Chlorine is probably the most common additive to swimming pools, residential and commercial. It is added because it has the potential to sanitize just about any pathogens. It is also added, in smaller amounts, to many cities’ drinking water supplies. However, it can also be harmful.
Most people are aware of the stinging, burning feeling when you have been in the pool for too long. That’s a function of the chlorine, which is a key ingredient in bleach. Inflammation and watery eyes are common. That’s just part of swimming in a pool, right? Well, it doesn’t have to be. There are all-natural ways to reduce the amount of chlorine in pool water. These same processes can actually be used in commercial settings to reduce the amount of chlorine in cooling towers as well.
CAC
The burning, water eyes you might experience from swimming pools is actually not completely due to chlorine. It is due to combined available chlorine (CAC). Free available chlorine (FAC) is the chemical that sanitizes pool water. CAC is formed when FAC binds with amines that are introduced to the swimming pool by humans through sweat and urine. The bound chlorine is responsible for the chlorinated smell of swimming pools as well as eye and skin inflammation or irritation. Typically, this means that the pool needs to have its chlorine levels adjusted. In a traditional pool, one will have “shock” the pool by adding massive amounts of chlorine.
Chlorine free pools do not need to be “shocked.” The electrolysis that cleans the pool water also removes chloramines. That means no red and burning eyes.
Sustainability
In a traditional swimming pool set-up, industrial chlorine is added to the pool water. This chlorine is typically created in a factory from synthetic ingredients. Unsustainable fossil fuels are required to create factory chlorine, package it, and ship it to stores. Chlorine free pools, while not truly free of chlorine, do not rely on factory chemicals. With an emphasis on natural minerals, the ingredients for creating your safe swimming environment are sustainable. Everything comes from the ground beneath your feet. That is because of the simple process which renders factory chemicals unnecessary.
How it Works
A swimming pool can operate without chlorine by using electrolysis to create the necessary compounds. Salt and other minerals are added to a processor that then shocks them with electricity. The electric shock rebinds them into two natural sanitation agents.
Swimming pools are incredibly fun year-round. Nearly everyone enjoys swimming or at least, sitting beside the pool and feeling the cool breeze off the water. However, most people don’t enjoy that chlorine smell of the water. You can eliminate that smell and the burning with an all-natural pool system.
