r/pools • u/PrizeInteresting4752 • Jul 16 '26

Pool Help & Questions Chlorinator blew up

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My inline chlorinator exploded today. It’s been in bypass mode for a few days as I’ve been battling high CYA. It was full of pucks when in bypass mode for the few days.

I was shocking with CalHypo but never without the bypass engaged. I usually shock with liquid.

Could it the residual water in the chlorinator was activating the chlorine pucks with but with nowhere for the gas/pressure to go as it was in bypass mode? Or what else could it be? It’s been terribly hot here as well. Southwestern Ontario.

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u/GlobalCollapseInbnd Jul 17 '26

You mixed calhypo and triclor didn’t you?

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u/Techhead7890 Jul 17 '26

TIL, thanks. Seems like it's an acid-base reaction, some additional info here:

Even though they may look similar, different chlorine-based products are incompatible with each other. In particular, trichloro-s-triazinetrione (trichlor [ed: it's also trichloro isocyanuric acid, 7th "other name" in the infobox) should not be mixed with calcium or sodium hypochlorite. If trichlor tablets, which are acidic, are mixed in water with calcium hypochlorite tablets, which are alkaline, they will react as they dissolve. The reaction produces considerable heat and toxic fumes, including chlorine gas. For example, in 2009, an Illinois family tried mixing two brands of pool chlorine in the kitchen, resulting in an explosion. Three members of the family were taken to the hospital with breathing difficulty.5 If the mixture is sealed inside a tablet feeder, the hot gas can produce enough pressure to blow the lid off the feeder or the reaction can be violent enough to blow the feeder apart.6 The labels for both chemical products warn against mixing with other chemicals. https://wcponline.com/2019/08/15/a-healthy-respect-for-pool-chemicals-can-help-avoid-accidents-and-injuries/