Being stuck at a home has triggered a backlog of orders for swimming pools, with a scarcity of chlorine.

But now, a shortage of chlorine tablets may limit summer plans to swim in your own backyard, writes Mat Petrillo for CBS Local.

At Leslie’s Pool Supplies in Montgomeryville, they can only allow customers to buy a limited supply of chlorine tablets for their pools.

This year there’s a higher demand for chlorine tablets as more people are building pools on their properties.

A fire last year at a major manufacturing plant that produces the tablets is also contributing to the shortage.

There’s also been a spike in tablet price in some areas.

There are tips to save on chlorine, like take a pre-swim shower to reduce bacteria in the water, keep pets out of the pool (it’s not good for their skin). and don’t ‘panic buy.’

 “Buy what you need,” Swee-Lim Chia, an associate marketing professor at La Salle University, said. “You certainly don’t need a year’s supply of tablets.”

“The best part is having the kids over and watching all the kids have fun,” Dan Williams of North Wales said. “Just seeing the smiles on their faces, that just makes the summer season.”

Find out more at CBS Local about the chlorine tablet shortage.