🥄 Baking Soda
sodium bicarbonate — the same stuff as the grocery-store box · updated August 2026
Quick answer: add 22.4 oz per 10,000 gallons to raise Total Alkalinity 10 ppm. Ideal Total Alkalinity: 80–120 ppm. Add ½–⅔ first, circulate, retest.
Safety — read first
- • Add no more than 2 lb per 10,000 gallons in one round; circulate, retest after 6 hours.
The alkalinity raiser. 1.4 lb per 10,000 gallons lifts TA by 10 ppm. Low TA makes pH bounce around — fix TA first, then chase pH.
Side effects: Nudges pH up slightly. Grocery-store baking soda is chemically identical to 'Alkalinity Up' and usually cheaper.
Dosing chart
| Pool size | +10 ppm | +20 ppm | +30 ppm | +50 ppm |
|---|---|---|---|---|
| 5,000 gal | 11.2 oz | 1.4 lb | 2.1 lb | 3.5 lb |
| 10,000 gal | 1.4 lb | 2.8 lb | 4.2 lb | 7.0 lb |
| 15,000 gal | 2.1 lb | 4.2 lb | 6.3 lb | 10.5 lb |
| 20,000 gal | 2.8 lb | 5.6 lb | 8.4 lb | 14.0 lb |
| 30,000 gal | 4.2 lb | 8.4 lb | 12.6 lb | 21.0 lb |
Calculate your exact dose
1 · Your pool's volume
Working with 20,000 gallons
2 · What are you fixing?
Ideal Total Alkalinity: 80–120 ppm. Adjusting pH? Doses aren't linear — see soda ash / muriatic acid.
3 · Add one of these
Estimates from standard label dosing, to raise Total Alkalinity by 30 ppm in 20,000 gallons. Add ½–⅔ of the dose first, circulate 4–6 hours, retest, then top up. Never mix chemicals with each other.
FAQ
How much baking soda do I add per 10,000 gallons?+
22.4 oz per 10,000 gallons will raise Total Alkalinity 10 ppm. Scale linearly with your pool size — the chart on this page covers 5,000 to 30,000 gallons.
What does baking soda do to a pool?+
The alkalinity raiser. 1.4 lb per 10,000 gallons lifts TA by 10 ppm. Low TA makes pH bounce around — fix TA first, then chase pH. Side effect to know: Nudges pH up slightly. Grocery-store baking soda is chemically identical to 'Alkalinity Up' and usually cheaper.
Is baking soda safe to handle?+
Add no more than 2 lb per 10,000 gallons in one round; circulate, retest after 6 hours.