A video shows a DIY “trick” for cleaning a swimming pool by pouring a bottle of vodka into the water every day for four days.
Experts do not advise using vodka as a pool cleaning method. While the pool appears cleaner in the video, vodka doesn’t have the same sanitisation properties as chlorine and long-term use may result in continual issues such as algae and cloudiness.
A video on Facebook shares a DIY “trick” for cleaning swimming pools using vodka, but this is not what experts advise.
The video, which has been shared by a Facebook account called The Tradesman and has over 1,200 comments, shows a man emptying a bottle of vodka into a swimming pool every day for four days and tracking the difference.
He describes this as a “quarantine pool clean” and says he’d “heard on TikTok” about the hack. The video appears to have originally been posted on TikTok in May 2020 in multiple parts, showing footage of the pool each day, but has since been shared as a single video.
The Facebook video has overlaid audio that says: “Who needs a pool tradesman when all you need is to raid your liquor cabinet? The experiment is almost over and the end results are mesmerising.”
While the pool does appear cleaner throughout the course of the video, vodka is not a recommended pool cleaning method.
Adrian Harrison, an expert in pool maintenance, says: “Vodka is not only expensive but isn't as effective as using chlorine or other sanitization systems. Using vodka long-term, instead of chlorine, will likely cause continual issues such as algae and cloudy water, since vodka doesn't have the same sanitization properties chlorine does.”
It has been reported that vodka doesn’t kill all the bacteria in the pool, although it may appear to, and can interfere with the pool’s pH balance. It may also cause an unpleasant smell.
Swimming in water that hasn’t been treated properly may cause illness.
Instead, Mr Harrison says: “For algae or a dirty pool, nothing beats shocking with chlorine (raising the chlorine levels 5 times the norm) and correctly balancing the pool water.”
A step by step guide on pool maintenance includes: skimming off any debris, brushing or vacuuming the pool’s walls and floor, cleaning the pool filter and testing the water to ensure a safe chemical balance. There are further recommendations available here.
We have contacted The Tradesman for a comment and will update this article if we receive a response.
Full Fact has written before about other claims from viral TikTok videos that are also shared on Facebook. This includes false claims that vitamin D supplements are “rat poison" and that a homemade remedy cures cancer. It’s important to check information with official sources before sharing the posts or acting on any recommendations.
Image courtesy of Vic Brincat
This article is part of our work fact checking potentially false pictures, videos and stories on Facebook. You can read more about this—and find out how to report Facebook content—here. For the purposes of that scheme, we’ve rated this claim as missing context because experts do not advise using vodka instead of chlorine to clean swimming pools.
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