Having the right chlorine levels will determine how safe and clean your pool is. However, most pool owners always find themselves trying to figure out how many chlorine tablets they need at a given time. This is the most common challenge with chlorine tablets.
Most swimming pools will need one 3-inch trichlor chlorine tablet every 3-5 days to maintain chlorine levels. This will differ depending on the size of your pool, the amount of use, the location of your pool, and the water balance. If you use smaller 1-inch tablets or use Dichlor tablets, then you will need to increase the number of tablets.
As we seek to have a quick read through this post, we’ll get to what chlorine tablets are and how best to apply them in our pools.
Article Contents
What are Chlorine Tablets?
As the name suggests chlorine tablets are chlorine in solid form. The chlorine type is usually trichlor and they usually come in 1 and 3-inch sizes packaged in a bucket.
The tablets contain stabilizers and are perfect to be used in outdoor pools.
One-inch tablets dissolve faster to boost your pool chlorine levels and are efficient for small pools. The 3-inch tablets are the most popularly used, less expensive, and easy to handle. Only a few tablets are required in larger pools making it the better option.
The tablets are placed in water and slowly dissolve over time to maintain desired pool chlorine levels. They require less work to disperse and are thus are cost-effective in terms of time and money.
How Do Chlorine Tablets Work?
Tablets are Considered a favorite sanitizer among private and residential pool owners due to their long life.
The tablet chlorine contains an active component trichloro-s-triazinetrione which makes the chlorine highly available and at a slow rate, for its efficiency. The rate of dissolution depends on the amount of time it’s in contact with pool water. The tablets should be as evenly dispersed as possible for your pool to be sufficiently chlorinated.
I would highly recommend you put your chlorine tablets in a floater. Do not put them in the skimmer or let them sink to the bottom of the pool as chlorine can damage surfaces. Here’s a couple of skimmers I recommend:
| Image | Product | Features | Link |
|---|---|---|---|
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| 9.7 | Check Price |
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| 9.5 | Check Price |
Related Reading: How Long Does Pool Chlorine Last For (Shelf Life)?
How Many Chlorine Tablets Do I Need in My Pool?
Ideally, tablets are designed to help reduce the amount of time taken on constantly checking on pool chlorine levels. Knowing the right quantity of tablet to apply at a time help pool owner reduce the risk of running high stabilizer levels, that’s besides damage to pool equipment and surfaces.
High stabilized pool would require a complete drain of the pool for new pool water. Using the Right tablet quantity, therefore, is important to save on the cost of pool maintenance.
The number of tablets you need at a time in your pool all depends on your pool capacity. Once you know how much water your pool holds it becomes easy to do your math with how many tablets to put.
Normal chlorine levels in a pool run at between 1-3 ppm (parts per milligram). A 3-inch tablet of chlorine weighs about 8 ounces (227 g), while a 1-inch weighs about 0.5 ounces (14 g). Generally, one ounce of chlorine (28.35 g) will give you 1 ppm for 7,500 gallons (34,096 L) of water.
For a 10,000-gallon pool, you will need about 1.3 ounces of chlorine to attain 1 ppm. Be careful not to add too many tablets at the one time or you risk over chlorinating the water and adding too much stabilizer.
The table below summarizes how many tablets you need in your pool at a time.
| Pool Capacity (In Gallons) | 3 Inch Chlorine Tablets |
| 5,000 | 1 |
| 10,000 | 2 |
| 13,000 | 2 |
| 13,500 | 3 |
| 15,000 | 3 |
| 17,000 | 3 |
| 17,500 | 4 |
| 20,000 | 4 |
For efficient dispensation always round off your pool to 5,000-gallon capacity. The table offers a guide on quantifying depending on your average pool capacity.
Number of Chlorine Tablets for Intex Pools
The number of tablets you need for your Intex pool will depend on the capacity. Each Intex pool comes in different sizes and varies from model to model. In the chart below we cover how many chlorine tablets (trichlor) are needed to keep your pool sanitized to 2-3 ppm.
