Every Mackay family building a pool asks the same thing within the first hour of the site visit:
“What do I need to be putting in the water, and how much of it?”
The answer depends on what you actually care about. Do you want the lowest ongoing cost? The softest water on the kids’ skin? The system with the least fiddling on a Sunday morning? All three of the mainstream options — saltwater, mineral, and liquid chlorine — will keep your Mackay pool clean and safe. The differences come down to running cost, maintenance rhythm, and how the water feels.
Here’s what we tell families before they lock in a choice.
Saltwater — the Mackay default
Most Compass installs we do around Mackay end up saltwater, and it’s the right pick for most families. Despite the name it’s not chlorine-free: a small salt cell sits in the plumbing and converts dissolved pool salt into chlorine on demand. You add salt every year or so; the cell does the work.
The reason it dominates the Mackay market: our tap water is soft and the summer air is warm, so salt levels are stable and the cell earns its keep every day. Skin comfort is noticeably better than a straight-chlorine pool — kids come out with less redness around the eyes, and swimmers usually skip the post-swim rinse. Running cost sits well below chlorine after year one.
The trade-off: salt is corrosive over long horizons. If you’re within a couple of hundred metres of the coast (Bucasia, Blacks Beach, Dolphin Heads, Eimeo, Shoal Point) it matters what you pick for your poolside handrails, ladders and pump housings. We spec 316 marine-grade stainless on every coastal install for exactly this reason.
Mineral pools — the premium end
A mineral system replaces some of the salt with magnesium and potassium. The water feels genuinely different — softer, silkier, and there’s a noticeable buoyancy from the magnesium content. Owners describe it as “swimming in bore water without the taste”.
Two catches. First, minerals cost about two to three times more per kilo than pool salt, and you use them at similar quantities. Second, the water still needs a small amount of chlorine on top — either from a chlorinator or dosed in — because magnesium alone doesn’t sanitise. So the ongoing chemistry is a bit more work than a straight salt system.
Where mineral shines: adults who swim laps daily, families with sensitive skin, and anyone who spent time in European mineral spas and misses the feel. It’s a lifestyle upgrade, not a cost saver.
Liquid chlorine — cheapest to install, dearest to run
The setup is the simplest: no salt cell, no mineral dispenser, just a dosing pump feeding liquid chlorine from a jerry can into the circulation line. Up-front cost is the lowest of the three.
The catch is the annual running total. You’re buying chlorine every fortnight for the life of the pool. In Mackay’s climate, that’s roughly $1,000–$1,600 a year in chemicals alone. Water feel is also the harshest of the three — that classic “public pool” smell after a swim.
We rarely quote liquid chlorine for Mackay families anymore. It only makes sense on a genuinely tight upfront budget where the plan is to upgrade to a chlorinator in year two.
Luke’s rule of thumb after fifteen years in Mackay
For 80% of Mackay backyards: saltwater with a decent chlorinator. It’s the sweet spot on cost, comfort and set-and-forget maintenance.
For the 15% who want the best water experience and don’t mind the running cost: mineral pool. Worth it if you swim daily.
For the 5% with a tight budget who plan to upgrade later: chlorine, but budget a chlorinator retrofit within two years.
Whatever sanitiser you pick, the pool shell itself is the same Compass Ceramic Core underneath. Book a site visit and we’ll walk through which fits your family and how it lines up on running costs against your quote for the whole build.
