Chlorine and Alcohol

The sun is beaming down on you and it feels like a hundred and three degrees outside. The palm trees are swaying and the blue glistening water in the swimming pool looks so inviting. You casually stand up and walk over to the deep end where you dive in; the cool water encasing your body. You do a few laps around the pool and begin to get thirsty but you don't want to have to get back out of the pool already... what do you do?

When we picture a vacation, something like what I just described usually comes to mind, along with on other element; alcohol. For those over 21, you know a vacation just wouldn't be the same with out the delicious alcoholic drinks served pool side, but even better is when you don't have to leave the pool for your refreshing beverage! Swim up bars are incredibly handy in cases like this and its a wonder more hotels don't offer this luxury. I suppose its because this is a luxury only resorts are lucky enough to obtain, well some anyway! It does make me wonder though if this is just another additive to help resorts make money at the pool. Alcohol increases the body's temperature, so jumping in the pool to cool off after one to many cocktails seems like a grand idea, but they make it too easy by having a bar in the pool! You just swim on over, order your drink and there is another six dollars in the pocket of the resort owners.

Now consider this... fifty people a day spend at least twelve dollars at the swim up bar. That's six hundred dollars a day, in a week that totals forty-two hundred dollars... just on alcohol! The part that is even crazier is that big resorts have more customers, charge more for drinks, and make way more money!! Swim up bars are convenient for both the resort owners and the people on vacation! Thinking about this makes me want to go for a swim and open a resort with a swim up bar. I mean it really is a brilliant idea. I wonder who came up with the thought of it and where the first swim up bar was located?

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The Backyard Pool Learning Curve

Having seen all the advertising in stores and online about backyard easy set pools we thought a backyard pool would be easy fun for our family.  Deciding to take the ‘plunge’ we found what we thought would be the perfect, complete kit.  We choose an 18 foot round by 42 inch deep pool that the box advertised as being “complete”.  Well, the pool was complete, but not all we found we needed to make it the perfect backyard escape from the summer’s heat.

 

It has taken us about 3 years to really get the kinks worked out of our pool.  We started with only the contents of the box and found that it was difficult to maintain the pool with the few tools that were included.  The small skimmer on a handle works well to get the debris floating on the surface of the water and to mix the chemicals once added.  The vacuum works really well, and we still use it today.  However complete the box said the kit was we found we definitely needed to make some upgrades.

 

The first upgrade we made was a solar pool cover.  The grey plastic tarp cover that came with the pool did nothing to help warm the water, in fact it almost seemed to make it colder!  That summer we made it through but put a lot of time into cleaning and maintaining the pool, and the water never really got all that warm.

 

The second year we searched on-line and found some plans to make a solar heater.  Between the solar cover and the heater the water warmed up very nicely.  So much that we spent a lot more time in the pool and the extra time swimming lead to more maintenance.  We had a hard time keeping the chemical levels balanced as well as the debris cleaned up out of the pool that summer.

 

The following summer we made the choice to get a larger filter pump with a skimmer.  The skimmer hooked right on to the filter inlet collecting the large debris before it had a chance to settle to the bottom of the pool.  The larger pump was able to circulate the water more often resulting in cleaner water.  The addition of a floating chlorinator and we found the perfect balance.

 

Now, our fourth year with the pool and things are going smoothly.  Our pool stays at a comfortable 80 degrees, even after the last few days of thunderstorms.  We find we only have to shock the pool weekly now, when we had been doing it every few days just to keep things in balance, and we only have to vacuum every couple of weeks to the get up the sand the kids track in to the pool.  Now that we have all the kinks worked out we have more time to enjoy the pool, and are spending less money on chemicals.

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The Demise of the Public Swimming Pool

In recent years British public swimming pools have been on the decline, particularly public outdoor pools, known as lidos. This can in part be attributed to the rise of Health & Safety regulations and partly to a lack of investment in and maintenance of public pools. Public baths all over the country have been closed down completely. However, many public pools still remain with some even being refurbished.

There are two kinds of lido: the natural, pond-like pool as at Hampstead Heath in London and the man-made version (heated or unheated) which can be found at Tooting Bec, Hornsey and Richmond Park. There are even a few lidos in Central London, such as at Holborn and the Serpentine Lido near Kensington Palace.

Health & Safety regulations demand that a public pool must have qualified lifeguards on hand in case of emergencies; this is especially true in unheated lidos, where the dangers are increased. Admission must therefore be charged in order to pay the costs of providing lifeguards and maintaining the pool.