This will work for Intex Kiddie Pools, Intex Easy Set, Intex Metal Frame, and Intex Prism Frame.
| Intex Pools (Types & Sizes) | Water Capacity | 3 Inch Chlorine Tablets Needed |
| Intex Kiddie Pools | ||
| Sunset Glow Pool, 45 in X 10 in | 35 gal (132 L) | 1 teaspoon of 6% bleach |
| 6 ft X 15 in Ocean Play Snapset Pool | 253 gal (958 L) | Add 1.2 fl oz of 6% bleach |
| Swim Center Pinwheel Pool 90 in x 22 in | 222 gal (840 L) | Add 1.2 fl oz of 6% bleach |
| Pineapple Baby Pool 40 in x 37 in | 12 gal (45 L) | Add 0.1 fl oz of 6% bleach |
| Unicorn Baby Pool 50in L x 40 in W x 27 in H | 12 gal (45 L) | Add 0.1 fl oz of 6% bleach |
| Swim Center Family Lounge Inflatable Pool 90” L x 90” W x 26” H | 262 gal (992 L) | Add 1.2 fl oz of 6% bleach |
| Swim Center Shootin’ Hoops Family Pool 101 in L x 74 in W x 51 in H | 180 gal (681 L) | Add 1.2 fl oz of 6% bleach |
| Rainbow Arch Spray Pool 58 in L x 51 in W x 34 in | 22 gal (83 L) | Add 0.1 fl oz of 6% bleach |
| Rainbow Ombre Pool 66 in x 15 in | 154 gal (583 L) | Add 1 fl oz of 6% bleach |
| Happy Otter Pool 75 in x 70 in x 24 in | 135 gal (511 L) | Add 1 fl oz of 6% bleach |
| Sunset Glow Pool, 66 in X 18 in | 206 gal (780 L) | Add 1.2 fl oz of 6% bleach |
| Just So Fruity Pool Set 48 in X 10 in | 40 gal (151 L) | 1 teaspoon of 6% bleach |
| Sunset Glow Baby Pool 34 in X 10 in | 15 gal (57 L) | Add 0.1 fl oz of 6% bleach |
| 4 ft X 10 in Duckling Snapset Pool | 74 gal (280 L) | Add 0.5 fl oz of 6% bleach |
| 8 ft X 18 in Deep Blue Sea Snapset Pool | 539 gal (2,040 L) | 1/4 tablet |
| Watermelon Pool 66 in X 15 in | 154 gal (583 L) | Add 1 fl oz of 6% bleach |
| Crystal Blue Pool, 66 in X 15 in | 154 gal (583 L) | Add 1 fl oz of 6% bleach |
| Soft Side Pool 74 in X 18 in | 209 gal (791 L) | Add 1.2 fl oz of 6% bleach |
| SunShade Pool 62 in L X 62 in W X 48 in H | 78 gal (295 L) | Add 0.5 fl oz of 6% bleach |
| Whale Spray Pool 79 in X 77 in X 36 in | 53 gal (201 L) | 2 teaspoons of 6% bleach |
| Rainbow Cloud Baby Pool 56 in X 47 in X 33 in | 22 gal (83 L) | 1/2 teaspoon of 6% bleach |
| PlayBox Pools 33.5 in L X 33.5 in W X 9 in H | 15 gal (57 L) | Add 0.1 fl oz of 6% bleach |
| Swim Center Seashore Pool 103 in L X 63 in W X 18 in H | 185 gal (700 L) | Add 1.4 fl oz of 6% bleach |
| Swim Center Family Pool, 103 in X 69 in X 22 in | 203 gal (768 L) | Add 1.5 fl oz of 6% bleach |
| 5 ft X 10 in Fun at the Beach Snapset Pool | 117 gal (443 L) | Add 1 fl oz of 6% bleach |
| Sunset Glow Pool, 58 in X 13 in | 73 gal (276 L) | Add 0.5 fl oz of 6% bleach |
| Swim Center Family Pool, 120 in X 72 in X 22 in | 269 gal (1,018 L) | Add 1.7 fl oz of 6% bleach |
| Crystal Blue Pool, 58 in X 13 in | 87 gal (329 L) | Add 0.5 fl oz of 6% bleach |
| Beach Wave Swim Center Pool 90 in L x 90 in W x 22 in H | 330 gal (1,249 L) | Add 2.1 fl oz of 6% bleach |
| Clearview Aquarium Pool 62.5 in x 62.5 in x 19.5 in | 90 gal (341 L) | Add 0.5 fl oz of 6% bleach |
| Swim Center Family Lounge Pool 90 in L x 86 in W x 31 in H | 156 gal (591 L) | Add 1.2 fl oz of 6% bleach |
| Mandarin Swim Center Family Pool 90 in x 58 in x 18 in | 159 gal (602 L) | Add 1.2 fl oz of 6% bleach |
| Dinosaur 3-Ring Baby Pool 24 in X 8.5 in | 9 gal (34 L) | 1/4 teaspoon of 6% bleach |
