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Most residential and commercial swimming pools use chlorine for basic water sanitation. Though unchallenged as a pool water sanitizer, any pool owner knows that chlorine and its cousin bromine can be nasty and hard to handle. Hang on bunky ‘cuz a new combination of pool technologies may have the answer for your pool.
Saltwater chlorination is an old and well-understood technology. Water, with the correct level of dissolved salt, is passed through an electric current. Some of the salt, sodium chloride, dissociates or splits into sodium and chlorine. This process has been refined for use in swimming pools and is now the hottest selling type of sanitizing system going. The advantages are considerable: salt is cheaper than chlorine, the pool is chlorinated as long as the pump and associated chlorine generator are operating and a residual level of chlorine is maintained in the pool. You get the necessary oxidation in a continuous dose for less money!
Ozone, a form of oxygen, is also a great oxidizer and can be easily produced by an electric spark (corona discharge) or from a UV bulb. Ozone will also wipe out algae and bacteria. These two forms of ozonators have been sold on spas and hot tubs for over twenty years. The only drawback is that chlorine or bromine must also be used because ozone disappears completely within twenty minutes. With such a short life, ozone has been unsuitable for swimming pools because there can be no residual oxidizer.
So we have saltwater chlorination to cheaply and easily produce chlorine and vanishing ozone that kills algae and disappears. What if the two systems were combined? Say hello to saltwater-ozone pool sanitizing systems!
Saltwater ozone systems seem to be the promising future of swimming pool sanitization. Not only do the two systems complement each other’s shortcomings but provide mutual benefits too! The saltwater generator uses dissolved salt in the pool water, which more closely matches the natural salinity of the human body. The water “feels” softer and silkier without the dryness that chlorine alone can cause. The chlorine produced provides the necessary residual oxidizer in a regular, predictable dose. The ozonator, which also operates with the generator, oxidizes and sanitizes the entire pool every time the pool “turns over” because it is also attached inline with the saltwater generator. The most likely part to fail in saltwater chlorine generators is the electrode due to calcium buildup from pool water. Ozone prevents this build-up and prolongs electrode life.
Like any other product this new technological marriage needs some attention. Since saltwater generators produce unstabilized chlorine, stabilizer (cyanuric acid), has to be added to the water. Pool water chemistry needs to be monitored regularly to maintain proper alkalinity and hardness levels. Typical electrode life for a saltwater generator is between 3 and 5 years. Ozonator bulbs typically last 9000 hours or about 3 years, corona discharge units are good for about 15000 hours or 5 years before being replaced. Plumbing a system like this is relatively straightforward and if service is needed all the components are easy to get at.
Whether building a new pool or thinking of modifying an existing pool, this new system is worth a close look. It works with any kind of above ground or inground pool and with chlorine prices increasing annually this system may be just the thing to enjoy better water, lower costs and less maintenance for your pool.
Rob “Dr. Duck” Coxworth
Webfoot Leisure.com
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