Happy new owners of a swim/spa

[justhavinfun]

We just purchased and are in the process of having our new Catalina 13.5' swim/spa installed. My wife is 'sensitive' to chlorine so the pool store suggested Pristine Blue. We've had the spa with water in it for a week and are still having issues with getting the water 'right'. Why I started surfing for solutions and ran across this site.

Guess we should have done our homework prior to adding chemicals to our water, but since the chemicals were 'free' even though we paid a pretty penny for the spa it doesn't matter to much I guess.

Our swim/spa is only 1,600gallons, so if we cant get this right, we may just dump it and restart fresh. Unless someone has a better idea...

Justhavinfun

 

[BoDarville]

Welcome to TFP!

Often times, when someone believes they may be chlorine sensitive, I often wonder if they are sensitive to combined chloramines (CC's) which are an intermediate breakdown product created in the process of sanitizing the pool. CC causes the "chlorine" smell many people associate with chlorine pools. This is very common in public pools and water parks. If chlorine is properly maintained, you should not experience CC's nor will you sense any "chlorine smell". I have followed the TFP method since late 2011 and am finding that bathing suits and swim goggles last much longer than when I was following the "pool store method".

Here are some resources to give you an overview of managing your pool using our methods:
1. ABC's of Pool Water Chemistry
2. Chlorine CYA Chart
3. Recommended Pool Chemicals
4. Recommended Levels
5. Pool Math