Test, then dose
Brand kits sell the same commodity salts in small tubs. Know what you are adjusting: pH (soda ash up, dry acid down), sanitiser (chlorine donor), stabiliser (cyanuric acid in outdoor chlorine pools), alkalinity (bicarbonate).
Do not stack blindly
Add chemicals separately with circulation running. Never mix concentrated acids and chlorines in a bucket. Shock and stabiliser decisions depend on outdoor vs indoor and your test readings — the teardowns give pack maths, not a substitute for a test kit.
Same salt, bigger bag
When the SDS names soda ash, sodium bisulphate, TCCA, dichlor (NaDCC) or CYA, the bulk bag with that CAS is the kit without the plastic caddy. Weigh carefully; pool volumes punish rounding errors.
FAQ
- Is pH Plus just washing soda?
- Pool pH Plus is typically sodium carbonate (soda ash). Related to household soda crystals, but dose from the pool teardown maths — not a kitchen guess into a spa.
- TCCA tablets vs calcium hypochlorite shock?
- Different chlorine donors. Stabilised tablets (TCCA) are not the same salt as unstabilised cal-hypo shock, and neither is dichlor granule (NaDCC dihydrate). Follow the teardown for the product you actually hold.
More pool & spa guides
Related teardowns
Live stacks this guide points at — mix maths and DIY affiliate links on each page.
Pool & spa
Clearwater pH Plus Spa / Pool Balancer
Clearwater
- Retail pack
- £11.501 kg bottle
- Raw active
- Dense soda ash (sodium carbonate 99%)497-19-8
pH Plus is dense soda ash — 99% sodium carbonate, CAS 497-19-8. Pool-shop packaging turns a £2.70/kg commodity into an £11.50/kg ritual.
Pool & spa
Clearwater pH Minus
Clearwater
- Retail pack
- £9.991.5 kg
- Raw active
- Sodium bisulphate (dry acid)7681-38-1
pH Minus is dry acid — sodium bisulphate. Pool retail is a small tub; chemical suppliers sell it in 5 kg lots for a third of the per-kilo price.
Pool & spa
Clearwater Multifunction Chlorine Tablets
Clearwater
- Retail pack
- £42.005 kg
- Raw active
- TCCA 90% chlorine tablets (200 g)87-90-1
The tablet is 90% TCCA — the same stabilised chlorine used in bulk 200 g pucks. ‘Multifunction’ is a pinch of clarifier and a lot of packaging. Buy TCCA, dose from an SDS, and keep cyanuric acid in range.
Pool & spa
Chlorine Stabiliser & UV Shield
Clearwater
- Retail pack
- £16.501 kg tub
- Raw active
- Technical cyanuric acid granules108-80-5
100% cyanuric acid in a 1 kg spa tub. The same granules sell in 5 kg lots at a fraction of the per-kilo price. Dose to a test kit (typically 30–50 ppm CYA), not a marketing scoop.
Pool & spa
Total Alkalinity TA Plus
Clearwater
- Retail pack
- £11.991 kg tub
- Raw active
- Food / technical grade sodium bicarbonate144-55-8
Standard baking soda sold at a 1,200% retail markup under spa branding.
Pool & spa
Superfast Shock Chlorine Granules
Fi-Clor
- Retail pack
- £34.002.5 kg tub
- Raw active
- Calcium hypochlorite granules 65–70%7778-54-3
This is not TCCA and it is not bottle bleach. Cal-hypo is the same oxidiser sold to commercial pools in 5–10 kg kegs. A 2.5 kg spa tub is a small pour from that keg.
Pool & spa
Stabilised Chlorine Granules
Clearwater
- Retail pack
- £12.991 kg tub
- Raw active
- Sodium dichloroisocyanurate dihydrate (NaDCC / dichlor, ~55% available Cl)51580-86-0
Clearwater’s 1 kg spa granules are sodium dichloroisocyanurate dihydrate (troclosene sodium, CAS 51580-86-0) — dichlor, not TCCA tablets and not Fi-Clor Superfast cal-hypo. About 2 g per 1,000 L raises free chlorine by 1 ppm; 10 g/m³ is a typical ~5 ppm shock. A 5 kg trade sack is the same salt. Dichlor adds cyanuric acid, unlike cal-hypo.
DupeStack provides chemical concentration data and educational mixing guides only. Wellness pages compare food supplements, not medicines or prescribed treatments. Always review the supplier Safety Data Sheet (SDS) and comply with UK Health and Safety Executive (HSE) and COSHH regulations when handling concentrated substances. Mixing and storage are at your own risk. Some links are affiliate advertisements (Amazon Associates, eBay Partner Network, and Awin when those programmes are live). Commissions do not change listed concentrations or calculator output.