Balancing chemicals in your saltwater pool is essential to keeping the water clean, safe, and inviting. The first one to keep an eye on is the stabilizer (or cyanuric acid). But how much stabilizer should you put in your saltwater pool, and why does it matter for your pool in the first place, especially if you generally use a robotic pool cleaner?
In this blog, we take a deep dive into everything you need to know about adding a stabilizer to your saltwater pool, the effects it has on the water chemistry in your pool, and the performance of your automatic pool cleaner. Whether you use a robot pool cleaner like the Beatbot AquaSense Pro or a pool vacuum robot, the knowledge of stabilizer importance will help both your swimming pool and cleaning equipment run harmoniously.
What Is Stabilizer in Saltwater Pool?
A stabilizer is a chemical that protects the chlorine in your saltwater pool from breaking apart due to the ultraviolet (UV) rays of sunlight. A stabilizer also referred to as cyanuric acid, combines with chlorine molecules to form a layer that temporarily slows the disintegration of chlorine, allowing it to last longer.
Chlorine in a saltwater pool is generated by a saltwater chlorinator. This system produces its own chlorine, but like any other, it can also be degraded by sunlight. Stabilizer keeps chlorine active so that the water remains clean and devoid of bacteria and algae. Without a stabilizer, the chlorine in your pool can quickly dissipate, leading to an increased demand for chlorine, which can result in an insufficiently sanitized pool.
Stabilized chlorine is also used for your robotic pool cleaner whether that is a pool cleaner robot, swimming pool robot cleaner, or even a robot pool vacuum that uses a stabilizer for effective cleaning of your pool. If you don’t have enough chlorine, your pool will be dirty, and you will have to clean it more often, putting more strain on your pool skimmer and your robotic cleaning equipment.
And, of course, if you have a saltwater pool as well, you will want to read for how often you should add stabilizer to that too.
How much stabilizer you should add depends on multiple factors, including the size of your pool, the amount of sun exposure, and the existing cyanuric acid level. That said, here are some general rules of thumb when it comes to how often you should add stabilizer to your saltwater pool:
Adding Stabilizer Initially
The first time you set up your saltwater pool, you have to add a specific amount of stabilizer to get the cyanuric acid levels to fall within the ideal range. Cyanuric acid is usually recommended at around 30–50 ppm (parts per million) in a saltwater pool. If your pool is new, or you’ve just installed a saltwater chlorinator, you will need to add a stabilizer to reach this range.
Routine Maintenance
Since you’ve added a stabilizer to achieve the correct levels, it generally only needs to be added once or twice a year. That said, you’ll want to keep an eye on those levels and make sure that they remain in the right range. You can check the levels with a pool test kit that has cyanuric acid, or bring a water sample to your local pool store for analysis.
Things that may influence the need for extra stabilizers include:
Heavy rains: Rain can wash away some of the chemicals in your pool such as stabilizers.
Backwashing frequently: If you backwash your pool filter frequently, you might lose some stabilizer in the process along with dirty water.
Water evaporation: In excessive heat or dry climates, water evaporation can lead to a reduction of stabilizer levels.
How to Add Stabilizer
With proper chlorine management, chances are that your stabilizer level will be down below the ideal range (30 ppm) — and it’s time to add stabilizer. How to Add Stabilizer to Your Pool
Granular Cyanuric Acid: If using a granular stabilizer, stir the powder into a bucket of water to dissolve it. The stabilizer comes in a powder, so the mixture should be stirred very well to make sure all the stabilizer is dissolved before adding it to the pool. After you mix the stabilizer, you now want to pour the stabilizer into the deep end or near the return jets, this will help to ensure that it gets distributed evenly throughout the pool.
Liquid Cyanuric Acid: In case you are using a liquid stabilizer, you can introduce it straight into the pool. With the liquid, you should pour it around the return jets, which will help the liquid disperse quicker and ensure that it goes evenly around the volume of water.
We recommend running your pool pump for 24 to 48 hours after adding the stabilizer to ensure that it dissolves correctly and circulates evenly throughout the pool. While you’re at it also run your robot pool cleaner like a Beatbot AquaSense or Beatbot iSkim Ultra wheel-up, and this will help distribute the stabilizer and keep your pool clean.
Check the Cyanuric Acid Levels Again
Your pool water should be tested again within a few days of adding a stabilizer to make sure it is within the recommended range. If your levels remain too low, you will need to add even more stabilizers. However, if the levels are too high (greater than 50 ppm), it’s necessary to dilute the water by partially draining and refilling the pool.
How the Stabilizer System Affects Your Robotic Pool Cleaner
Before we go into the specifics, it is important to mention that the stabilization of chlorine in your saltwater pool is directly related to the efficiency of your robot pool cleaner. If cyanuric acid levels are too high, the effectiveness of the chlorine to sanitize the pool diminishes, and this can lead to algae and bacteria growth. This causes your pool water to be dirty and makes it harder for your robot pool vacuum or your pool robot cleaner to clear away the dirt.
However, a well-maintained cyanuric acid level means active chlorine remains for a longer period, helping to keep the water clean and safe. Your pool cleaning robot can then perform its work without struggle, saving your cleaning equipment time and energy used to dislodge dirt in your pool to keep it clean.
Stabilized chlorine will also be appreciated by your pool skimmer or pool cleaner robot, since with cleaner water there is less debris and contaminants that your equipment will have to deal with. This will pause cleaner operations until the pool fills up again with water, sending it back to the pool pump to re-discern the most optimal cleaning route.
Conclusion
Adding a stabilizer to saltwater pools is a big part of balancing the chlorine and making sure the robotic pool cleaner runs well. For example, a stabilizer only needs to be added once or twice a year, but you are going to want to check your pool’s cyanuric acid levels regularly and adjust your levels as needed.
Maintaining the perfect stabilizer concentration is the key to efficient chlorine use, a clean pool and your good robot pool cleaner (e.g., Beatbot iSkim Ultra or Beatbot AquaSense Pro) might also last a long time. A reset pool with balanced water chemistry can also help you if you’re using either a pool vacuum robot or a swimming pool robot cleaner, ensuring that each one works efficiently so that your pool easily remains clean and inviting without much effort needed.
