Pool owners are always searching for new and improved ways to treat their pool water. They are looking to make it easier to care for pool water and also to lessen the impact of sanitizers in the water on bathers.
We have been using Ultra Violet light to remove spent chlorine and neuter bacteria in pool water for almost a decade with great results. It has been especially effective in indoor pools, where it is important to keep spent chlorine at bay so that the odor of the pool does not become an issue.
Ozone has been used for over 20 years to oxidize contaminants in the pool water and lessen the load for the primary sanitizer (either chlorine or bromine). When ozone is introduced into the pool water, the amount of sanitizer needed to effectively keep the water safe is reduced by around a third.
In the last five years we have started to couple these technologies and they work together to reduce the impact of traditional sanitizers on bathers. UV and ozone are routinely used together in water treatment facilities to purify water for drinking, and we felt we could use them as well. Between the oxidizing power of the ozone and the chloramine removing ability of UV, we end up with water that requires less chlorine to keep the pool clear and healthy. In addition, the smell of the sanitizer is greatly reduced in chlorine pools.
Some clients have actually reduced the free chlorine residual they maintain in their pool to .5 – 1 PPM which is a reduction of 50-67% (APSP Residential Pool Standard for Free Chlorine is 1-3 PPM). At this level, when using UV and ozone to treat the water, the chlorine is unnoticed to most bathers. For those who want a way to treat their pool with a low impact on bathers, realize that neither UV light or ozone effect bathers since they don’t come in direct contact with bathers (when installed correctly). Since we cannot maintain a residual in the water of either UV light or ozone, we have to test the water more frequently (recommended twice per week), to maintain a chlorine residual below 1 PPM. If this schedule is adhered to, UV and ozone together can enhance your bathing experience.