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You don’t need to dilute the baking soda before adding it to your pool. While you can if you want, adding too much water into your pool can throw off your math and chemicals. Your pool’s circulation system will do most of the dissolving work for you, so it’s OK to skip the dilution.

No, shock and chlorine are not the same thing, though they are related and both are used for pool maintenance. Regular chlorine, often in the form of tablets, is a sanitizer used for routine, day-to-day maintenance to keep a steady chlorine level. Pool shock, however, is a highly concentrated dose of chlorine used periodically for a more intense cleaning. It rapidly raises chlorine levels to fix issues like cloudy water or algae growth and also eliminates chloramines, which are byproducts of regular chlorination. Because their purposes and concentrations differ, they are not interchangeable, and proper pool care typically requires using both.

Rectangular pools, particularly those made of vinyl or fiberglass, are the easiest to maintain. The long, straight sides, right angles, and smoother surface make regular cleaning a breeze without having to maneuver into curves and nooks. Rectangular pools also tend to be standard sizes, so you may have an easier time when it comes time to replace liners, covers, and other parts.

No, you shouldn’t be able to taste the salt at all since saltwater pools only contain about 10% of the salt you’d find in ocean water. Saltwater pools do create some chlorine, though, so you should still try not to drink the water.