This blog will help you understand what happens when your stabilizer levels are too low, how it can affect your pool and cleaning equipment, and how to keep your pool’s chemicals balanced. So, if you were wondering about the role stabilizer plays when using something like a robot pool cleaner such as the Beatbot AquaSense Pro or the Beatbot iSkim Ultra, it’s quite important to keep everything cleaned up and in good condition.
What Is Stabilizer, and Why Is It Necessary?
In a saltwater pool, a saltwater chlorinator generates chlorine, which is highly susceptible to degradation by the sun’s ultraviolet (UV) rays. This is where the stabilizer (cyanuric acid) comes into play as it forms a protective bond around the chlorine molecules, aiding in preventing chlorine loss by slowing down breakdown by the UV light. This keeps chlorine active longer, helping to ensure that your pool stays sanitized and clean.
For a saltwater pool, the recommended stabilizer level is usually between 30-50 ppm (parts per million). Too low a stabilizer level means that the chlorine in your pool disappears too quickly and can not do its job of keeping the water sanitized. This not only makes it more difficult to keep your water quality in check, but it can also create more work for your robot pool cleaner as well as other cleaning equipment.
What If Stabilizer Levels Are Low?
Low saltwater pool stabilizer levels can cause multiple issues. So let’s examine the emergence process more closely:
Chlorine Breaks Down Faster
Stabilizer’s most important job is to shield chlorine from the sun’s UV rays. The result is that in low levels of stabilizer, chlorine is exposed to more UV rays for longer, breaking down at a quicker pace. Because of this, maintaining proper sanitation in your pool will require more frequent chlorine additions. That can translate to higher chemical costs along with greater effort to keep the pool clean.
Increased Algae Growth
It is your pool’s first line of defense against bacteria, algae, and other contaminants. When there aren’t enough stabilizer levels, chlorine won’t work as well to sanitize the water, making your pool susceptible to algae blooms. These blooms can turn your pool green in no time and inhibit your robotic pool cleaner or pool vacuum robot from effectively doing its job.
More Work for Pool Cleaners
A pool cleaning robot, also known as a robotic pool cleaner, is a type of automated pool maintenance device that cleans the water of a swimming pool by powering itself around the pool. If your water is not adequately sanitized due to low stabilizer levels, your cleaning robot will have to work overtime to address the unwanted guests, like algae and bacteria. This leads to more frequent cleanings, and in turn, more fatigue on your pool robot cleaner or swimming pool robot cleaner.
What’s more, as algae and other organic matter accumulate, your pool skimmer might be unable to clear it efficiently, which means more work for your cleaning equipment.
Cloudy or Dirty Pool Water
Chlorine can become ineffective with low stabilizer levels, which could lead to cloudy and dirty water. Your pool robot vacuum or pool cleaner robot may head off the gunk in the deep end, but it won’t be able to keep the pool water crystal clear if the sanitizer inside the pool isn’t doing its job. Dirty water can also hinder your robot pool vacuum, which can make it more difficult for your vacuum to clean.
Increased Pool Maintenance
Lower chlorine efficiency means more upkeep with your pool. All of this means that you may end up shocking the pool more often, adding additional chlorine on a regular basis, and, in some cases, experiencing nasty odors or irritated eyes because of high chlorine levels. All of that can mean more work for you and more wear and tear on your pool equipment — including your robotic pool cleaner.
How to Keep Stabilizer from Getting Too Low
These issues can be prevented by controlling the stabilizer levels. Here are tips to ensure your pool has enough stabilizer:
Regularly Test Your Pool Water
The most effective way to monitor stabilizer levels is through regular testing of your pool water. You can use a pool test kit that tests for cyanuric acid, or bring a sample to your local pool store to have it tested. It is advised to check stabilizer levels once a month or more frequently during peak swimming season.
Add Stabilizer When Needed
If the stabilizer levels drop below the desirable range of 30-50 ppm, it’s time to add more stabilizer to the water. You can mix in a stabilizer powdered or liquid. If you’re working with granular cyanuric acid, dissolve it in a bucket of water and pour it into the deep end of the pool. As for liquid stabilizer, you can pour it directly into the pool close to the return jets for faster mixing.
Monitor Chlorine Usage
If you have been adding chlorine to your saltwater pool on an unusual basis, it can be a sign that your stabilizer levels are too low. Be mindful of chlorine consumption and treat your stabilizer levels properly.
Run Your Pool Pump After Adding Stabilizer
It’s recommended to run your pool pump for 24-48 hours after adding a stabilizer, to spread the chemical evenly through your pool. Abandon ideally your robot pool cleaner or swimming pool robot cleaner a day, at least once to allow the stabilizer to circulate about your swimming pool, obtaining into every hole as well as a nook.
What This Means for Robotic Pool Cleaners
As we noted earlier, stabilizer levels will directly affect the efficacy of your robot pool cleaner. When the stabilizer shields the chlorine, it sanitizes pool water effectively and keeps algae and bacteria growth at bay. This, in return, eases the task of the pool-cleaning robot. If the stabilizer is low, your robotic cleaner must work harder to remove the contaminants trapped in the water, which can put excessive stress on the motor and other parts of the equipment over time.
For instance, you could opt for Beatbot AquaSense Pro or Beatbot iSkim Ultra models which are specially curated to clean pools that add in balanced water chemistry. Maintaining proper levels of stabilizer will help the machines run properly and save you time and energy in keeping the pool maintained.
Conclusion
Low saltwater pool stabilizer levels can result in a myriad of problems, including subpar chlorine performance, algae proliferation, and elevated maintenance. Your robotic pool cleaner needs the right amount of stabilizer to operate effectively and keep your pool clean, clear, and safe to swim in. With regular testing, the right chemical management, and the correct stabilizer levels, you’ll keep your pool water balanced, and your cleaning equipment working.
If you’re using the Beatbot AquaSense Pro or the Beatbot AquaSense, the AquaSense app will import these readings to ensure your robot pool cleaner has proper stabilizer levels, so it doesn’t overwork itself making your pool clean. Stay proactive in maintaining your pool’s chemical balance so low stabilizer levels don’t ruin the cleanliness of your pool!
