how much bleach to add to pool

Disclosure: This post may contain affiliate links. This means that at no cost to you, we may earn a small commission for qualifying purchases.

One way to enjoy your pool is to maintain it regularly.

Adding bleach, among other things, makes your pool safe for use and prevents it from being a habitat for bacteria or other harmful organisms.

Bleach creates hypochlorous acid, which is effective in killing these harmful organisms or contaminants in your pool.

However, the challenge most people experience is knowing the right quantity to add to the pool.

So how much bleach to add to the 1000 gallon pool, for the 5000 gallon pool?

Why Add Bleach To Your Pool?

Bleach is commonly used for laundry in homes and serves to remove tough stains on clothes. You also need chlorine and bleach to do the same thing in your pool – these two agents are an essential part of pool maintenance.

The hypochlorous acid released by the bleach in your pool kills all the contaminants in it. Although very little bleach is needed when removing stains on clothes, you'll need a little more when treating your pool to get the same effect chlorine gives. Avoid using scented bleach for your pool as this only adds to the contaminants.

How Much Bleach Should I Apply To My Pool?

The quantity of bleach to be applied to a pool is not always specific; however, to be sure, carry out a test on your pool for the chlorine level. The purpose of applying bleach in the first place is to increase the chlorine level to 1-3ppm, so your pool is free from contaminants.

Your pool's chlorine level should be adequate so as to avoid getting eye irritation when swimming. The concentration level of most bleaches used is usually around 5.7% concentrated. It is also necessary that you know the quantity of water in your pool before applying bleach.

Computing Amount of Gallons in Your Pool

You need to compute the amount of water in your pool (volume) in order to ensure that you get the right measurement of bleach to use. How should you do that?

The volume of the pool = Length (Feet) x Width (Feet) x Average Depth of the Pool (Feet)

After getting the volume, then multiply the volume by:

7.5 – for a rectangular pool.
6.7 – for an oval pool.
5.9 – for a-round pool.

The answer you will get is the number of gallons of water in your swimming pool . In our case, we choose a 1000 gallons pool.

Maintaining your swimming pool with bleach can involve two things: shocking your pool or raising the chlorine level.

When shocking your 1000 gallons pool, you need to use 0.05 gallons of bleach to take the chlorine level to 5 PPM.
If you simply want to raise the chlorine level, use 0.025 gallons of bleach to raise a 1000 gallons pool by 2.5 PPM.

How Much Bleach Per Gallon of Pool Water

Before you begin the bleaching process, the first step is to know what quantity of bleach to apply in your pool water. The standard measurement is to add a quarter teaspoon or sixteen drops of bleach per gallon of pool water.

However, if your pool water has a cloudy surface, you can make it a one-eighth teaspoon of bleach, so the water clears.

With this calculation, you can easily know how much bleach you will need when applying it in pool water.

Though, ensure you get the current chlorine level by testing your pool before applying any quantity of bleach.

How Much Bleach for 1000 Gallon Pool?

Typically, the amount of chlorine to add to your pool water, especially if it rounds up to 5000 gallons, is 3 ounces. Are you wondering how much bleach for 5000 gallon pool? For a pool holding 5000 gallons of water, use 20 ounces of bleach.

However, for a 1000 gallon pool of water, you won't need as much bleach as we already calculated for a 10,000 and 5,000-gallon pool.

Shocking your 1000 gallon pool will require a 1/20 gallon of bleach to get your pool's chlorine level to 5ppm. You'll need a fraction of that amount which is 1/25 gallons of bleach, to raise the chlorine level to 2.5ppm.

Don't Wait, Shock Your Pool Now

Most people prefer to use bleach for pools instead of chlorine for shocking. This is because it dissolves properly and does not include any fillers usually found in chlorine products. There are two ways to add bleach to your pool; this is either with the use of a liquidator or doing it manually.

You can use liquid bleach to shock your pool, and it also clears your pool water. One mistake most people make when shocking their pools is not using the right quantity of bleach. It should not be less, and it shouldn't be added in excess. If you apply it perfectly to your pool water, it makes your pool safe for swimming.

It is important to test your pool's chlorine level before applying bleach and measure the pool water volume. Follow this process and you won't have any safety issues with your swimming pool.