Holly IN Posted April 14, 2010 Share Posted April 14, 2010 Somebody on this board mentioned they switched from chlorine to chlorine free pool. She also mentioned that she pays about $25-$30 a year in maintenance cost. The upfront is expensive esp if you already have a chlorine system. I can't find the post. Not sure if it was before this new board or if it is the other one. If you do have a chlorine free pool can you recommend what you did... Thanks! Holly Quote Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
delaney Posted April 14, 2010 Share Posted April 14, 2010 I'm interested at the answer as well! I would love to go salt water for DD's eczema! Quote Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
Holly IN Posted April 14, 2010 Author Share Posted April 14, 2010 I found this during the google search. Sounds very interesting. http://www.ecosmartepool.com/ Quote Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
RegGuheert Posted April 14, 2010 Share Posted April 14, 2010 I recommend you start here when considering how to keep your pool sanitized. - Please note that a salt-water pool is still a chlorine pool. I can give our experiences with salt-water chlorination, if that is the question. - I think switch to bromine is a bad idea. (No comment on other types of pool sanitization.) Quote Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
Holly IN Posted April 14, 2010 Author Share Posted April 14, 2010 Ok I read your link....I am still a bit confused though. It looks like this site is saying that not to go for Chlorine free pools. ?? Holly Quote Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
Tammy Posted April 14, 2010 Share Posted April 14, 2010 Not sure if they still exist but it was the best pool I have ever had. All I did was pour two gallons of bleach in the pool once a week. It was a large pool....about 20' X 40'..... I think the ionizer was made of nickel and copper....but not totally sure. . Quote Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
RegGuheert Posted April 14, 2010 Share Posted April 14, 2010 Ok I read your link....I am still a bit confused though. It looks like this site is saying that not to go for Chlorine free pools. ?? Holly Yes, that was the point. I know all of us pool owners would like to be rid of chlorine, but I think it is important to also consider the other side of the coin. Perhaps I should have provided the link to this page which specifically discusses ozone systems. Sorry if you are not interested in looking at the drawbacks. If that's the case, I will withdraw from this discussion. Quote Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
Holly IN Posted April 14, 2010 Author Share Posted April 14, 2010 No, you do not need to withdraw. Just wanted to know because it was very very vague. We are trying to go Chloriine free due to 2 people in the family have an allergic reaction to Chlorine through Asthma. Holly Quote Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
Holly IN Posted April 14, 2010 Author Share Posted April 14, 2010 Not sure if they still exist but it was the best pool I have ever had. All I did was pour two gallons of bleach in the pool once a week. It was a large pool....about 20' X 40'..... I think the ionizer was made of nickel and copper....but not totally sure. . There are several types of ionizer. Can you tell me which one it is? Would you have a way of finding out what place you got this from? Holly Quote Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
Melissa in FL Posted April 14, 2010 Share Posted April 14, 2010 I'm interested at the answer as well! I would love to go salt water for DD's eczema! I have psoriasis and we have a salt water pool. It's wonderful, my skin is nice and soft all summer long (and normal!). If I swim in an ordinary pool I will have a severe breakout within four days. With the salt water pool I'm fine. I couldn't recommend it more for anyone with a skin condition. It is very easy to maintain and I'll always have a salt water system! Melissa Quote Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
HollyDay Posted April 14, 2010 Share Posted April 14, 2010 We have a Pool Pilot. Salt Water Generators are not as trouble free as they sound. True, we do not keep noxious chlorine in the garage though! We add salt water to the pool when needed. We also add other additives as needed for algae, ph, etc. Our generator was hit by lightening 2 years and needed replacing. THe cells need cleaning periodically as well. That is quite a process! We check all the standard pool tests including salt water then treat accordingly. Our daughter has terrible eczema and can only swim in a salt water pool. Yes, it still has chlorine, but it is different. The water "feels" different and does not break her out. We were invited to a pool party/birthday party last year to a friend's house that has a "standard" pool. Dd broke out horribly!! Her eyes were so red and blood shot, I thought she had an infection. The eye doc said it was a chlorine reaction. Her scalp was so itchy and miserable. She was on antihistamines for days just because she swam in a "standard" pool for about 3 hours. We were amazed. She has never had that reaction in our pool. She just about lives in our pool in the summer. She has already been swimming this spring! So, I do know salt water generators make a difference to some who cannot tolerate chlorine. Quote Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
Holly IN Posted April 15, 2010 Author Share Posted April 15, 2010 Hollyday.... Can you tell me the issues you had with salt water pool in regards to maintance? Holly Quote Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
JenC3 Posted April 15, 2010 Share Posted April 15, 2010 We also have an ionizer and it is easy peasy to deal with. I use a gallon of non-chlorine bleach every 10 days or so according to whether we had heavy usage of the pool or lots of rain, so sometimes it can be every 2 weeks. My pool guy is coming tomorrow to finish opening and ask him what the system is called. Quote Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
