If you are draining your pool, you may find yourself wondering, will pool water kill grass? It’s important to check before pouring pool water on any part of your garden, so you know whether this is safe or not.
Pool water often contains chemicals that may affect your grass if you frequently pour the pool water on it. Chlorine, for example, will gradually kill grass if you keep adding it to the ground, and may turn your lawn yellow.
Another important factor to consider is the pH level of the pool water, as water with a high pH level can also damage your grass, especially if it’s already stressed due to drought or other environmental factors.
Effects of pH Level on Grass Health
The pH level of pool water is another crucial factor to consider when assessing its impact on grass health. Water with a high pH level can potentially damage grass, especially if the lawn is already stressed due to drought or other environmental factors.
While the original article mentions the presence of chemicals in pool water, it does not specifically address the significance of pH levels.
High-pH water can alter the soil’s acidity, making it less favorable for grass growth. This can lead to nutrient deficiencies, reduced root development, and overall decline in grass health. The symptoms of high-pH water damage may include yellowing or browning of the grass, stunted growth, and increased susceptibility to diseases and pests.
To ensure the safety of your grass, it is advisable to test the pH level of pool water before considering its use for irrigation purposes. If the pH level is excessively high, it is recommended to explore alternative methods of water disposal or seek professional advice on how to adjust the pH level to a more suitable range for plant growth.
Will Pool Water Kill Grass?
With time, pool water may kill grass, yes. There is unfortunately quite a high risk of pool water damaging the grass if it is poured over it frequently, because it contains various chemicals, which may include chlorine.
Pool water could also contain salt, algaecides, or other chemicals designed to keep the water fresh and safe for swimming in. Unfortunately, most of these also make it unsafe for adding to plant life, and you should therefore be cautious about adding pool water to your garden.
There are a few reasons that pool water may be harmful to your lawn, including:
- It can contain a lot of salt
- It can contain chlorine
- It can contain other chemicals, such as algaecides
Any of these could make pool water unsafe for adding to your garden, so be aware of them and proceed with caution. You do need a means of getting rid of pool water safely, but this should not involve pouring the water over your garden, and doing so is likely to ruin the grass.
1. The Salt Content
A lot of pools utilize salt as a means of keeping the water fresh and preventing nasty bacteria from growing in the water. Because pools contain standing water, there would otherwise be a risk of the water making you sick when you get into it. The salt makes it inhospitable to other life.
Unfortunately, however, many plants are quite sensitive to salt, and indeed salt is often used as a method of killing weeds. That means it is very likely to kill your grass if you pour salty water over it, especially on a regular basis.
Grass is a pretty resilient plant and on the whole, it will survive you pouring small amounts of salty water over it pretty well. You may see some browning and dieback in places where the salt has hit, but on the whole, little damage will be done.
However, if you drain a whole pool of salty water onto your grass, especially multiple times in one season, you are very likely to see the grass dying. Shriveled stems, browning or yellowing, and shrinking are all clear signs that the salt has damaged the foliage.
2. The Chlorine Content
Like salt, chlorine can be dangerous for your plants, and if you have a chlorine pool, you should not drain it over the grass, especially multiple times in one season. Some resilient grass may stand up to quite a bit of chlorinated water, but not a whole pool’s worth, especially repeatedly. The pool’s water will affect the pH of the soil.
If you are going to drain the pool over your grass, you need to make sure you have watered down the chlorine thoroughly first. The correct dilution is generally considered to be 0.1 parts per million. Even diluted chlorine could be damaging, so it is much better to avoid it and instead to dispose of the pool’s water through other means if possible.
Some people create areas where they can safely drain their pools, while others plumb their pools into the sewers. If neither of these is a feasible solution, you will have to drain the pool onto the grass, but dilute the water thoroughly and proceed with caution.
3. The Other Chemicals
If you have used any other chemicals in your pool, you may have even more reason to wonder, will pool water kill grass? Unfortunately, if there are other chemicals, you need to be even more cautious about draining the pool onto your lawn, because there is a high risk that the other chemicals will damage the grass.
This will depend on what you have added and how damaging it is to plant life, of course. You should bear in mind, though, that many formulas that have been designed to kill things like algae are also pretty likely to kill things like grass, because they will attack it in a similar way.
Highly diluted chemicals probably won’t cause major problems for the grass in your yard, especially if you only splash the water on it. However, you should be very cautious about pouring a large quantity of pool water over it if it contains anything you wouldn’t normally put on your grass.
The more potentially dangerous chemicals are in your pool, the more cautious you should be about draining the pool onto your grass. Dilution may help, but it isn’t guaranteed to prevent the water from damaging the plant.
Best Practices for Safe Pool Water Disposal
Properly disposing of pool water is crucial to prevent harm to your grass and surrounding vegetation. While the original article briefly mentions alternative methods such as designated drainage areas or connecting the pool to the sewer system, it does not provide detailed guidance on best practices for safe pool water disposal.
One effective approach is to establish a designated drainage area away from plants and grass. This can be a gravel or paved area where pool water can be safely discharged without causing damage. It is important to ensure that the water is properly contained and does not flow onto adjacent lawns or gardens.
If connecting the pool to the sewer system is a viable option, it is an ideal solution for safe water disposal. This method ensures that the water is treated and disposed of appropriately without posing a risk to plant life.
In situations where neither of these options are feasible, dilution becomes crucial. Diluting the pool water with large amounts of clean water can help minimize the concentration of harmful chemicals and reduce the potential damage to grass.
However, it’s important to note that dilution may not completely eliminate the risks associated with certain chemicals present in the pool water.
Learn more from a related post: Will Ammonia Kill Grass?
Summary
If you have ever wondered, “will pool water kill grass?” The answer is that it certainly can do, especially if the pool is large and frequently drained onto the grass. If the chlorine or salt levels are particularly high, there is also a greater risk of the water damaging the grass.
You need to be careful what you add to your garden, and make sure you are disposing of pool water in a way that is safe for you and your greenery.
Frequently Asked Questions
Can you put pool water on grass?
In small quantities, it should be okay to put pool water on your grass, particularly if your pool is chlorinated, rather than salty. Grass does not like chlorine, but it will tolerate diluted quantities up to a point, as long as you aren’t adding a lot, or adding it too frequently.
If possible, you should avoid draining your pool straight onto your grass, especially if you drain the water frequently. Look for another solution when you get the pool set up to avoid this problem.
Can you put chlorinated pool water on grass?
If you want to drain the whole pool of chlorinated water, you will need to dilute the chlorine first. If you don’t do this and you just empty the chlorinated water onto the grass, the chlorine will quickly overwhelm and kill the grass.
You don’t need to worry about chlorinated water splashing the grass, however. Many pool owners surround their pools with grass and being exposed to some chlorine won’t hurt the grass at all. Just avoid draining the pool onto the grass, and you should have no problems
Where do I drain my pool water to?
You should try to drain your pool to an area with hard-standing, rather than plants. This will prevent you from accidentally damaging growing things with the chemicals in the pool water. If you don’t have a suitable area for draining the pool, consider whether you could link the pool up to your home’s sanitary sewer.
This will let you drain the water safely away without having to add it to your garden, so it’s a very good idea if you can’t otherwise get rid of the water.
Hey, I’m Lisa and I’ve been an avid gardener for over 30 years. I love writing, talking and living in the garden! Feel free to connect with me on my socials below
