Bromine Granules Banned 2027?

Bromine granules are a very popular sanitiser or supplement used in hot tubs. It is a powdered chemical that is usually a mix of sodium dichlor and sodium bromine. This products allows bromine users to boost total bromine levels very easily with fast-dissolving granules. Given the popularity of this chemical and the regulatory changes approaching in 2027, we felt the need to write a blog post to explain what is changing, why and what hot tub users that use bromine can do going forward.

Are Bromine Granules being banned in the UK?

Yes, bromine granules that are used in hot tubs and spas are being phased out in the United Kingdom as part of regulatory changes. The timeline is as follows:

  • 1st April 2026: Announcement of non-approval
  • 28th September 2026: Production halted.
  • 1st April 2027: Retail sale of bromine granules prohibited.
  • 1st October 2027: All usage prohibited. 

Why are Bromine Granules being phased out?

After Brexit, the UK set up its own rules for biocides (chemicals that kill bacteria, like pool and hot tub sanitisers). Any chemical that was already on the market had to go through a fresh review to stay legal in Great Britain. When support for a chemical lapses, others have the chance to support the chemical through the regulatory process. The cost of this process is well into hundreds of thousands of pounds. As a result, there is no participant willing to push through the approval for Bromine Granules and therefore the chemical will no longer be approved for sale.

So the reasoning is simply administrative. It is not related to the safety of the chemical. 

View full HSE decision here

Are Bromine Tablets or Other Chemicals affected?

No, bromine tablets (BCDMH) are registered as a seperate chemical to bromine granules and the review of this chemical is not due for another few years. Other bromine systems like FROG are also still licensed. It is likely that bromine tablets will follow suit and be phased out (based on decisions in the EU) but this is not confirmed at this point and we would expect the product to be available for the next 2 years at least. 

What to do short-term?

  • Continue to use Bromine Granules up until October 1st 2027. Remember you will not be able to buy more after April 1st 2027. 
  • Do not buy too much! Or you will be stuck with product you cannot use.
  • Plan what you are going to do after. See guidance below.

What can I use instead of Bromine Granules?

Nothing is an exact replacement for bromine granules but there are some alternative products that can help you achieve a similiar outcome. Bromine granules are very good at boosting total bromine levels in your hot tub and work very well alongside slow dissolving bromine tablets. Alternative ways to boost total bromine would be: 

  • Use Non Chlorine Shock to re-generate spent bromine. Non Chlorine shock will not boost levels quite as fast as bromine granules but it will certainly boost levels and it provides lots of other benefits too.
  • Use Chlorine Granules to boost Total Bromine levels. Yes, you can use chlorine to boost a bromine system. In fact, bromine granules contain a lot of chlorine anyway.

Is it worth switching to Chlorine totally? How do I do this?

We love chlorine at Happy Hot Tubs. It is very effective, cheap and easy-to-use. We would always reccomend chlorine over bromine irrelevant of the regulatory changes that are happening. 

Switching from chlorine to bromine is relatively easy. Perform a flush, drain and refill, shock with chlorine on start-up and ensure you have the correct chemicals to dose with chlorine going forward. You can still use the same PH balancers, filter cleaner and non chlorine shock. The only new chemicals you will need would be chlorine granules and chlorine test strips (depending on the strips you have currently).