EWWWWW! Don't read this if you like to swim

[sajetto]

Okay swimming pools officially give me the heebie jeebies!

My DF is a biologist and an environmental health specialist. Last night I got this crazy urge to go to the hot tub in my apartment complex, which I never do. Then he looks at me and says, hun I've got a story to tell you.

He instructs inspectors in what to look for in swimming pools. Turns out that if a pool smells like chlorine then you need to run for the hills! He told me that a clean pool smells like nothing at all.

The chlorine smell comes from "Chloramine" which is chlorine bonded to the molecules in urine, sweat, feces, and saliva.

........ Have you ever stepped out a pool and smelled your arm and it smelled like chlorine....guess what you're smelling honey!

He never swims, but I don't really either so I never wondered why he didn't. Well, now I know

 

[ead79]

What about if the pool has just been shocked? I know that my parents’ pool smells strongly of chemicals right after they shock it, and I can assure you that no one is peeing in that pool (no one ever uses it to be honest).

 

[sajetto]

I didn't ask him about shocking a pool. He's talking about public pools, which they should never have to shock if it is open year round and being maintained properly.

 

[helenabear]

Then why does my Clorox smell the same, only stronger?

 

[ead79]

I was also thinking about the Disney pools. I have read several trip reports where people all had to leave the pool area (they closed it for several hours to shock it after a poop incident). Yuck for sure!

 

[Cindyluwho]

I agree with the above posters. Chlorine smells like chlorine, it only makes sense that if there's a high concentrate of it to kill germs in a public pool then the pool would magically smell like chlorine. I've read tons of horror stories on public hot tubs but the chlorine odor thing is something I've never heard of.

 

[MouseWorshipin]

I try not to think too much about pools, hot dogs, and Chicken McNuggets! Sometimes ignorance is bliss! (...burying my head in the sand)

 

[sajetto]

Of course you clorox is smelling like chlorine you're sticking your nose in a high concentration of it!

In thousands of gallons of water there's a problem if you're smelling it.

This isn't some urban legend this is how they train inspectors throughout the US

 

[Cindyluwho]

OK, after checking out some web sites, here's the gist of what I've found:

Lead author Pamela Watt, MS, and her colleagues conducted the study in two parts. In the first part, they used a "simulated" spa one-twelfth the size of an average real-life spa They compared the disinfecting abilities of bromine or ozone added to the tub's circulation system to enzyme or bromine tablets added to the water directly. They heated the water first, added the disinfectant, and then added two kinds of bacteria associated with skin infections or fecal contamination. After 30 minutes, the investigators took water samples to measure bacterial growth, or lack thereof. Bromine and chlorine were both effective at holding down bacterial growth, with bromine added to the generating system having a slight edge after 30 minutes. Neither ozone alone nor the enzyme had much of an effect.

"As long as you can smell the bromine in the water, you're OK," says microbiologist Jon J. Calomiris, PhD. Calomiris was not involved in these studies but conducted his own studies of bromine disinfectants in hot tubs while a graduate student at Johns Hopkins University in Baltimore. He recommends adding bromine in a concentration of five milligrams per liter of water in the tub and warns consumers to heat the water before adding the chemical, as disinfection works better at higher temperatures. He tells WebMD that there are no known side effects of bromine in these amounts and that it is, in fact, less irritating than chlorine.

Looks like your friend was trying to scare you or maybe he was trying to keep you in the apartment for some cuddlin'

EDITED TO ADD:And for the record, here's a website from the CDC on how to train aquatics staff at pools. http://www.cdc.gov/healthyswimming/pdf/fnlstaff_faq.pdf

 

[sajetto]

But aren't bromine and cholorine made of two different chemical components. Also, bromine is more expensive. Most public facilities stick with chlorine. I know that they have a slight odor difference.

 

[sajetto]

Also, why are they telling him to teach this to inspectors if it is incorrect information?

 

[pansmermaidzlagoon]

I dunno - my mom has a huge above ground pool that sees very little use. My mom uses it here and there, and I doubt she pees in it...we go over not nearly enough because of being busy, my DH and I do not pee in it and the only kid using it is DD9 - even if she were to pee in it, I doubt that it would be enough to matter given the size of the pool and the infrequency that we are over there....you always smell like chlorine when you get out.

 

[Cindyluwho]

Also, why are they telling him to teach this to inspectors if it is incorrect information?

I'm sure your friend is right and the CDC is wrong. I mean what other explanation could there be!?!
http://www.cdc.gov/healthyswimming/pdf/fnlstaff_faq.pdf

 

[sajetto]

I'm sure your friend is right and the CDC is wrong. I mean what other explanation could there be!?!
http://www.cdc.gov/healthyswimming/pdf/fnlstaff_faq.pdf

Geez...I'm not telling you you're wrong. I'm wondering why they're telling him to say that.

Why take it so personally???


...edited to add...Actually, its the CDC I would be saying is wrong, if I was. And the CDC trains all the biologists to train inspectors. Maybe someone was having an off day when they told him that. However, I don't see where you are taking this as if I'm telling you that you're wrong. Seems like you have a withdrawl personality. Sorry, if you feel that I'm attacking you in some way, shape, or form.

 

[Grandpa Simpson]

From the San Francisco Public Utilities Board

Chloramine is a disinfectant added to water for public health protection. It is a combination of chlorine and ammonia that is currently considered best technology for controlling the formation of certain regulated organic disinfection byproducts.

Chloraminated water is safe for people and animals to drink, and for all other general uses. However, as with chlorine, chloramine will need to be removed for fish and amphibian use, and for people or businesses requiring highly treated water.

Unlike chlorine, chloramine cannot be removed from water by boiling, or by letting an open container of water stand to dissipate chlorine. It can only be neutralized, or removed with specific treatment methods.

Also see Wikipedia

 

[sajetto]

Okay, I'll present all this info to him so that he is not training inspectors incorrectly. I'm sure he'll need to contact whoever gave him this information so that it doesn't spread. Thanks grandpa!