Maintenance and employment of lifeguards for pools today is often contracted out in a public-private partnership in an attempt to save local authorities' money, but this often turns out to be a false economy. This usually results in a vicious circle involving shorter opening hours and less income from a drop in visitor numbers. This has been proven time and time again in places such as Barking and Wandsworth, even though visitor interest does not decline.

Hopefully the rise of Olympic swimming athlete Rebecca Addlington will encourage councils to invest more in public sports facilities, although this writer does not hold out much hope; the successes of Duncan Goodhew and Sharron Davies should have been fresh in the minds of authorities when they closed lidos around the country.

The irony is that government is complaining about an 'obesity epidemic' while it sells school playing fields and public sports facilities to private developers who then build housing estates. The new residents of these estates then have smaller and more crowded sports and education facilities. Councils would do well to remember that the expected lifetime of a man-made pool is on average 25-30 years and that residents of new housing estates need schools and hospitals, so they would need to build new facilities every few years. Unfortunately there may not be enough of this green and pleasant land to sustain such a rate of development for very long.

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My Experience with Pools

Over the years I have had many experiences in swimming pools and with those experiences come memories.  Many of the memories I've had are fun and exciting but tainted with chlorine.  Chlorine, ever since my earliest days of swimming, has been my nemesis.  Although I enjoy swimming in pools a great deal whether it be for exercise, enjoyment, or any other reason, my time in swimming pools has been minimized because of the amount of pain the chlorine causes me.  No matter what precautions I take (goggles, closing my eyes, etc.) I still come out with bloodshot eyes that hurt every time I blink.

This, however, has not stopped me from swimming.  I simply choose my pools carefully.  I have a few basic requirements: the pool must look clean and well kept.  What that means is that I won't swim in it if I see a floating band-aid.  Next the amount of people in the pool should be reasonable.  I do not want to swim in an overcrowded pool.  I would like to be able to move around without bumping into strangers.  Finally the pool has to be deep enough so that I can fully enjoy my swimming time.  I don't want to be swimming laps and scrape my feet on the bottom of the pool.

If the pool meets those requirements, I will swim.  However, there are ways to ensure that my pool experience is even more enjoyable.  I have been in pools where I can swim for hours on end because the chlorine does not hurt my eyes.  In general these pools are off the beaten path and enjoy less visitors.  This allows the chlorine levels to remain at a low and yet still clean level.  Another thing that helps me swim in pools is if it takes away the feeling of swimming in a pool.  I like to swim in lakes more than pools, so the more that the pool reminds me of a lake, the better. 

One thing about pools that makes me angry sometimes is the lifeguards.  These people seem to have nothing better to do than to watch you swim and yell at small children.  I understand that these individuals are only trying to keep people safe, but they can be downright annoying.  In my experience at lakes I have never needed a lifeguard and I feel more free without them.

Even if I don't always like to swim in pools, I will continue to do so.  When there is not a lake in the vicinity, a pool can be a fine option.

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Therapeutic Pools And Therapy

Therapeutic pools are usually warm for the purpose of water treatment, temperature of water variates from 89.6°F to 96.8°F,the depth of the pool is  usually from 47'' to 70'' so that when a person is standing it reaches the chest level. This is very important from a therapeutic point of view,because this depth reduces the strain on the skeletal structure which greatly facilitates the movement of the patient in the water and makes it a more enjoyable experience.Therapeutic pools are not specifically defined by size, because the majority of aquatic therapy is performed in a vertical position.

Modern therapeutic pools are usually equipped with certain types of equipment for therapeutic exercise, so that users can achieve balance, stability and motion control while using the pool. Additional equipment for hydro massage can be installed,for a more pleasurable and relaxing experience.Typical underwater equipment within the therapeutic pool is horizontal, vertical or parallel bars, water treadmills and pedal boats, preferably made of hard plastic materials.

Properly designed therapeutic pool will have one or more entrees and exits, it should consists of stairs and ramps.

Health care organizations that are based on treating a large number of patients every day, which have a high degree of disability and must use a wheelchair, should  plan installing an access road, entrance gate and lifts for wheelchairs.Therapy pool must have its own elevator and wheelchair for entrance and exit in the pool and it should be adjusted for people with disorders.

Today, the development of technology has expanded the possibilities of water use within the therapeutic pool ,the sentence "water cures everything" explains it best.Therapeutic pools get more and more important  as they are used everywhere,especially in therapy and physiotherapy. 

