What is a saltwater pool?
At Crystal Clear Aquatics, we hear this often: “We have a saltwater pool that doesn’t use chlorine.” But is a saltwater pool really chlorine-free? Heck no and here’s why:
What is a Saltwater Pool?
Saltwater pools use a chlorine generator (sometimes simply called a salt system) that creates chlorine from salt. As (low concentration) saltwater travels through the pool’s circulation system, it enters the chlorine generator and a low-voltage current is applied to initiate electrolysis. By introducing electrolysis to the dissolved salt in the water, hypochlorous acid is produced. What is hypochlorous acid? Hypochlorous acid is a weak acid with the chemical formula HClO. It forms when chlorine dissolves in water, and it is HClO that actually does the disinfection when chlorine is used to disinfect water for human use. The hypochlorous acid sanitizes the swimming pool water, and eventually reverts back to dissolved salt in the water, and the entire process repeats as the saltwater passes through the chlorine generator again. The reality is, a salt pool uses the same chlorine as a traditional pool, it just produces it poolside through a different process without any of the additives used to preserve store-bought, packaged chlorine.
Why Convert to a Saltwater Pool?
The biggest difference associated with using saltwater chlorination versus manually adding chlorine that’s most noticeable is smell. That “chlorine smell,” along with eye and skin irritations typically associated with chlorine, are actually created by sanitation byproducts called chloramines. Chloramines are essentially bacteria or organic particles (dander, pollen, sweat, etc.) that have been killed by chlorine, but are only partially oxidized. So what you actually smell are the chloramines, which are essentially partially destroyed organic material. When you catch wind of that telltale smell, it means there wasn’t enough chlorine available to completely destroy the organic material in the pool.
The reason a “salt pool” feels, smells, and generally provides a more pleasant experience, is because, when working properly, the saltwater system is generating enough chlorine to completely finish the process and fully oxidize any organic material that enters the pool automatically every day, with minimal pool owner intervention. The main benefit of using a salt system for your pool are that pool owners don’t have to buy, lug, or measure chlorine for pool use, or worry about spilling and spashing, as well as storing it safely around kids and pets. Other benefits include long-term cost reduction, and consistent pool sanitation without the “peaks and valleys” of consistently treating with chlorine.
Even better, it really not even salt water as you and I would think. For instance, here are salt concentrations as a comparison:
Ocean Water – 35,000 PPM
Human Tear – 9,000 PPM
Salt Pools – 3,000 PPM
So a “saltwater” pool has far less saltwater than one would think. So little in fact, it’s really not fair to even call it a “saltwater” pool. But what else could we call it?
So if someone says his or her pool is a “saltwater pool,” you’ll have peace of mind knowing that you are swimming in clean, safe water (with a pinch of salt).
Call the “saltwater” experts at Crystal Clear Aquatics. Your Palm Beach county pool specialists!