15,000 gallon pool: how much of each chemical
In a 15,000-gallon pool, each 1 ppm of free chlorine (FC) takes about 15 fl oz of 12.5% liquid chlorine.
Always follow your product’s label directions. Pool and spa chlorine, bromine, shock and algaecides are EPA-registered pesticides: use products labeled for pool or spa use, and don’t swim or soak until levels are within the limit on your product’s label. If this page and a label disagree, the label wins.
| Product | +1 ppm FC | +2 ppm FC | +5 ppm FC | +10 ppm FC |
|---|---|---|---|---|
| Pool liquid chlorine 12.5% | 15 fl oz454 mL | 31 fl oz908 mL | 77 fl oz2.27 L | 1.2 gal (154 fl oz)4.54 L |
| Pool liquid chlorine 10% | 19 fl oz568 mL | 38 fl oz1.14 L | 96 fl oz2.84 L | 1.5 gal (192 fl oz)5.68 L |
| Household bleach 6% | 31 fl oz914 mL | 62 fl oz1.83 L | 1.2 gal (155 fl oz)4.57 L | 2.4 gal (309 fl oz)9.14 L |
| Household bleach 8.25% | 22 fl oz643 mL | 43 fl oz1.29 L | 109 fl oz3.22 L | 1.7 gal (217 fl oz)6.43 L |
| Cal-hypo 65% | 3.1 oz87 g | 6.2 oz175 g | 15.4 oz437 g | 1.95 lb874 g |
| Dichlor 56% | 3.6 oz101 g | 7.2 oz203 g | 1.1 lb507 g | 2.25 lb1.01 kg |
| Trichlor 90% | 2.2 oz63 g | 4.5 oz126 g | 11.1 oz315 g | 1.4 lb631 g |
Liquid chlorine percent is the trade percent on pool chlorine jugs; bleach percent is by weight. Cal-hypo adds calcium. Dichlor and trichlor add stabilizer (CYA). To shock, follow the directions on your product’s label.
| Product | Change | Amount |
|---|---|---|
| Baking soda | TA +10 ppm | 2.1 lb953 g |
| Muriatic acid 31.45% | TA −10 ppm | 38 fl oz1.13 L |
| Dry acid 93.2% | TA −10 ppm | 3.2 lb1.46 kg |
| Muriatic acid 31.45% | pH 7.8 → 7.5 (TA 100, CYA 40) | 14 fl oz426 mL |
| Dry acid 93.2% | pH 7.8 → 7.5 (TA 100, CYA 40) | 1.2 lb548 g |
| Soda ash | pH 7.2 → 7.5 (TA 80, CYA 30) | 1.35 lb631 g |
pH doses depend on your TA and CYA, so use the calculator for your numbers. Acid and pH-up amounts are rounded down.
| Product | Change | Amount |
|---|---|---|
| Stabilizer (CYA) | +10 ppm | 1.25 lb568 g |
| Stabilizer (CYA) | 0 → 40 ppm (new fill) | 5.0 lb2.27 kg |
| Calcium chloride 77% | CH +10 ppm | 1.8 lb818 g |
| Calcium chloride 77% | CH +50 ppm (one step) | 9.0 lb4.09 kg |
| Pool salt | 0 → 3,200 ppm (new fill) | 401 lb181.70 kg · 11 × 40 lb bags |
| Pool salt | +500 ppm | 62.6 lb28.39 kg |
| Model | Capacity (manufacturer) |
|---|---|
| Intex Rectangular Ultra XTR Frame 32ft x 16ft x 52in | 14,364 gal |
| Bestway APX 365 31ft 4in x 16ft x 52in | 13,798 gal |
On this page (10 sections)
With 10% chlorine, it takes 19 fl oz, and with 6% bleach, 31 fl oz. A typical top-up from FC 1 to 4 is about 46 fl oz of 12.5% chlorine or 93 fl oz of 6% bleach.
Quick answer: chlorine for a 15,000 gallon pool (depends on product)
For a weekly budget, measure your own daily loss. If FC drops 1.5 ppm a day, that is about 23 fl oz of 12.5% chlorine a day, or about 1.25 gallons a week. Buy by the case only if you can store it cool and use it within a few weeks, because liquid chlorine weakens with heat and age.
Dose table: chlorine by product for +1/+2/+5/+10 ppm
For big corrections, liquid volumes go over a gallon: +10 ppm is 1.2 gallons of 12.5% or 1.5 gallons of 10%. Dry products per 1 ppm: about 3.1 oz of 65% cal-hypo, 3.6 oz of 56% dichlor, and 2.2 oz of 90% trichlor. The bleach rows use percent by weight from the label: 6% needs 31 fl oz per ppm and 8.25% about 22 fl oz. Only plain, unscented bleach belongs in a pool.
