This stuff is usually at Walmart for less (as stated already) but in my experience, it’s only stocked during the pool seasons. So depending on where you are located, you may want to wash in the winter/fall but won’t be able to if the store isn’t stocking it.
Great point. Thanks for the tip man, I really appreciate it. Do you get yours at an actual pool store? Or still getting it from retailers (Walmart, Lowe’s, Menard’s, etc.)?
Since he has a Menards close, in the off season he can buy their off-brand bleach. It’s only 8.5%, but it’s cheap at $2.89 and will work, you just need to go stronger on the mix. Since I don’t buy bulk or do a lot in the winter months, this is what I use when they run out of Pool Shock. I like to try and stock up in the fall when they still have it. I found in the sealed jugs in a cold garage, they stay pretty potent for a while. I’ve used jugs a few months old and couldn’t tell the difference.
Roger that. Thanks Nick.
I started my second season of washing (part-time) with Pool Essentials after I found this forum. Worked great all that spring and on into summer, but when Covid hit the country hard and bleach started becoming harder and harder to find I couldn’t rely on the 4 closest Walmarts to keep stock of it. I finally got busy enough that I tracked down a local janitorial supply warehouse who happens to stock bulk bleach. I currently buy a 15-gal drum of 12.5% or two at a time depending on work load.
Recommendation if you decide to purchase it by the gallons - go ahead and get a 5-gal or larger storage tank to haul your stuff in to the job site. You can still buy the gallon sized containers of bleach, but dump them into the larger container and leave the empty jugs at home. I’d keep a few extra gallons in the back seat of the truck, but there’s no need in bringing half of a dozen gallon sized jugs that are going to soon be empty to the job site. Then you won’t have to worry about them blowing out the back of the truck while driving. Find a container called a carboy, or even an ATV sprayer tank (I think they start at 8-gallons or something like that). Check Facebook marketplace
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That’s awesome advice, Thomas. A larger storage tank is a great idea. Thank you
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Also, just curious, but do you know what the other 90% “other ingredients” are in the Pool Essentials? I assume it’s mostly water, but the label doesn’t say. I’d just like to know in case a customer asked or something.
Bat signal received, lol!
This is where the SDS would be helpful. At least on the SDS when it says other you can be fairly confident it’s not hazardous stuff. But when it comes to a label active literally means the thing that is registered to kill…everything else is just other….even if it’s horribly nasty chemicals, it can just say other.
My GUESS would be water and sodium hydroxide and maybe a touch of surfactant.
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Okay great info! Thanks CaCO3Girl!
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@jonnyboy Just a piece of advice, in the event you don’t know it already: when you want to tag an individual or multiple individuals, type the @ symbol and start typing who you want and a drop down of names will appear for you to select. That way if you are asking a specific person something they’ll get notified shortly after. 
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Hey Thomas @PPWofLexSC, do you have your customers keep their pets/kids up for a certain amount of time after you wash? Is the SH runoff harmful to dogs/kids/etc?
When I first get there I typically tell the customers that they can certainly walk all over what I’m washing, but that they’ll want to be cautious as to what they are walking onto next. Carpet inside the house, floor mats in their car, etc.
If I pre/post treat with anything stronger than housewash mix I ask them to not walk into the lawn after they walked on the wet concrete.
I encourage them to keep their dog off the concrete while it’s soaped up just as a precaution, but I have no statistical data to show harm caused to dogs by them walking on it.
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Wow i ask them to close their windows, move their cars, stay inside 'til we’re done. Same for neighbors if really close. No kids or dogs or anyone else outside!
Helps manage risks of someone tripping on a hose/slipping on soapy deck/ ladder falling on a kid/soap in grandma’s eye etc in my mind. Everyone is cooperative.
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Why do you care if it dries? Spray the whole thing down, do something else (house wash or whatever) if you have it, and then come back and wash.
