Salt on its own does not kill germs nor does it do anything on its own to clean or otherwise sanitize your pool in any way. A pool requires a salt chlorinator which converts salt to liquid chlorine to kill bacteria and germs and sanitize the water.
Putting salt into a regularly chorinated pool won’t do anything on its own either. You need the salt chlorinator system to electrify dissolved salt and convert it to a form of chlorine.
Please read on to learn more about salt water pools, benefits, drawbacks and how they work.
What is a salt water pool?
A salt water pool is one that uses a salt water chlorinator to convert dissolved salt into liquid chlorine. A regularly chlorinated pool is one where commercially bought chlorine is added to the water to sanitize it and keep it clean. A salt water pool turns salt into a form of chlorine by way of the chlorinator.
The distinguishing feature of a salt water pool over a regular pool is that it uses salt and a chlorinator system to produce chlorine.
It’s also important to remember that a salt water pool does have chlorine! Many people hear salt water pool and they think that this means there is no chlorine in the water but this is not true.
Chlorine is the sanitizer used to keep germs out and the water crystal clear. With a regular pool, chlorine is manually added usually in liquid or crystal form. In a salt water pool, chlorine is produced by the chlorinator with the conversion of salt.
Are salt water pools sanitary?
Salt water pools are sanitary just like other pools sanitized with bromine, ozone or other option as long as the water chemistry is kept within range.
The important part to remember is that salt levels need to be kept in range because it’s the salt that dissolves in your pool water and then gets run through the pump and chlorinator to be converted to liquid chlorine. It’s this liquid chlorine that sanitizes your pool water.
Below are some articles I’ve written that will help you learn more about aspects of salt water pool ownership if you want to learn more or already have a salt water pool and are trying to figure it out:
How To Add Salt To Your Salt Water Pool: It’s not hard but you might need a few tips on how and where to add it when you’re adding salt for the first time.
7 Factors To Balance A Salt Water Pool: An overview of pool water chemistry to help you keep them in range so that your water is safe and clean for swimming.
Can I Add Salt To My Pool Without A Saltwater System: This is one of the most popular pages on this website for some reason. You can’t add salt to your pool without a chlorinator and this article explains why.
Salt Water Pool Filter Definitions And Glossary: Salt water pools have a number of components and aspects that are different from other swimming pools so this articles takes a look at them and explains each.
Is it better to have a salt water pool or chlorine?
Choosing between a salt water pool or regularly chlorinated one is largely a matter of preference.
A salt water pool is more expensive up front since it involves purchasing a salt chlorination system which typically costs around $1200 and up depending on the manufacturer and brand you pick. It does tend to use less chemicals over time and the ongoing maintenance tends to be less than other pool options too.
Saltwater pools do tend to provide softer water that is easier on the skin and eyes, too.
A regularly chlorinated pool simply involves manually adding chlorine regularly usually on a weekly basis. You will probably spend several hundred dollars per season on chlorine but it depends on the pool size (water volume), your local weather conditions (direct sun kills chlorine), pool usage and other factors.
It is important to note that all pools use chemicals to some degree and both saltwater and regular pools are chlorinated. They just used a slightly different form of chlorine, that’s all.
If you’d like to learn more about salt water pool chlorinators, please check out my article called How Does A Saltwater Pool Work?