Swimming pool water contains chemicals, especially chlorine, that can harm your trees and landscape plants when water drains and floods the area. Too much chlorine can damage tree leaves and other delicate tissues. Too much chlorinated water all at once can even kill trees.
The Centers for Disease Control and Prevention tells us plants are not harmed by water treated with chlorine. Most of us have been watering our plants with chlorinated water for years and they survive.
Pool water cannot be used to water plants unless the chlorine content is reduced. Chlorine eliminates bacteria and algae in pool water by disinfecting or killing action. It also oxidizes other materials such as dirt and chloramines and can harm plants in high quantities.
In particular, chlorine is important for plant photosynthesis as it is involved in the opening and closing of stomata (pores in leaves that enable plants to take in and release carbon dioxide, oxygen and other gases as required. It also helps ensure leaves are firm.
Palm trees, wax myrtle, yaupon (tree holly), devilwood, live oak, willow oak, southern magnolia, eastern red cedar and Siberian elm are all great choices.
* Can i discharge the backwash water onto my lawn, will it harm the grass / plants? The DE doesn't harm the grass or plants, excessive chlorine or saltwater may. Alternatively you could backwash to a sewer outlet or clean-out.
Simply stop adding chlorine to your uncovered pool and wait. Sunlight will help to naturally dissipate the chlorine within 10 days. During that time, use a swimming pool test kit to measure chlorine. Chemically dechlorinate the pool water.
Just fill a large bucket or wide-mouth jar with filtered tap water and let sit overnight. The chlorine will naturally evaporate. Then, mix this water with germinating soil or put it in a spray bottle to water your seedlings. Don't let it sit too long, or it can become contaminated with stuff floating around in the air.
Chlorine Deficiency
On other plant species, the most commonly described symptom of Cl deficiency is wilting of leaves, especially at the margins. As the deficiency progresses and becomes more severe, the leaves exhibit curling, bronzing, chlorosis, and necrosis.
2 ppm of Chlorine will take up to 4 and a half days or around 110 hours to evaporate from 10 gallons of standing water. Ultraviolet light, water circulation, and aeration will speed up the evaporation process dramatically. Chlorine will last between 6 and 8 minutes in 10 gallons of boiling tap water.
If you plan on using pool water to irrigate your trees, don't add any more chlorine to your pool. After four or five days, test the water. When its chlorine level dips below 0.5 parts per million, the water is safe for most trees.
Warmer air will cause the chlorine to evaporate more rapidly. If you decide to place the water in a jug that's left open in the refrigerator, the chlorine should evaporate completely within 24 hours. For quicker evaporation times, leave the water at room temperature.
I think the answer to your question is about 3-6 days. The problem is that the chlorine that you need to keep the bacteria in check is used up more quickly as the temperature rises, the activity increases, and as sweat and other body stuff is put into the pool.
A freshly chlorinated pool should not be discharged into the yard; the chlorine is harmful to yard plants and the environment as a whole. Using a test kit, your pool water needs to reflect a certain concentration of chlorine, such as 0.1 ppm (parts per million), before it is safe to drain into your yard.
Granted, it sounds too good to be true, but diatomaceous earth can be a safe, effective, nontoxic component of your lawn-pest management plan if you buy a product that's labeled for the pests you're targeting, use it exactly according to the package label, and take the proper precautions during preparation and ...
Under no circumstances should backwash water be discharged into the septic tank. In unsewered regions, backwash water is to be discharged to a grassed, vegetated or garden area, or a stone-filled trench either open to the surface or underground (similar to a septic tank absorption field).
Maintenance is critical when it comes to the quality of your pool water. Well maintained pool water can last up to 5, maybe even seven years before you need to replace it. This means weekly cleaning, functional filters, and checking ph levels every day. Usage is a huge determining factor.
It takes a lot of chemicals to make pool water safe for swimming. Untreated water can accumulate harmful Escherichia coli and Salmonella bacteria and protozoans such as Cryptosporidium parvum and Giardia lamblia.
The Bottom Line about Pools and Chlorine
As mentioned above, you could probably swim in a pool without chlorine without any major health issues. However, long-term use of a pool lacking chlorinated H2O could make you sick or, at the very least, contribute to rashes and other types of skin irritation.
Excess chlorine can alter the pH level of the water in the pool, making it more acidic. The acid levels can cause any of the following symptoms: Irritant dermatitis which is a red skin rash characterized by raised itchy red bumps. Eye irritation and over-dilated blood vessels in the eyes.
The ultraviolet rays of the sun can reduce chlorine by up to 90 percent in two hours! And if it's a hot day, warmer water tends to breed more bacteria, and so the pool's chlorine gets used up faster and must be replenished more frequently.
People who have aquariums or simply don't want to be exposed to chlorine in drinking water often look for ways to remove it. It will kill fish and is a toxic chemical. Letting water sit does remove chlorine. Chlorine is a gas that will evaporate from standing water if the air is warm enough.
Though it's illegal to discharge swimming pool/spa backwash and drainage water off your property, in general you can dump this water into the public sewers. You can also reuse this water to help your thirsty plants! Emptying a Pool/Spa the Plant-Friendly Way: Draining an Aboveground Pool/Spa 1.
Cool to room temperature before using it to water your plants. Pour tap water into containers with wide openings if you'd rather not waste the energy required for boiling it. The chlorine gas will evaporate from the water in 24 to 48 hours.
Shock is liquid or granular chlorine. You should add one gallon (or one pound) of shock per 10,000 gallons of pool water every week to two weeks. During hot weather or frequent use, you may need to shock more frequently.