Keeping your pool water clear, balanced, and safe is easy when you make a weekly habit of testing your pool water using WATER TRENDS Test Strips. Once you master a basic understanding of what the results mean, you can quickly diagnose common water problems and restore balance.

This guide will walk through how to read your pool test results and what treatments help correct the most common issues.

Topic I: Test Your Pool Water

WATER TRENDS Test Strips provide readings on important water parameters that affect sanitizer performance, swimmer comfort, and overall water clarity.

Here’s our step-by-step process:

1. Make sure that your hands are dry before opening the cap and avoid touching the test strips on any wet surface. Close the cap tightly after removing each strip to avoid contamination.

2. Go to a section of your pool where the water is circulating; we recommend about 10-12 inches from the wall. Submerge the strip at a mid-level depth, which is about to your elbow. Keep it underwater for 2 seconds.

3. Remove the strip with the pads facing up, and shake once to remove excess water. Wait 10-15 seconds to get a more accurate reading of your water chemistry. Compare the strip colors to the chart to determine which levels need adjustment.

The strip will measure:

• Free Chlorine

• Total Chlorine

• Total Alkalinity

• pH

• Total Hardness

• Cyanuric Acid (Stabilizer)*

• Bromine (alternate sanitizer)*

*Available on WATER TRENDS Quick 7™ Test Strips

Recommended Tutorial:

Topic II: What Each Test Value Means

Free Chlorine

Ideal range: 1–3 ppm

Free chlorine is the active sanitizer that kills bacteria, algae, and other contaminants in your pool.

If Free Chlorine Is High (Above 5 ppm)

🚩 Eye irritation, possible chlorine smell. High levels of combined chlorine (chloramines) can indicate that the used, ineffective chlorine has bonded with contaminants and shock is needed to break these bonds and destroy contaminants.

✅ Treatment: Add WATER TRENDS Super Shock to the pool, let sunlight burn off the excess. This will convert combined chlorine back into free, sanitizing chlorine.

If Free Chlorine Is Low (Below 1-3 ppm)

🚩 Your pool may appear cloudy or begin developing algae.

✅ Treatment: Add WATER TRENDS Granular Chlorine, All-In-One Power Tabs, Shock, or replace your Nature 2 unit’s V-Pack

How chlorine works:

• Destroys bacteria and organic contaminants

• Prevents algae growth

• Restores sanitizer levels quickly after heavy use or storms

• Helps eliminate combined chlorine (chloramines)

Recommended Tutorials:

• WATER TRENDS Granular Powder

• WATER TRENDS All-In-One Power Tablets

• WATER TRENDS Chlorinating Shock

• WATER TRENDS V-PACK

pH

Ideal range: 7.2 – 7.8

pH measures how acidic or basic your pool water is. When pH is out of range, chlorine becomes less effective and swimmers may experience skin and eye irritation.

If pH Is Too High (Above 7.8)

🚩 High pH can cause:

• Cloudy water

• Scale buildup

• Reduced chlorine effectiveness

✅ Treatment: Add WATER TRENDS pH Down

How pH decreaser works:

• Lowers alkalinity and pH balance

• Improves chlorine efficiency

• Helps prevent scale formation

• Restores proper water balance

Recommended Tutorial: 

If pH Is Too Low (Below 7.2)

🚩 Low pH may cause:

• Eye irritation

• Corrosion of pool equipment

• Damage to pool surfaces

✅ Treatment: Add WATER TRENDS pH Up

How pH increaser works

• Raises pH to the proper range

• Helps stabilize water chemistry

• Reduces corrosion risk

• Improves swimmer comfort

Recommended Tutorial: 

Total Alkalinity

Ideal range: 80 – 120 ppm

Total alkalinity acts as a buffer for pH, helping prevent sudden swings in acidity.

If Alkalinity Is High (Above 120 ppm)

🚩 High alkalinity may cause:

• Cloudy water

• Scale formation

• pH that constantly drifts upward

✅ Treatment: Add Muriatic Acid to slowly lower alkalinity

If Alkalinity Is Low (Below 80 ppm)

🚩 Low alkalinity causes:

• Rapid pH fluctuations

• Corrosion risk

• Difficulty maintaining balanced water

✅ Treatment: Add WATER TRENDS Alkalinity Up

How alkalinity increaser works

• Stabilizes pH levels

• Prevents rapid chemical changes

• Protects pool surfaces and equipment

• Improves overall water balance

Recommended Tutorial:

Cyanuric Acid (Stabilizer)

Ideal range: 30 – 50 ppm

Cyanuric acid protects chlorine from being destroyed by sunlight.

Without stabilizer, chlorine can disappear within hours on a sunny day.

If Stabilizer Is High (Above 70-100 ppm)

🚩 Excess stabilizer can make chlorine less effective.

✅ Treatment: Dilute pool water with fresh water

If Stabilizer Is Low (Below 30 ppm)

🚩 Chlorine will burn off quickly in UV sunlight.

✅ Treatment: Add WATER TRENDS Chlorine Stabilizer

How stabilizer works

• Protects chlorine from sunlight

• Extends sanitizer life

• Reduces chlorine consumption

• Helps maintain consistent sanitizer levels

Recommended Tutorial: 

Calcium Hardness

Ideal range: 200 – 400 ppm

Calcium hardness measures the amount of dissolved calcium in your pool water.

If Hardness Is Too High (Above 400 ppm)

🚩 High hardness may cause:

• White scale buildup

• Cloudy water

• Deposits on tile and equipment

✅ Treatment: Dilute water or use scale control products

If Hardness Is Too Low (Below 220 ppm)

🚩 Low hardness can cause:

• Etching of plaster surfaces

• Corrosion of pool components

✅ Treatment: Add WATER TRENDS Hardness Control

How calcium hardness increaser works

• Adds dissolved calcium to water

• Protects plaster and concrete surfaces

• Helps maintain proper mineral balance

• Reduces corrosion risk

Recommended Tutorial:

Phosphates

Phosphates are a nutrient that feeds algae growth. Test strips cannot test for phosphates. We recommend taking a water sample to your local Great Escape for a digital water test at least once every three weeks or more frequently depending on the frequency of storms and heat waves in your area.

Ideal range: below 300 ppb

If Phosphates Are High (Above ~300 ppb)

🚩 High phosphate levels can make algae difficult to control, even with chlorine present.

✅ Treatment: Add WATER TRENDS Phos Cure enzymes

How phosphate remover works

• Binds with phosphates in the water

• Allows filtration to remove them

• Starves algae of nutrients

• Improves sanitizer performance

Recommended Tutorial:

If Phosphates are Low: Congratulations! You’re minimizing the odds of an algae bloom.

Topic III: Pool Water Troubleshooting Guide

Maintain Clear Pool Water All Season

Regular testing and small adjustments can prevent most pool problems before they start.

Follow this easy step-by-step process:

1. Test water

2. Adjust alkalinity

3. Adjust pH

4. Adjust chlorine

5. Treat phosphates

6. Retest

Using test strips once or twice a week allows you to catch imbalances early, treat them using WATER TRENDS designated pool treatments, and keep your pool water clean, clear, and ready for swimming. Watch our video tutorial to see the process from start to finish.

If you've done your best and still aren't seeing results, visit your local Great Escape store for a digital water test. Our pool water experts can help you determine other variables unique to your area such as water sources and weather events. We're here for you and always happy to help!