Salt Water vs. Chlorine Tabs: Which Pool Sanitizer Is Right for You?
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Time to read 5 min
Did you hear your neighbor has a salt water pool? Does your pool use chlorine tabs? What is the difference between a chlorine pool and a salt water pool? With the rise of salt chlorinators, these questions come up everyday.
We have been building pools since 1966. One thing hasn't changed you need to sanitize your water. Without it algae builds up and you get a green pool. One thing most homeowners don't realize is that a salt water pool uses chlorine. The difference is how the chlorine is produced and handled.
This article highlights the differences in a salt water versus a chlorine tab pool. We share how salt water pools work and why they are not a chlorine-free pool. Then you can decide if a salt cell chlorinator is the right choice for your specific pool maintenance needs.
Table of contents
Does Salt Water or Chlorine Tabs Fit Your Pool?
The answer depends on how maintenance you want to do versus how much money on equipment you want to spend. Regardless both choices are using chlorine to sanitize your pool. Chlorine tabs win on simplicity and low upfront cost. Salt wins on consistency and water feel. (Go to CDC Home Pool Water Treatment)
- Tabs mean buying product every week in summer.
- Salt means steadier day-to-day sanitizing.
- Tabs add cyanuric acid
- Salt cells need to be replaced every few years
Salt Cell Replace Chlorine Tablets
"It absolutely can replace the daily use, the weekly use of chlorine, especially in the summer, that becomes frequent and cumbersome with chlorine tablets. A salt chlorine generator salt system works in overtime when the water is warmer in the summer." - Skip Ast III, Shasta Pools Sales Director
What Does It Take to Convert a Chlorine Pool to Salt?
Converting takes buying a salt chlorine generator and having it installed properly. A Jandy TrueClear setup needs the water salted to 3,000 parts per million and at least 20 gallons per minute of flow moving through the cell before it'll generate chlorine correctly. If you live in an area where there's a lot of hard water, you'll want to reduce that reversal time.
- Installing the salt cell and control unit in the equipment pad
- Adding enough pool salt to hit the target ppm
- Confirming flow rate meets the minimum before
- Shortening the polarity reversal cycle if you're on Arizona's harder tap water
Can You Switch Back to Chlorine Tabs Later?
Yes, nothing about a salt system locks you in. You can shut off the salt cell and go back to tabs or a floater whenever you want.
- Salt stays in the pool until it's diluted out or drained
- Adding liquid chlorine on top of existing salt pushes TDS higher
- Most homeowners drain and refill
Are you interested in switching to a salt water pool?
How often are you going to have to replace your salt cell? Learn what can extend their lifespan.
Do Salt Water Pools Have Chlorine?
Yes, a salt water pool uses chlorine. The salt cell manufactures it. It converts dissolved salt into chlorine through electrolysis. If you're swimming in a "salt pool," you're still swimming in chlorinated water.
- Chlorine is produced continuously by the cell instead of added by hand
- The water can feel softer, since there's less chloramine buildup
- You're not buying tabs weekly
Why "chlorine-free" isn't the right way to think about it
"It absolutely can replace the daily use, the weekly use of chlorine, especially in the summer, that becomes frequent and cumbersome with chlorine tablets. A salt chlorine generator salt system works in overtime when the water is warmer in the summer." — Skip Ast III, Director of Sales, Shasta Pools
Do you know how much chlorine to use?
Learn how to dose chlorine correctly and when you need to use less or more.
Why Homeowners Switch to Salt Water Pool?
Most homeowners switch for the softer water. No more red eyes or bleached swimsuits. No weekly trip to buy tabs.
- Gentler water with less chloramine irritation
- No more buying and storing chlorine tabsMore consistent day-to-day sanitizing
- More "hands-off" for daily use
The tradeoff nobody mentions
"Those are tough because they don't keep up in the middle of summer, and in the middle of winter it gets too cold for them to work. It gets too hot usually for the size pools to keep up. So you do get a supplement with some liquid chlorine or maybe some tabs, because liquid chlorine ends up adding to TDS and salt, which you don't want to do once it's all set." — Brock Falk, Field Manager, Weekly Pool Care, Shasta Pools
Should you switch to a salt system?
Learn the pros and cons and if switching to salt water is financially worth it.
A lot of people in Phoenix do have salt in their water. So occasionally you got to drain your pool down to keep the salt levels — well, we got to do it all the time for our customers.
Are you interested in installing the Jandy Truclear?
Jandy has developed one of the most reliable and best performing salt cells. Available for local pick up only.
Checkout the Jandy Truclear
Why Homeowners Stay with Chlorine Tabs
People use chlorine tabs because they're simple. Also, cheaper to get started sanitizing your pool. For a lot of homeowners, that's worth more than the convenience salt promises.
- No equipment to buy or eventually replace
- Lower upfront cost
- Easy to understandNo cell to clean and no polarity settings to worry about
The Cost of Using Chlorine Tablets
"It's not unrealistic to go through five tabs per week [in summer]. Where in the wintertime, in the coldest part, January, February area, you could be one tab every two weeks or three weeks." — Brock Falk, Field Manager, Weekly Pool Care, Shasta Pools
Are you curios if the new salt cell from Pentair is worth the upgrade?
Learn the differences between the Plus40 and IC40 salt systems.
The Difference Is How You Plan to Manage Chlorine
Salt or tabs, you're managing chlorine either way. Salt water pools are not chlorine-free. The decision is about chlorine maintenance. A salt cell produces chlorine for you though needs to be replaced. Chlorine tabs are easy to use and cheaper to start. You do now have to handle and store chlorine tablets.
Homeowners will go through more chlorine tabs in hot summer days. Your salt chlorinator will also have to work hard. Many homeowners switch to salt water pools though there are equal amount still using manual chlorine in a floater.
Our team at Shasta Pool Supply are happy to answer any questions you have. We offer value prices on 50lb buckets of chlorine tabs. Also, we offer the latest in salt cell tech including the Jandy Truclear and the Pentair Plus40 Intellichlor.
