Enzyme Clarifiers

Have you ever noticed the brown ring around the pool that forms at the water line?  Or, do you have brown, smelly and oily filters that don't come clean unless you take them out (which can big a pain in the neck if you have big cartridges) and soak them in cleaning solution? What about an oily film on the top of the water?  All of these problems can be eliminated with an enzyme clarifier.

What Does an Enzyme Clarifier Do?

Enzyme clarifiers are very useful in helping to keep your filter cleaner and pool look nicer.  They remove the oily brown scum that can build up at the water line, and they break down the oils before they get to your filter.  Enzyme cleaners are non-toxic solutions that utilize a combination of enzymes to remove dirt and stains. Since enzyme cleaners are non-toxic, they are safe to use around animals and children.  An enzyme is a protein that helps speed up chemical reactions. Enzymes attach themselves to a particular substrate and help break that substrate down.

The Enzyme clarifier will naturally purge the pool of the oils and lotions in your pool helping to make it crystal clear and odorless. It is totally compatible with - and reduces the need for - any chemical treatments you might use.

Where Do the Oils Come From?

The accumulation of oils and dirt from bathers is the biggest cause. Sunscreen, lotions, make-up, hair products, urine, and decaying vegetation  cause the gunky, oily build-up on the edge of the pool and in the filter. Sometimes you might not even notice it on the water-line, but just in the cartridge filter.  Showering before you get into your pool or hot tub will help cut down on the oils and dirt that bathers bring to the water, but most of the time people don't shower before using a pool or hot tub.

Benefits to You, the Pool or Spa Owner

Enzyme clarifiers help you, the pool owner, in a variety of ways.

1. They help eliminate the bathtub ring on your pool or spa, and prevent it from coming back.
2. They help with chloramine build-up and help to get rid of other odors.
3. Shocking requirements are reduced by nearly 50%, saving you money. This is because an enzyme cleaner quickens chemical reactions and breaks up large particles into smaller ones that the sanitizer can handle.  By reducing the scum and oil, the shock and santizer are freed up to do their job better, instead of working on the breaking up the oils and organics.
4. Since the scum line is eliminated, you don't need to spend money and time scrubbing the ring off the pool or spa.
5. Best of all, your filter won't get so gross with oily, scumy deposits inside of the pleats.  The filters will be much, much easier to clean.

What Happens to the Oils Once They Have Been Broken Down?

Enzyme clarifiers are natural enzymes that break down and recycle.  The oil and organics are broken down into their original chemical building block forms, carbond dioxide and water. They are good for the enivironment because they are natural and it helps you have to use less chemical cleaners and oxidizers in your pool.

How Do I Use It?

There are many different brands that make enzyme clarifier products.  You need to follow the specific manufacturer's guidlines when applying this product.

Generally, you don't add sanitizers (chlorine or bromine) at the same time you add the enzyme clarifier.

Different brands are also packaged in various concentrations, so be sure you know what your brand is telling you to do.  For instance, Bio-Dex Oil-Out is very concentrated, and the dose is 1 oz. to 20,000 gallons, initially.  After that, for weekly maintenance dosage, you only need to add a 1/2 oz per 20,000 gallons. Rendezvous Spa Specialties brand of enzyme cleaner is called Natrual Clear, and start-up dose is 1 oz. to 500 gallons and the same for subsequent weekly doses. Natural Chemisty makes Spa Perfect, and their dose is 1 oz. to 100 gallons per week.