Anyone who has ever taken a dip in the briny waters of the ocean can attest to the altogether-unique feel of swimming in saltwater. If you've been considering the addition of a new swimming pool to your backyard, it might be worth your time to consider investing in a saltwater swimming pool. More Americans are turning to saltwater pools, but what are the benefits in choosing a saltwater pool compared to a traditional, chlorinated swimming pool?
First, Understand the Major Difference
The biggest difference between a traditional, chlorinated swimming pool and a saltwater pool is the method of disinfection. When your traditional swimming pool needs more chlorine to prevent the buildup of contaminants, it is up to you or your pool maintenance service to test chemical levels in the water and add chlorine.
Saltwater pools rely on a continuous disinfection approach. Most saltwater pools use slightly charged titanium plates to break down the salt in the water, and reform it into hypochlorous acid to disinfect the water on a continuous basis. As the saltwater passes through the titanium plates, a process known as electrolysis dissolves salt into the water to help disinfect the water.
Gentle on the Skin and Eyes
If you live in a portion of the country where water softeners are a popular fixture within the home, you're already familiar with the gentle feel of water treated with salt. Saltwater pools create the same sensation as your home water softener. The water feels smoother and silkier to the touch, and is less likely to irritate your skin when used on a regular basis. Additionally, saltwater pools are much less abrasive when your eyes come in direct contact with the water.
For those who wonder how that is possible, having gotten sea water in their eyes, it's all in the salinity of the water. A saltwater pool doesn't have salinity levels anywhere near that of the ocean, with as little as 1/10 the salinity of ocean water.
Safer than Chlorine
Chlorine, whether stored in tablet or liquid form around your home, can be dangerous to store and transport. While the pool itself still produces similar chlorine byproducts through the electrolysis process, it doesn't require you to store chlorine in your home, which could threaten the health of any young children that may come in contact with and accidentally ingest.
Less Maintenance
There is no such thing as a maintenance-free pool, so anyone that advertises a saltwater pool as such is just trying to make money through deception. With that said, you'll be able to enjoy your saltwater pool with much less effort on your own part to maintain the systems. Because the electrolysis process uses salt in the water to create the chlorine byproducts that disinfect your pool, you no longer need to check chlorine levels in your pool on a daily or weekly basis and make your own additions to the water to balance levels in the pool.
All you need to do is check the chlorine levels periodically, with most manufacturers recommending once a month, to ensure that your saltwater disinfection system is working properly.
If a saltwater pool sounds like it would be right for you and your family, you can check out our selection of saltwater pools and filtration systems or feel free to contact a Pools and Stuff representative anytime!
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