logo
    • News
    • Classifieds
    • Free Subscription
    • Book Store
    • Submit
      • Submit a Classified Ad
      • Submit an Educational Announcement
      • Submit a letter to The Editor
    • Past Issues
    • Regional Trade Shows
    • Contact
    • News
    • Classifieds
    • Free Subscription
    • Book Store
    • Submit
      • Submit a Classified Ad
      • Submit an Educational Announcement
      • Submit a letter to The Editor
    • Past Issues
    • Regional Trade Shows
    • Contact
Trichlor prices rise from supply shortage
News
September 29, 2020
Trichlor prices rise from supply shortage

Leading pool chemical in short supply due to August 27 fire at Louisiana Bio-Lab plant

Pool service companies are feeling the repercussions of the massive chemical fire at the Bio-Lab facility in Westlake, Louisiana.

In the wake of Hurricane Laura, the trichlor manufacturing plant caught fire on August 27, 2020, and continued to burn for three days, destroying an untold amount of the dry chemical relied on by the industry.

Now, according to Terry Arko, Hasa’s Product Training and Content Manager, there is concern in the service trade.

“Distributors are rationing purchases to prevent hoarding. We are hearing stories that prices have gone up from around $80 a bucket (50#) to around $110 and as high as $150,” Arko said.

Demand for trichlor and other pool chemicals and equipment was already unprecedented this year, as stay-at-home orders resulted in millions of Americans relying on their backyard pools as their sole means of entertainment.

“Domestic manufacturers barely kept up this summer and distributors complained about long lead times, but Hurricane Laura took out one of the three domestic producers. The destruction of Bio-Lab’s Lake Charles plant reduced the supply by a third,” Arko said.

According to Robert Rankin, Vice President of Pool Corp, contributing to the trichlor shortage is the fact that nearly all of the product currently sold in the U.S. is now domestic, although that was not always the case.

“Since heavy tariffs were levied against China, there is very little of that product being brought into the U.S. (They would have been the largest exporter at that time). Japan still moves product into the U.S. but it is very small in the big picture. Mexico also sends product into the U.S. and that could increase but they are very limited by capacity,” Rankin said.

With the destruction of one of the three main domestic producers of trichlor (the others being Occidental Chemical Corporation and Clearon Corporation) it appears that domestic supply cannot possibly meet demand.

Furthermore, according to Arko, the U.S. inventory of China’s pre-tariff trichlor has been exhausted.

Rankin says that it is still too early to know the full impact of the Bio-Lab’s fire in Louisiana.

“There is no doubt it is going to be a very tough 2021 as it pertains to dry chemical. That plant was very important to our industry and depending on how long it takes to rebuild and replenish, will determine just how difficult this gets for our industry. Millions of pounds have just been removed from our industry and there is simply no way to replace all of the product that was moved through that facility,” Rankin said.

While other vendors are trying to step up and fulfill the immediate need, they simply don’t have the capacity.

The only positive is that in most regions of the country, the swimming season is coming to a close, and the market for trichlor outside of the Sunbelt will decrease, perhaps allowing enough dry chemical for those pools that remain open yearlong.

Rankin says that only time will tell how badthedamagewas,orhowfastBio-Labis able to rebuild and begin producing again.

“If it truly is as bad as reported, or worse, 2021 will be long remembered as the year the Industry survived without dry chemicals.”

LATEST NEWS
Biolab investigation report results available
Main, serviceindustrynews
Biolab investigation report results available
U.S. Chemical Safety and Hazard Investigation Board released report showing Biolab needed more prep
May 31, 2023
By Marcelle Dibrell On August 27, 2020, Hurricane Laura destroyed a Louisiana chlorine manufacturing facility, resulting in a nationwide chlorine shor...
this is a test
Main, serviceindustrynews
Pool service billing survey indicates inflation
May 31, 2023
According to the most recent report from the U.S. Department of Commerce, one of its most closely monitored measures of inflation — the Personal Consu...
this is a test
Hazmat incident at Burbank public pool
serviceindustrynews
Hazmat incident at Burbank public pool
May 31, 2023
A Hazardous Materials team was dispatched the McCambridge Park swimming pool in Burbank, California, after a chemical mix-up involving sodium hypochlo...
this is a test
Pool chemicals found in garbage trucks
serviceindustrynews
Pool chemicals found in garbage trucks
May 31, 2023
In totally unrelated incidents this May, garbage truck drivers in Texas and West Virginia were injured after pool and spa chemicals were inappropriate...
this is a test
serviceindustrynews
Unscrupulous contractors bad for industry
May 31, 2023
In Louisville, Kentucky, Tracy Davenport and her company Davenport Extreme Pools & Spas are accused of stealing millions of dollars to install backyar...
this is a test
2023 Pool service pricing survey results
serviceindustrynews
2023 Pool service pricing survey results
May 31, 2023
Responses to our survey came in from 15 states. As we have come to expect, responses were heaviest from the areas with the highest number of pools. Th...
this is a test
Read Our Newsletter
ePaper
coogle_play
app_store
Free Subscription
View Current Print Ads
Educational Announcements
Aquatic Training Institute

Educational Leverage

Foundation For Pool Industry Education

Locey Pool

Pool Chemistry Training Institute

Pool & Hot Tub Alliance

Portofino University

Underwater Pool Masters
Trade Show Dates
  • The Pool and Spa Show
    Jan. 24-26, Atlantic City, New Jersey
  • 34th Annual National Plasterers Conference
    Feb. 8-10, Coronado, California
  • The Southwest Pool and Spa Show
    Feb. 9-11, Houston, Texas
  • The Western Pool and Spa Show
    Mar. 23-25, Long Beach, California
Books to Order
About Us Terms of Use Privacy Policy
We use cookies to ensure that our website gives you the best experience possible. By continuing to use this website, you agree to this use of cookies.OK