Mechanical and chemical maintenance of water therapy pools is one of the most demanding in the swimming pool industry,because of the high degree of contamination of massage oils and other skin preparations used to relieve pain and treatment.The system of mechanical and chemical treatment for water consists mainly of circulation pumps, filters, heaters and a complex system of sanitation.

Recommended sanitation consists of a combination of ozone generators and UV lamps, with a small addition of chlorine ,that will guarantee the complete removal of all microorganisms, including viruses.

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Into the Blue

When the sun starts to shine, millions of Americans head to their swimming pools for a refreshing dip. What more could you ask for than a clear blue pool underneath a clear blue sky? What most people don't see is the incredible amount of effort it takes to keep these oases of calm clear of algae and other pollutants. A swimming pool is essential a stagnant pond, and a simple look into a rock pool at the beach will show you what an untended pool would end up looking like. The main question is, therefore, how do you keep your pool looking pristine?

There are countless ways of maintaining a clean and healthy pool, but the two main candidates are chlorine and ozone technology. Chlorine has been the chemical of choice for many years, as it is easy to use (just pour a few litres in and leave it to do its work!), and is seen as a long term disinfectant. However, over recent years, there has been a steady increase in the level of concern about long term exposure to chlorinated pools. Recent research has suggested that spending 2 hours a week in a chlorinated pool can inflict the same amount of lung damage as smoking, as well as increasing the risk of asthma, miscarriages and several types of cancer. So what's the alternative?

Ozone technology has been used in Europe for many decades now, and is slowly making its way across the pond, with the first chemical free public pool opening recently in Alabama. It's much cleaner, and clears more dust and grease than chlorine. It doesn't wear away at pool infrastructures, and is much kinder to allergy suffers and the human immune system in general. So what's the catch? It's incredibly expensive to set up (although these costs are offset by lower running costs in the long-term) and there isn't a huge amount of support and supply in the US for the independent pool owner. It also has a relatively short shelf life, as it requires an onsite generator to convert oxygen in the air into ozone, which is then pumped into the pool.

So next time you take a dip into a beautiful clear pool, be kind to the person who maintains it, as there's a lot of thought, effort and money gone into it.

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Every Thousand Mile Journey Begins With One Step

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The Pleasures of A Waterfall Swimming Pool

Imagine the feel of a cooling swimming pool, then imagine the beautiful image of a waterfall.  Now just imagine the feel and sensation of that same waterfall in your backyard connected to your pool.  Why?  Well because then you can experience that waterfall anytime you like, right in your own backyard. 

I myself, unfortunately, do not have access or the funds to have such a grand landscape added to my backyard, but I do have one friend who is very well off financially, and has taken the time to have a waterfall pool built into her backyard.

I took some vacation time from work about one week ago and while lounging on my sofa in the living room; my friend Abby called me up and asked if I wanted to experience her new pool.  I graciously accepted since I knew that my son, nieces and nephew would love to experience a dip in a pool to get away from the extreme heat of the Deep South.  So we jumped into the car and headed about 8 miles up the road to a more fancy part of town.

After we arrived, the kids jumped out the car and ran straight for the backyard, while Abby stood  chatting on her large front porch.  It wasn't even one whole minute later when my little niece came racing back to the front of the house yelling, "Auntie, auntie, she got a waterfall in her pool."  I was a bit shocked at this statement.  "Waterfall," I replied, "are you sure."  My little niece laughed and screamed in glee as she again raced to the back of the house.  I gawked at Abby in surprise for a moment and then went to see what the ruckus was about.

Indeed, there it was in all its glory, a beautiful waterfall pool, absolutely breathtaking as it flowed over the rocks that surrounded its crystal blue serenity.  I took no time myself getting in the pool, I splashed over to the cascading waterfall and let it rush over me, it was awesome as all my worries seemed to dissipate in that single moment.  For a brief moment in time, it was like I was on my own tropical island, enjoying the peace that comes with paradise.  And the best part is that the kids enjoyed it too, we stayed at Abby's well into the evening.  I actually hated to leave, as well as the kids hated to leave the beauty of the pool, but we had to release Abby's pool back to her. 

The kids are very eager to go back soon.  Every time they visit me, they always ask when we will be going back to auntie Abby's waterfall pool.  Without a doubt, it will be very soon, very soon indeed. 

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