| 48 in X 48 in X 12 in Mini Frame Pool | 90 gal (341 L) | Add 0.5 fl oz of 6% bleach |
| Intex Easy Set Pools | ||
| 10 ft X 24 in Easy Set Pool | 813 gal (3,078 L) | 1/4 |
| 8 ft X 24 in Easy Set Pool Set | 513 gal (1,942 L | 1/4 |
| 8 ft X 24 in Easy Set Pool | 513 gal (1,942 L) | 1/4 |
| 6 ft X 20 in Happy Crab Easy Set Pool | 232 gal (878 L) | Add 1.2 fl oz of 6% bleach |
| 15 ft X 33 in Easy Set Pool Set | 2,587 gal (9,793 L) | 1/2 |
| 12 ft X 30 in Easy Set Pool Set | 1,485 gal (5,621 L) | 1/2 |
| 10 ft X 30 in Easy Set Pool Set | 1,018 gal (3,854 L) | 1/4 |
| 10 ft X 30 in Easy Set Pool | 1,018 gal (3,854 L) | 1/4 |
| 8 ft X 30 in Easy Set Pool | 639 gal (2,419 L) | 1/4 |
| 6 ft X 20 in Easy Set Pool | 232 gal (878 L) | 1/4 |
| 13 ft X 33 in Easy Set Pool Set | 1,926 gal (7,291 L) | 1/2 |
| 18 ft X 48 in Easy Set Pool Set | 5,455 gal (20,649 L) | 1 |
| 15 ft X 42 in Easy Set Pool Set | 3,736 gal (14,142 L) | 1 |
| 15 ft X 48 in Easy Set Pool Set | 3,736 gal (14,142 L) | 1 |
| 12 ft X 30 in Easy Set Pool | 1,485 gal (5,621 L) | 1/2 |
| Intex Metal Frame Pools | ||
| 8 ft X 20 in Metal Frame Pool | 483 gal (1,828 L) | 1/4 |
| 10 ft X 30 in Beachside Metal Frame Pool Set | 1,185 gal (4,486 L) | 1/4 |
| 10 ft X 30 in Beachside Metal Frame Pool | 1,185 gal (4,486 L) | 1/4 |
| 18 ft X 48 in Metal Frame Pool Set | 6,423 gal (24,314 L) | 1 |
| 15 ft X 48 in Metal Frame Pool Set | 4,440 gal (16,807 L) | 1 |
| 10 ft X 30 in Metal Frame Pool | 1,185 gal (4,486 L) | 1/4 |
| 12 ft X 30 in Metal Frame Pool | 1,718 gal (6,503 L) | 1 |
| 12 ft X 30 in Metal Frame Pool Set | 1,718 gal (6,503 L) | 1 |
| 10 ft X 30 in Metal Frame Pool Set | 1,185 gal (4,486 L) | 1 |
| Intex Prism Frame Pools | ||
| 16 ft X 48 in Clearview Prism Frame Premium Pool Set | 5,061 gal (19,158 L) | 1 |
| 18 ft x 48 in Greywood Prism Frame Pool Set | 6,423 gal (24,314 L) | 1 |
| 15 ft X 48 in Greywood Prism Frame Pool Set | 4,440 gal (16,807 L) | 1 |
| 20 ft X 10 ft X 48 in Prism Frame Oval Pool Set | 4,809 gal (18,204 L) | 1 |
| 16 ft 6 in X 9 ft X 48 in Prism Frame Oval Pool Set | 3,531 gal (13,366 L) | 1 |
| 16 ft X 8 ft X 42 in Prism Frame Rectangular Pool Set | 2,873 gal (10,875 L) | 1/2 |
| 20 ft X 52 in Prism Frame Pool Set | 8,638 gal (32,698 L) | 2 |
| 18 ft X 48 in Prism Frame Pool Set | 6,423 gal (24,314 L) | 1 |
| 15 ft X 48 in Prism Frame Pool Set | 4,440 gal (16,807 L) | 1 |
| 15 ft X 42 in Prism Frame Pool Set | 3,861 gal (14,615 L) | 1 |
| 14 ft X 42 in Prism Frame Pool Set | 3,357 gal (12,708 L) | 1 |
| 12 ft X 30 in Prism Frame Pool Set | 1,718 gal (6,503 L) | 1/2 |
| 12 ft X 30 in Prism Frame Pool | 1,718 gal (6,503 L) | 1/2 |
| 10 ft X 30 in Prism Frame Pool Set | 1,185 gal (4,486 L) | 1/2 |
| 10 ft X 30 in Prism Frame Pool | 1,185 gal (4,486 L) | 1/2 |
After How Long Should I Add My Tablet to My Pool
Chlorine tablets take a couple of days to be completely dissolved. This amount of time is dependent on:
- Pool temperature
- Method of dispensation
Chlorine tablets can therefore last anywhere from 3-5 days meaning you’ll have to chlorinate your pool every week when using the tablet.
Where Should You Place The Tablets In The Pool?
