The Importance of Proper Pool Water Treatment

The importance of regularly and properly testing and treating pool water, especially during COVID-19, cannot be emphasized enough. While the Centers for Disease Control and Prevention (CDC) have said that the virus cannot be passed through properly treated pool water, it is just as crucial as ever to ensure your water testing is accurate and complete in order to ensure healthy water quality. Having the right tools in place can make it easier to keep your water properly balanced, and even better, can help you keep track of trends over time.

Q: What should we know about water chemistry testing?

A: Well-balanced swimming pool water chemistry ensures the water is safe and healthy for your guests, protecting them from water-borne illnesses. It also helps protect your pool equipment from damage.

You should be following the required testing regimen for your facility, usually established by a local health department or other agency.

Field testing for the various chemicals present in pool water can be time-consuming and expensive. Because of this, many aquatic facilities regularly test chlorine and pH levels. The correct balance of these properties ensures the water is safe for swimmers, but without further testing, you could be unaware of other imbalances in the water chemistry. Some of these imbalances can affect your equipment, leading to costly repair and replacement.

Q: How can we more effectively test our aquatic facility's water for more than chlorine and pH level?

A: You should look for an automated pool monitoring solution that is designed to conduct additional tests quickly and easily. Engineered to be used without specialized training, this type of system uses prefilled reagent disks that you inject with a water sample and then insert into the photometer. The system can conduct up to 10 tests using centrifugal fluidics photometry. Look for a system with the capacity to test for a wide range of factors, including free and total chlorine, pH, bromine, calcium hardness, total alkalinity, cyanuric acid, copper, iron and salt. You can also test for phosphate if algae growth is a common concern for your aquatic facility.

Q: How can we better analyze the results of our water testing to ensure good water quality?

A: Look for a system that can display your results immediately, as well as transfer the results into a program for analysis. An app makes it simple to read and store results, and provides advanced data management to help you better understand how your pool's water chemistry changes over time, helping you better plan for increased bather loads and programming.

Even better, you can use this app to view a range of facilities, so if you have more than one pool or location, you'll have all your data in one place. Enter contact information for individuals you'll need to call if there's an issue with your pool's water, and you've further streamlined the process of maintaining balanced water chemistry.