10 Best Swimming Pool Chemicals You’ve Never Heard Of

In the world of swimming pool care, the chemicals are king. They help us manage our algae problems, keep our water sanitized and our swimmers safe. Where would we be without pool chemicals? We probably wouldn’t even have pools to swim in. That would be a boring world that, quite frankly, I don’t want to live in. But thankfully, we have a lot of chemicals to keep our pools crystal clear all season long so that we can enjoy the simple recreational activity of…being in water; preferably on a hot day.

Here is a list of the 10 best swimming pool chemicals that you probably have never heard of:

 

1. Stow Away by Bioguard®

What It Does: Cleans your winter cover and allows you to store it away while it’s still wet.
Bioguard® is a remarkable pool chemical company. They tend to make products for the swimming pool that no one else is even thinking about. Stow Away is one of those chemicals. Stow Away is a winter cover cleaner that allows you to store the cover while it’s still wet. A simple application and a scrub brush and your cover is clean and ready to be stored. Make sure you invest in a good plastic container to store your pool cover in. It will help it to last longer and keep away the critters.

2. No Mor Problems by United Chemicals

What It Does: Prevents algae growth while keeping the water clear and preventing stains.
This is as close to an All-In-One chemical as you can get. It’s an algacide, water clarifier and stain preventer all in one simple liquid; simple may not be the word here. Buy It Now!

3. Optimizer Plus by Bioguard®

What It Does: Prevents algae growth
I like to think of this chemical as a water enhancer. You need a lot of it, but it makes the water feel better and also helps prevent algae from growing in your pool. You only have to add the chemical once in the beginning of the year and maybe another dose here and there, depending on how much rain you get and water loss. It can be a little expensive, but people that use it, swear by it.

4. Floc (Pool Flocculation)

What It Does: Takes all the debris in your swimming pool and drops it to the bottom so that it’s easier to vacuum out.
I’ve been screaming about this product since the launch of this site. I used this product since I was 13 years old while I was taking care of the family pool, because I was working at a pool store. My dad was never good at keeping the pool clear and I was always in a rush to clean it up right before a party or a hot Saturday.  Floc works by taking all the particles that are making your water cloudy or green and sinks them to the bottom of the pool. Then slowly, you can vacuum the debris out of your pool by turning your filter to “waste” or taking off the backwash plug. You can clear a cloudy or green pool overnight, but it takes some elbow grease. Buy It Now!

5. Pool Stain Treat (United Chemicals)

What It Does: Removes stains in all types of pools including fiberglass.
I have personally used this chemical and actually watched it remove a tough stain off a customer’s inground pool steps. We took a brush and poured some of this powered chemical on the stain and brushed it gone. It was unbelievable! Most stains are caused from metals in the water, this product helps to lift those metals away from the stain. If you have stains in your pool, it’s definitely worth a try. Remember that the chemical is very acidic and can effect the pH in your pool water.

6. Liquid Solar Blanket (Flexible Solutions)

What It Does: Keeps the heat from escaping your pool like a normal solar blanket.
Solar blankets are big and can sometimes be a real pain to take on and off your pool every time you want to use it. Solar covers work by keeping the heat in your pool – not by attracting the sun’s heat towards your pool. Liquid solar blankets do the same thing except you don’t need a giant cover. Simply drop the ball or fish pouch in your pool and a small amount of the liquid coats the top of your pool for an entire month. Don’t worry, you can’t see it, feel it or even taste it. It’s only about 1 molecule thick.  My only suggestion when using a liquid solar blanket is to not run your pool’s filter system at night. In the evening you tend to lose the most heat because the nights are cooler. If the water is still, the liquid has a better chance of keeping the heat in your swimming pool overnight.

7. Liquid Chlorine

What It Does: It sanitizes your swimming pool with chlorine.
I’ll have to admit that in my early years of pool care, I hated this product but everyone I knew swore by it.  It wasn’t until I started selling it did I realize it’s true potential. If you have an algae problem at the beginning of the year, I would recommend to anyone to try adding liquid chlorine to their pool first. It’s cheap, it’s chlorine and it’s easy to add. I’ve seen pools turn to a cloudy blue over night with this stuff, even if the pool was as black as the night. It’s an amazing product. Plus, the jugs are refillable at most pool stores, but I only recommend doing this at the beginning of the year if you have an issue.

8. Burnout 3 by Bioguard®

What It Does: Shocks your pool without pre-dissolving
As you may have noticed, I think Bioguard® is the bee’s knees in pool chemistry. I have spent a lot of time with Bioguard® products and I will say, that they are the best. Burnout Extreme is by far the best pool shock on the market. It’s a cal hypo shock that they manufactured in such a way that you don’t have to pre-dissolve in the water is 4 feet deep and about 65 degrees or more. It’s really the best shock for inground pools, but I would still pre-dissolve in above ground pools (that’s just me).

9. Pool Magic Spring/Fall + Phos Free (Natural Chemistry)

What It Does: A natural enzyme that also prevents phosphates from building up.
This is a must have product when it’s time to close your pool. It’s a simple liquid application that helps prevent scum lines from forming with it’s natural enzymes and it also keeps phosphates from building up in your pool over the winter, which will give you a better chance opening your pool crystal clear in the spring. It also helps protect your liner and provides a similar feeling that the Optimizer Plus does to your water. Buy It Now!

10. Copper Based Algaecide

What It Does: Kills and prevents algae.
Most of the expensive algaecides are made with polyquat, and I would only use these as a preventative. However, there are cheap copper based algaecides that are awesome at killing algae. You will have to look at the bottles to find out which ones are copper, but they do a great job at actually killing the algae instead of just preventing it. Be careful though, copper algaecides are none to stain liners and white plastic. This is why I usually only recommend it for above ground pools. Buy It Now!