Pool water stings open skin

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H

Hails

0
Jun 1, 2018
28
Cooranbong NSW
So I joined this forum because I'm tired of being bum steered by pool shop people lol.

I'm rewriting this post as it didnt post the first time.

So our pool is only 2 weeks old, we only set up our chlorinator last Saturday and before that I was using liquid chlorine. The guy at the pool shop told me to run the chlorinator flat out for 24 hours when first turning it on, no idea why, but I listened to him [emoji53] now our chlorine levels are through the roof when we test and the water stings any tiny piece of open skin on our hands, feels like it bites almost. Would it be the high chlorine levels doing that or something else I should be looking at? The pool has stabilser too so now I'm trying to work out the best way to remove chlorine from it, is my only option to empty part of the water and refill?
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:wave: Welcome to TFP!

We would need full set of test results I have any idea.

You may be surprised that we may not think your FC is high.

I'd almost be more worried you are feeling and electrical sting due to improper bonding.
 
Hi, I notice you’re in NSW. I am in Brisbane. Our pool is about a week ahead of yours. Our chlorinator has been on for 2 weeks on Monday. Ours was left on full pelt too then I turned it down to nothing and went too low [emoji849]. Better too high than too low as you don’t want algae. We’ve had handover and I’m still trying to work out which setting is best. Don’t worry about high chlorine levels. They will drop ver quickly especially with some sun. If you have a cover take it off and turn off heat pump if you have one. Do you have an Astral chlorinator?

You will need a decent test kit so you manage your own water. I highly recommend the clear choice lab test kit. It’s the equivalent of the Taylor test kit used overseas and is a Brisbane based company with good back up support which is handy if you have any questions relating to testing.
 
riley00dog said:
Hi, I notice you’re in NSW. I am in Brisbane. Our pool is about a week ahead of yours. Our chlorinator has been on for 2 weeks on Monday. Ours was left on full pelt too then I turned it down to nothing and went too low [emoji849]. Better too high than too low as you don’t want algae. We’ve had handover and I’m still trying to work out which setting is best. Don’t worry about high chlorine levels. They will drop ver quickly especially with some sun. If you have a cover take it off and turn off heat pump if you have one. Do you have an Astral chlorinator?

You will need a decent test kit so you manage your own water. I highly recommend the clear choice lab test kit. It’s the equivalent of the Taylor test kit used overseas and is a Brisbane based company with good back up support which is handy if you have any questions relating to testing.
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Yeah we have the astral chlorinator. I'm just worried about the high chlorine damaging things really at this point, as were not swimming this time of year anyway. It has jo blanket on or heat pump but very overcast weather at the moment.
 
Hails said:
Yeah we have the astral chlorinator. I'm just worried about the high chlorine damaging things really at this point, as were not swimming this time of year anyway. It has jo blanket on or heat pump but very overcast weather at the moment.
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I’m only learning too but how harsh chlorine is depends directly on how much stabiliser (cya) is in the water. The stabiliser protects the chlorine. So the same level of chlorine will be harsh with a low level of stabiliser but fine with a higher level. Do you have any test results? Have a read up on pool school on this site. I downloaded the iBook on my phone as find it easy to navigate to the sections I need. You have a fibreglass pool by the look of it so it’s much more resilient than a pebble interior. Order yourself a salt water test kit from CCL so you can run your own testing then you can post here and get some great advice on how to manage your chemistry.

As for the bonding, my very rough understanding is that anything metal within a certain distance to the water (I think in Australia it is 1.2m) needs to be connected by wire that joins it all in circuit so that each metal part has equal voltage running through it. I know all our rebar in our concrete under our paving and our pool fence posts were bonded. I know the electrician had to be at the same time as the fencing guys to do this and he went around with a little volt metre checking that the voltage was equal all around. Did your Colourbond fence go in before the pool? It looks fairly close to the water. Also check with whoever did your fence that it was properly bonded.

Still learning my way around my Astral chlorinator but thinking may setting 2-3 might suit the levels I’m after.
 
I should add that the water only stings if we have any small cuts or anything, my son was complaining about the water hurting him as he had a small cut on his hand and I had both my hands in the water and even standing in it at times and I didnt know what he was talking about, it wasnt until I had a small cut on my hand a couple days later that I experienced the intense stinging sensation. At the moment I only have the test strips and the astral pool 4 way test kit but I will be investing in a better test kit in the near future.
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Understood that you only feel it on the cuts, but I feel like I have read that that is what happens if you have electrical potential running through the pool.

Sorry to say but test strips are garbage and not really worth believing. But if you choose to believe the random numbers it sure looks like your chlorine is high and your stabilizer is low. Which could be harsh although I've never heard of it feeling like it stings.
 

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jblizzle said:
Understood that you only feel it on the cuts, but I feel like I have read that that is what happens if you have electrical potential running through the pool.

Sorry to say but test strips are garbage and not really worth believing. But if you choose to believe the random numbers it sure looks like your chlorine is high and your stabilizer is low. Which could be harsh although I've never heard of it feeling like it stings.
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Hmm I just did a bit of reading on bonding and earthing, and I'm a little worried about all of this now. My husband is arguing that as the the fence is into the earth and the switchboard where all the pool controls are mounted are also all the way through the concrete slab and touching earth then it's as good as earthed and we dont need to worry about any of this. I can see what hes saying however part of me feels this is slightly different when there is a body of water involved? I'm pretty cluey with most things but I get lost in all the electrical talk and how it all works. I'm feeling a little nervous now about if it's all done properly, maybe I should get an electrician out for a 2nd opinion without hubby knowing lol. Last thing I want is one of us electrocuted in the water [emoji51]
 
Yeah, I don’t understand it fully either. Hopefully someone who knows more will comment. I know bonding and grounding are different. With bonding everything has to be tied to each other. I would definitely get an electrician out who does pool work... no need to tell hubby [emoji6]
 
Ground rods are required to go into the ground 8 feet. Simply touching the earth is insufficient grounding.

Everything around a pool needs to be grounded to a single point. Otherwise different ground points can have different electrical potential.
 
Wow none of this was mentioned prior or during the build and this is the first I've heard about it. I know they did a concrete bond beam around the pool, but I assume that has nothing to do with bonding? Our pool is fibreglass though with no metal parts such as ladders or handrails so I wonder if it's still as necessary as a concrete pool or ones with metal objects [emoji848]
I will be seeking out an electrician and following it up, never know you guys may just save our lives with mentioning all this.
 
All pools must be bonded. My fiberglass pool has no metal around it either, but it is bonded back to the equipment pad. The pool equipment (pump, SWCG, automation, anything electrical) must be bonded to the system.
 
The word bond has many meanings. A concrete bond beam is different then electrical bonding.

Electrical currents flow though water and the earth as well as metal.
 
A real quick way to check if its the chlorine or a bonding issue is to get a large glass jar and dip some pool water, then dunk your hand or toe or pour the water over the area when you are away from the pool. If there is no tingle then it is an issue with the bonding and your pool is unsafe until it is repaired. Please read this thread, there are some good explanations of pool bonding. Tingle/shock from pool
 

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