Let Aqua Buddy Keep Your Pools Chloramine-Free
With the hot summer brings, it’s no wonder the swimming pool becomes the center of attention during summer breaks. After all, what child doesn’t enjoy jumping into clear blue waters and splashing around with his or her friends. But while a pool is a place of enjoyment, it is also a place of possible health problems. True, parents are well aware of the dangers of drowning and are cautious enough to provide life jackets or close supervision. However, other pool dangers such as chlorine build up are less known. Fortunately, these problems are highly preventable with proper pool maintenance.
Chloramine is a common problem with pools that are poorly maintained or those that have heavy bather loads. They form when chlorine combines with nitrogen, which is commonly from ammonia, which in turn comes from sweat and urine. You can usually tell that a pool has lots of chlorine because it smells strongly of chlorine. But despite the offensive smell, chloramine is actually a very poor sanitizer. Soon the water becomes greenish or milky because of the growth of algae, bacteria and other microbes. Those swimming in pools with high amounts of chloramine usually feel a burning and itching sensation in their eyes, nose and throat. Smaller children can have difficulty of breathing, a condition called swimmer’s asthma. Their skin also becomes dry and itchy after.
Aside from skin and breathing problems, chloramine can also lead to more serious problems such as lung and gastrointestinal infections. This is because of the bacteria growing in the pool which a child might have been accidentally swallowed or inhaled.
If you suspect that your pool has high levels of chloramine, a pool test kit can help you determine the amount of free and combined chlorine. Chloramine levels should be less than half of free chlorine levels. In fact, they should be near zero levels. If you have doubts about testing your pool yourself, you can also call pool service Fort Lauderdale professionals to test it for you. Shock treatments are done to free up the combined chlorine so they can sanitize the pool.
Preventing the formation of chloramines in your pool is quite simple. Soap baths prior to entering the pool is very effective and simple method. Also instruct swimmers that urinating is pool is forbidden not only for hygienic purposes, but also for safety purposes. If you are expecting a large number of bathers shock the pool in advance. This should keep free chlorine levels high.
More importantly, proper pool maintenance must be implemented. Your pool should be regularly by pool service Fort Lauderdale experts. These experts are able vacuum and clean your pool system to make sure that the waste products that interact with chlorine are kept to a minimum. Filters can also be modified so that they can better catch the ammonia that causes chloramine formation. They are also well-informed on various chlorine and non-chlorine shock treatments which you can choose from.
Don’t wait for your family to suffer from the effects of chloramine. Call a pool service to test and maintain your pool regularly.
