Water chemistry is broken down into a few aspects with varying degrees of importance. Balance of conditioners and enzymes on the back end of the spectrum is as significant as forefront sanitizer levels such as chlorine/ bromine, Ph and alkalinity readings. Scheduled and routine testing is essential in maintaining a healthy pool, but the real value is stability since chlorine and other chemicals can be costly. Calcium hardness, phosphate control and total dissolved solid monitoring will is also relevant as keeping these ranges under control will prevent problems such as staining, scale buildup and chlorine loss. Let's take a dive into the basic sanitation and Ph levels, followed by our more advanced levels bringing forth our desired stability. Consistency is key! Keep it simple by starting with your basics.</p> <p>-Sanitation (Chlorine and Bromine)<br /> Chlorine is the most common, effective chemical introduced into the circulatory system which kills living contaminants on the molecular level. The two main sources used as a ``shock`` treatment are liquid (sodium hypochloride, 5%) and granular (calcium hypochloride, 60%-).