Quote Originally Posted by poollady View Post
I am the owner of a relatively small, indoor commercial pool. Our pool is 25ft. x 50ft. We keep the pool at 92 degrees. Our pH is at 7.4 and our FC is at 1.5. Our CC is roughly .5. We do have a high bather load (approximately 120 people per day.) Recently, some people have mentioned that the pool is causing them itching/irritation after prolonged exposure to the water.
I serviced a fitness center pool with conditions almost identical to yours for over 10 years . . . and my wife taught water aerobics in that same pool. Briefly, there is no simple or complete answer. Hot indoor pools with high bather loads *will* have the problems you describe. You can reduce, but not eliminate them.

Here are possible steps:

1. Install a commercial UV system. This will INCREASE your chlorine consumption, but will partially replicate the high-intensity oxidation that occurs on outdoor pools from the combination of chlorine + sunlight. The improvement in water quality will be very significant . . . if you get a large enough UV system.

2. Make sure that your ventilation system is on 10% or more outside air. Outside air makes it harder to maintain stable room air temperatures, so service techs tend to shut it off. BUT, without outside air real problems with air quality WILL result.

3. Keep all classes to 1 hour or less, and empty the pool for 5 minutes between classes. The reason is simple: to make people go pee! Urine and chlorine react very badly together. Sunlight + chlorine (or UV + chlorine) can break down some of the chemicals that form, and good ventilation can remove others. BUT preventing the formation of those chemicals is best. I once fixed a SEVERE problem on the pool I serviced by persuading the manager to cut a mom + young child swim class from 70 minutes to 50 minutes AND by having the instructor CONSTANTLY remind the parents to potty all children BEFORE they entered the pool.

IF YOU CAN ELIMINATE PEE AND LOTION FROM THE POOL, YOU WILL GREATLY REDUCE THE PROBLEM!

4. Try to keep people with incontinence problems (urinary & fecal) out of the pool. Fecal incontinence poses an IMMEDIATE health risk to other swimmers; chlorine does NOT instantly sanitize small fecal particles. Urinary incontinence leads to the pee+chlorine issue mentioned above. This means -- ideally -- that both toddlers AND the "Depends" set should be excluded. At a minimum, try to exclude those who are fecally incontinent (young and old) and insist that others put on a fresh diaper before entering. Encourage everyone -- young and old -- to PEE FIRST!

5. Your regulars will tend to adapt by putting lotion on before they enter the pool. Do all you can to discourage this; the lotion makes the problem worse. Ask people to rinse any lotion off first, and then suggest that they shower and put on lotion after.

(If you sell massage therapy, it may be possible to suggest that the therapist apply J & J Baby Oil Gel at the end of the massage. During the years my wife worked as an instructor, I routinely put this gel on her entire body, from neck down, AFTER showering. We kept a soft towel in the bathroom for wiping off excess. She found the Aloe + Vit E gel - pictured below -- worked best. The areas that itched worse on her, and her students, were back and lower legs. Pool user can self apply the gel to legs, but will need help to get it on their back. CAUTION: you do NOT want this stuff in the pool!!)

6. Maintain your chlorine and pH the highest allowed levels. On my pool, the problem was least bad with Cl= 5 - 10 ppm and pH = 7.8 - 8.0. I usually had 5 - 10 ppm CYA in the pool as well.

7. Turn the temperature down. You can find plenty of literature suggesting it's UNSAFE to exercise or swim at 92 degrees. People pee and sweat less at lower temperatures. Unfortunately, your older chit-chat / non-exercising women will raise unholy he## when you do so. But, if anyone is doing anything other than standing around, you really shouldn't have the pool above 90 -- it does stress old hearts!

8. Make sure your filter is (a) in great condition and (b) oversized. DE is best, an oversize sand filter is effective and easiest to maintain. Cartridges are a disaster in an application like yours.

9. Institute a regular water replacement program -- something like 20% drain and replace monthly, and complete drain and refill annually.