Holly IN Posted April 15, 2010 Author Share Posted April 15, 2010 Jen Thank you!! I did a lot of searching using google.com. There are lots of different ionizers. Would love to know what company as well? Holly Quote Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
cillakat Posted April 15, 2010 Share Posted April 15, 2010 I recommend you start here when considering how to keep your pool sanitized. *Phenominal* information at that site. Very interesting about the optimal pH being 8 - ito minimizing irritation. K Quote Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
Sara R Posted April 15, 2010 Share Posted April 15, 2010 My parents had a salt water system, and it had great health benefits. I went to their house after doing radiation cancer treatment, and my skin was severely burned. My skin healed amazingly quickly upon spending time in the salt water. Quote Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
HollyDay Posted April 15, 2010 Share Posted April 15, 2010 Hollyday.... Can you tell me the issues you had with salt water pool in regards to maintance? Holly Hi Holly!!! :) Like any pool, it needs to be vacuumed regularly. The chemicals need to be tested. Rain, unusually hot weather, debris, etc., can all make the ph and the chemicals off. When that happens, the pool must be treated with appropriate chemicals to bring them back into balance. The chemicals can be balanced, but the water can be cloudy due to suspended particles. In that case, chemicals need to be added to make the water precipitate out whatever is suspended. Then that needs to be vacuumed. I remember one particularly dramatic time last year, we needed to add alum to the pool. The next morning, the water was crystal clear and the bottom was covered with "fluff" that needed to be vacuumed. Sometimes extra chlorine, Shock, needs to be add. We have a boost feature, so if we plan on a pool party or we know a bunch of rain is coming, we can put the pump on boost for a day or say to increase chlorine levels. Algae can be an issue too. If that happens, then copper needs to be added. Then copper levels need to be checked. Periodically, the cells need to be removed from the pump and cleaned in some sort of acid solution. Obviously, I have not done that, so I cannot go into any detail. Like any pool, the filters need checking daily, the vacuuming needs doing. Water needs to be added if the levels get too low. Water needs to be removed if rain has made it too high. It is just a lot of work. The reason I mention all this, is some folks think having a salt water generator makes pool maintenance easier. I don't think that is the case. I like it better. THe feel of the water and the fact dd can swim without problems makes it worth having. Quote Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
Holly IN Posted April 16, 2010 Author Share Posted April 16, 2010 ok hhhmmmm I guess I will have to do more research. I just want my dh and son to be able to swim with us without worrying about chlorine reaction. Holly Quote Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
RegGuheert Posted April 16, 2010 Share Posted April 16, 2010 okhhhmmmm I guess I will have to do more research. I just want my dh and son to be able to swim with us without worrying about chlorine reaction. Holly I have to ask: Do your children have a reaction to chlorine or to chloramines, which are also known as combined chlorine? This distinction could make a big difference in your choice, IMO. What happens in a pool is the chlorine does its job by combining with harmful germs, etc., in your pool, thus producing chloramines. Chlorine has no smell, so if you ever smell "chlorine" around a pool, you are smelling the chloramines, NOT the chlorine. These chloramines are typically much more irritating than chlorine, so we have found that we avoid ANY pool that has a "chlorine" smell. Here's the important part: A high concentration of chlorine (>10 ppm, but also depending on stabilizer levels) can break down chloramines, thus eliminating them from the pool. With a traditional chlorine pool, this is called "shocking" the pool and is done occasionally in order to rid the pool of chloramines. But between shocking, the pool builds up a certain level of chloramines. The beauty of a salt-water chlorination system is that a very low level of chlorine is maintained in the pool at all times, PLUS the water is pumped through the cell which produces the chlorine in the pool. Inside the cell, the concentration of chlorine is above the shock level, so CHLORAMINES are always being destroyed whenever the pump runs. The result is that the concentration of chloramines is kept VERY LOW and thus the pool will generally be less irritating to swimmers. We NEVER smelled "chlorine" around our pool when we had a salt-water chlorinator. Also, as others have mentioned, the salt in the water makes the water feel much softer. We've had visitors comment about how soft our water feels compared with other pools they have used. Good luck with your research! Quote Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
JenC3 Posted April 16, 2010 Share Posted April 16, 2010 Holly he will be here today so I will get back with asap. He had a vacuum break down so he wasn't able to come out yesterday. Quote Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
Holly IN Posted June 21, 2010 Author Share Posted June 21, 2010 bumping Ok if you have a salt based pool....can you tell me or give me links to what system you have? Can we easily convert the chlorine to salt?? I know salt eventually turns into chlorine but it is at a much slower rate though. Holly Quote Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
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