CliniPool / Understand your water
Pool pH: the conductor of your water
- Ideal range: 7.0 to 7.4 — aligned with the human eye (7.4) and chlorine effectiveness.
- A high pH disarms chlorine: at 8.0, it has lost most of its sanitising power.
- pH drifts naturally (swimming, rain, aeration, alkalinity): check it every week.
- The pH+ or pH− dose depends on volume AND alkalinity — it's a calculation, and the app does it.
pH measures the water’s acidity, from 0 to 14, and it’s the single most important parameter of your pool. The ideal range: 7.0 to 7.4. Why that one? Because the human eye sits at 7.4 (swimming comfort) and chlorine works efficiently there. Above it, chlorine deactivates massively and eyes sting; below it, the water turns corrosive for equipment and harsh on skin. pH drifts constantly — swimming, rain, aeration — so it gets tested every week. And it gets corrected by calculation, not by the scoop: the dose depends on the volume and the alkalinity, which is exactly what the CliniPool app does.
Why pH governs everything
Chlorine exists in water in two forms: an active form (which sanitises) and a nearly inactive one. The split between the two depends on… the pH. Around 7.0–7.2, most of the chlorine is active; at 7.8, only a minority is left; at 8.0 and above, your chlorine is largely a spectator. That’s why so many water problems “despite a good chlorine level” are really pH problems: the product is there, but disarmed.
On the swimmer’s side, the equation is just as direct: tears at pH 7.4, water at 8.0 → red eyes. And on the equipment side, a persistently low pH attacks seals and metals, while a high pH scales everything up in hard-water regions.
Why it drifts (and why it’s not your fault)
In most pools, the pH rises naturally: every swim, jet or waterfall drives off CO2, which pulls the pH upwards — all the faster when the alkalinity is high. Add rain, top-up water and certain treatment products pushing one way or the other. Salt pools climb even faster (electrolysis contributes). The practical conclusion: a drifting pH is not a sign of neglect, it’s the norm. What matters is seeing it drift.
Correcting: a calculation, not a scoop
To correct, you use pH− (the most frequent need) or pH+. The hard part isn’t the gesture, it’s the quantity: it depends on your volume, the gap to close, and above all your alkalinity — water with high alkalinity “resists” change and needs more product, while water with low alkalinity reacts violently. That’s why generic doses end in a rollercoaster: too much, then too little, then too much. The app calculates the dose for YOUR water, tells you how to add it safely, and when to re-test.
Two universal safety rules: correct in stages (never the whole gap in one go), and always add the product to the water, never the other way round.
pH in everyday life
The winning routine fits in one sentence: one test a week in season, pH first, the rest after. Every water analysis starts with it, and every treatment (shocks included) starts by putting it back in range — otherwise the treatment works at half strength. With the app, the photo test takes 30 seconds, the history shows the underlying trend, and you get an alert when a drift sets in. pH stops being a worry: it becomes a habit.
Frequently asked questions
Why does my pH keep climbing?
It's the natural behaviour of most pools: aeration (jets, waterfall, swimming) drives off CO2 and pushes the pH up, all the faster when alkalinity is high. It's not a failure, it's physics — hence the weekly check.
What pH for a saltwater pool?
Same target range, but extra vigilance: salt electrolysis naturally pushes the pH up. Salt pools need more frequent pH− corrections.
Can pH turn the water green?
Indirectly, yes: a high pH neutralises much of the chlorine, and algae exploit that weakened sanitisation. Plenty of green pools start with a drifting pH.
Liquid or powder pH-?
Both work; the form depends on your equipment and preferences (liquid doses easily with a dosing pump, powder stores better). The app doses with the product YOU own.