Should I just toss my chlorine tablets and forget about it till next week on the scheduled date? No! when you toss, they might settle on the pool bottom and cause staining on the concrete or liner for efficient and even chlorination of the pool the tablets should be evenly distributed with the aid of a device.
Below are some of the ways you can dispense your chlorine tablets.
Automatic Chlorinator (Chlorine Feeder)
- Automatically chlorinates or feeds bromine into pool/spa
- Holds chlorine or bromine tablets
- Adjustable flow to regulate sanitizer amount
Preferably the best method is to use a tablet chlorinator, a chlorinator delivers precise amounts of chlorine to the swimming pool water. This device is purchased separately and installed as a component of the pool filtration system. It has a spot where you feed your tablets and a control knob where you can set your level of ppm (between 1 and 3).
Chlorinators come in two ways:
- Automatic chlorinators: automatically installed permanently into the water return line
- Off-line chlorinators: are retrofitted to a pool on a separate line that is tapped off the main supply line and can easily be uninstalled
The downside is the cost but the greatest outweighing advantage is that it gives you control over the feed rate. This allows you to have control of the quantity of chlorine dipping in your water and avoid chlorine wastage.
Floating Chlorine Dispenser
| Image | Product | Features | Link |
|---|---|---|---|
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| 9.7 | Check Price |
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| 9.5 | Check Price |
Pool chlorine floater is a small plastic gadget that floats on the surface of your pool. They are the simplest to use. They hold your tablets depending on their capacity and slowly release the chlorine as it wanders over the pool.
Although low budget, they are often not the best to use. They sometimes get entangled on the skimmer or just get swayed and stick in a pool corner unevenly distributing the chlorine. As they release the chlorine when static that point starts to stain on the pool liner and also starts to corrode the pool material.
Warning: Only use the one type of chlorine in your floater or chlorinator. If you want to switch chlorines, buy a new floater specifically for that chlorine type. Mixing different chlorine could cause an explosion. Different types of chlorine are not compatible together. See our article here for more info: Can You Mix or Switch Chlorine Types? (Answered!)
Pool Skimmer
Simply drop your pool tablet on the skimmer’s mouth. You have the skimmer already so all you need is to buy the tablets. As water is drawn into the skimmer it passes over your tablets it dissolves and gets drawn into the filtration system. The water circulates back via the return jets allowing the chorine even distribution.
It’s important to note you can only dispense via this method when your pump is running. When you stop running the pump, check out and remove removing the partially-dissolved tablets.
This will help avoid corrosion of your lines from the highly chlorinated water stuck on the filtration lines.
Related Reading: Can You Put Chlorine Granules or Tablets in the Pump Basket?
