Does winter (midwest) impact CYA levels?

[chem geek]

Some more detailed technical info is at this link which specifies a specific enzyme (cyanuric acid amidohydrolase) that is key to the breakdown of CYA. This enzyme is found in some bacteria (including Pseudomonas and a strain of Escherichia coli; the former is generally hard-to-kill while the latter is easy-to-kill by chlorine). [EDIT] This link describes another bacteria (Ralstonia basilensis) found in soil that degrades CYA (there are also fungi in soil that breakdown CYA). It should be noted that the final products of the breakdown of CYA are carbon dioxide and ammonia so if chlorine is also present, then the ammmonia should breakdown to nitrogen gas. [END-EDIT]

Though degradation by bacteria is a clear pathway for reduction of CYA over time, I don't like that since such bacteria shouldn't exist in pools with sufficient chlorine levels and if hearty ones did (such as Pseudomonas), what does that say about our sanitation levels?

I'll keep researching this. As far as using an enzyme to help break down CYA, that is not practical unless one can "turn off" that enzyme by destroying or disabling it after one is through using it.

Richard