Shock dose: one and a half times the label
The amount of shock comes from your product's label, not from this page. Labels usually give a dose per 10,000 gallons, and 15,000 gallons is 1.5 times that. A liquid chlorine label that says 1 gallon per 10,000 gallons means 1.5 gallons (192 fl oz) here. A cal-hypo label that says 1 lb per 10,000 gallons means 1.5 lb. For scale, one gallon of 12.5% liquid chlorine raises free chlorine by about 8.3 ppm in this pool, and a 1 lb bag of 65% cal-hypo by about 5.2 ppm (plus about 3.7 ppm of calcium). Don't swim until chlorine is back at or below the swim limit on the label (often 4 ppm). Steps: how to shock a pool.
pH and alkalinity: acid and baking soda
With stabilizer (cyanuric acid, CYA) at 40 ppm, lowering pH from 7.8 to 7.5 takes about 12 fl oz of 31.45% muriatic acid when total alkalinity (TA) is 80 ppm, 14 fl oz at TA 100, and 16 fl oz at TA 120. That spread is why a fixed "ounces per 0.1 pH" rule doesn't work. Lowering alkalinity by 10 ppm takes about 38 fl oz of muriatic acid. Raising it by 10 ppm takes about 2.1 lb of baking soda. Use your own numbers in the muriatic acid calculator, and see baking soda in a pool for raising TA without overshooting pH.
Stabilizer, calcium, and salt
- Stabilizer: 1.25 lb per 10 ppm; 5 lb takes new water to 40 ppm. The stabilizer calculator covers salt pool targets too.
- Calcium chloride (77%): 1.8 lb per 10 ppm, or 9 lb for one +50 ppm step. Plaster pools need calcium more than vinyl ones.
- Salt: about 401 lb from 0 to 3,200 ppm. The table shows eleven bags because 400.6 lb is just over ten bags; ten bags give about 3,195 ppm. A +500 ppm top-up is about 62.6 lb. See the pool salt calculator.
Pools that hold about 15,000 gallons
Large rectangular frame pools are in this range. Intex lists its Rectangular Ultra XTR Frame 32 ft × 16 ft × 52 in at 14,364 gallons, and Bestway lists its APX 365 31 ft 4 in × 16 ft × 52 in at 13,798 gallons. Both are 4–8% under 15,000 gallons. For daily dosing, this page works for either. For stabilizer and salt, enter the exact capacity in the calculator, because you can't take them back out. An inground 15 × 30 ft pool with a 4.5 ft average depth holds about 15,148 gallons. Round and oval options near this volume: 27 ft round and 18 × 33 oval pools.
Calculator preset to this volume
The calculator at the top is set to 15,000 gallons. Enter your readings and the products you have, and it shows each step with a wait time and a retest point. Nearby sizes: 12,000 gallons and 20,000 gallons.
Why online answers disagree: 1.5 gal a week vs 31 fl oz vs 39 fl oz
We searched "how much chlorine for 15000 gallon pool" on 2026-09-29. The top results gave three answers that look contradictory. When we ran them through the same formulas, each one turned out to be a correct answer to a different question:
| Answer you may see | What it matches in our math (15,000 gal) | What it doesn't tell you |
|---|---|---|
| 31 fl oz | +1 ppm with 6% bleach (30.9 fl oz), or +2 ppm with 12.5% liquid chlorine (30.7 fl oz) | which product, and how many ppm you need |
| 39 fl oz | close to +2 ppm with 10% liquid chlorine (38.4 fl oz) | the product strength it assumes |
| 1.5 gallons a week | 1.5 gal of 12.5% liquid chlorine adds 12.5 ppm, about 1.8 ppm a day; the same 1.5 gal of 6% bleach adds only 6.2 ppm | it is a usage estimate, not a dose; your daily loss may be half or double |
The pages did not all state their product strength or target, so the middle column is our reading of their numbers, not their stated assumptions. The lesson: a chlorine answer without a product, a percent, and a ppm change is not an answer. The table above has every product and ppm step for this size, and how much chlorine to add explains the method for any pool.
Safety. Carry one jug at a time, pour it low over the water in front of a return jet, and rinse the deck afterward. Store chlorine and acid apart. Always follow the product label. Poison Control: 1-800-222-1222.
FAQ
How much chlorine do I put in a 15,000 gallon pool?
Per 1 ppm: 15 fl oz of 12.5% liquid chlorine, 19 fl oz of 10%, or 31 fl oz of 6% bleach. From FC 1 to 4, that is about 46 fl oz of 12.5% or 58 fl oz of 10%. The liquid chlorine calculator adjusts for a weakened jug.
How much shock for a 15,000 gallon pool?
Take your shock product's label dose for 10,000 gallons and multiply it by 1.5. So 1 gallon of liquid chlorine per 10,000 gallons becomes 1.5 gallons, and 1 lb of cal-hypo becomes 1.5 lb. Stay out of the water until chlorine is back at or below the label's swim limit.
How much muriatic acid for a 15,000 gallon pool?
About 14 fl oz of 31.45% acid to lower pH from 7.8 to 7.5 at TA 100 and CYA 40, and about 38 fl oz to lower TA by 10 ppm. Retest 30 minutes after each dose.
How much bleach do you put in a 15000 gallon pool?
About 31 fl oz of 6% bleach per 1 ppm, or 93 fl oz (just under three quarts) for +3 ppm. With 8.25% bleach, about 22 fl oz per ppm and 65 fl oz for +3 ppm. Check that the label lists sodium hypochlorite as the only active ingredient.
Sources
- Intex, Rectangular Ultra XTR Frame 32 ft × 16 ft × 52 in product page, read 2026-09-29: intexcorp.com
- Bestway, APX 365 31 ft 4 in × 16 ft × 52 in product page, read 2026-09-29: bestwayusa.com
- PHTA fact sheet, Sodium hypochlorite (strength loss): phta.org
- Formulas and reference checks: methodology
- Google results for "how much chlorine for 15000 gallon pool", checked 2026-09-29 (our notes, not linked).