MasterTool

Pool Stabilizer (CYA) Calculator

Calculate how much dry stabilizer (cyanuric acid) to add to raise CYA by a target amount for your pool volume.

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What this tool does

Calculate how much dry stabilizer (cyanuric acid) to add to raise CYA by a target amount for your pool volume. Dosing constant from published stabilizer charts: 1 lb per 10,000 gal raises CYA ≈12 ppm. Granular product is assumed near-100% cyanuric acid; liquid stabilizer products differ — check the label.

How to use the Pool Stabilizer (CYA) Calculator

  1. Enter or select pool volume in gal.
  2. Enter or select current cya (ppm).
  3. Enter or select target cya (ppm).
  4. Read the calculated result; change any measurement to compare alternatives.

Formula

stabilizer (lb) = pool gallons ÷ 10,000 × (target − current ppm) ÷ 12 ppm per lb per 10,000 gal
volume
Pool volume (gal, before metric conversion)
current
Current CYA (ppm)
target
Target CYA (ppm)

Dosing constant from published stabilizer charts: 1 lb per 10,000 gal raises CYA ≈12 ppm. Granular product is assumed near-100% cyanuric acid; liquid stabilizer products differ — check the label.

Worked example

For pool stabilizer (cya) calculator, the following measurements illustrate the exact method: Pool volume: 15000; Current CYA (ppm): 20; Target CYA (ppm): 40.

Inputs

  • Pool volume15000 gal
  • Current CYA (ppm)20
  • Target CYA (ppm)40

Result

  • Dry stabilizer to add2.5 lb
  • Stabilizer to add (oz)40 oz
  • CYA increase (ppm)20

Results explained

Dry stabilizer to add
Dry stabilizer to add from the formula above, expressed in lb before metric conversion. Dosing constant from published stabilizer charts: 1 lb per 10,000 gal raises CYA ≈12 ppm. Granular product is assumed near-100% cyanuric acid; liquid stabilizer products differ — check the label.
Stabilizer to add (oz)
Stabilizer to add (oz) from the formula above, expressed in oz before metric conversion. Dosing constant from published stabilizer charts: 1 lb per 10,000 gal raises CYA ≈12 ppm. Granular product is assumed near-100% cyanuric acid; liquid stabilizer products differ — check the label.
CYA increase (ppm)
CYA increase (ppm) from the formula above. Dosing constant from published stabilizer charts: 1 lb per 10,000 gal raises CYA ≈12 ppm. Granular product is assumed near-100% cyanuric acid; liquid stabilizer products differ — check the label.

Frequently asked questions

Standard published dosing rule: 1 lb of dry cyanuric acid raises CYA by about 12 ppm in 10,000 gallons (that is simply 453.6 g dissolved in 37,854 L ≈ 12 mg/L). Dose scales linearly with pool volume and the ppm increase you need.

Common guidance is 30–50 ppm for manually chlorinated pools and 60–80 ppm for salt-water-generator pools, balanced against your sanitizer maker's chart. Higher CYA demands proportionally higher free chlorine to stay effective.

Dry stabilizer dissolves slowly — up to a week in the filter. Add it via a sock in the skimmer, do not backwash for several days, and re-test before adding more.

No additive removes CYA; the practical fix is partial drain and refill with fresh water. This tool only calculates additions.

Published pool dosing charts (e.g. Taylor and major chemical makers' stabilizer labels) — and it checks out arithmetically from the mass of a pound of cyanuric acid in 10,000 US gallons.