when you get out
• Concentration of salt water in a pool is about as salty as a tear drop, not the ocean.
• Pool Water Chemistry stays more balanced and easier to maintain

What is a Chlorine Pool?

To keep things simple we will just talk about chlorine tabs as a comparison to a salt pool.

Chlorine tabs (3″ pucks generally) are added through a feeder at the equipment pad, in the skimmer, or through a “bobber”.  The quality you get in the chlorine tabs is directly related to the price you pay. You an get a lot of chlorine from a big box store or online, however they fill the chlorine with fillers to make more money. Don’t blame them to much, they want to make a profit and don’t care about your pool.

Chlorine tab manufacturers have stepped up their game and you can now get good quality chlorine tabs that don’t give you the traditional negative effects :: Dry skin, unpolished water, “sticky” hard water, etc.
Good pool contractors that performs swimming pool services offer good chlorine that has less fillers and active ingredients like borate, which help soften the water. Your pool water chemistry 101 will thank you for not use junky chlorine.

• Lost cost chlorine
  • Sticky feeling when you get out
  • More product used as the chlorine is less potent
    • Will end up costing you more money
  • Chlorine “odor”
• High Quality Chlorine
  • Water feels softer
  • More active ingredient so less chlorine usage

Cost of Salt Water Pool vs Chlorine Pool

It is a wash, no huge cost saving either way.

You will spend roughly $150 per year purchasing chlorine tabs for a standard chlorine water pool, while only $20 of salt for a salt pool.  However, you must realize that a salt chlorine generator only last 5-6 years and costs roughly $700 – $900 to replace.

What is better a Salt Pool vs Chlorine Pool

Salt Water Chlorine Generator pools are a superior swim when compared to low cost chlorine, however only slightly better than good quality chlorine. The will cost the same over time, however salt pools tend to keep the pool water chemistry a little more balanced.

Salt water chlorine generator pools can corrode pool other items around your pool, however most (if not all) products are “salt water ready”. In the early 2000’s that wasn’t case and many pool components would rust prematurely. Rusting due to salt water around pools isn’t as much of an issue. Steel walls of a vinyl liner pool however still seem to rust faster with salt water, even with their galvanized coating. Simply having your pool contractor build your vinyl liner pool our of polymer pool walls will eliminate that issue.