Itchy Rash

[tomchateau]

Hi Everyone,

This is our first post on this site. So, first off, hello.

I have been suffering from dry itchy patches on my skin that flair up after I have been in the tub. I have been to a dermatologist about it and she said it wasn't bacterial but beyond that she really wasn't much help. She did give me some cortisone cream that seems to take the itch out but it doesn't help with the cause - whatever that may be. All I know it is something about the tub that makes this stuff flair.

The tub is a salt water tub but we shut the generator down, hoping the salt was the issue but that didn't help. Then we tried bromine, same problem. The hydrogen peroxide, same problem. Now we are using the BBB method - cheaper but the rash persists. I am suspecting it is just a sensitivity to warm/hot water. Does this sound familiar to anyone on this board? Did you find anything that provided any relief?

Thanks in Advance...Tom

 

[Richard320]

Hi Everyone,

This is our first post on this site. So, first off, hello.

I have been suffering from dry itchy patches on my skin that flair up after I have been in the tub. I have been to a dermatologist about it and she said it wasn't bacterial but beyond that she really wasn't much help. She did give me some cortisone cream that seems to take the itch out but it doesn't help with the cause - whatever that may be. All I know it is something about the tub that makes this stuff flair.

The tub is a salt water tub but we shut the generator down, hoping the salt was the issue but that didn't help. Then we tried bromine, same problem. The hydrogen peroxide, same problem. Now we are using the BBB method - cheaper but the rash persists. I am suspecting it is just a sensitivity to warm/hot water. Does this sound familiar to anyone on this board? Did you find anything that provided any relief?

Thanks in Advance...Tom

Sounds to me like a thorough disinfection/shock followed by careful testing and balancing will take care of things.

Let me teach you the TFP mantra: Can you post a full set of test results?

Somewhere in the results will be the answer. pH out of range, high CYA preventing the chlorine from fully disinfecting, high combined chlorine... something is out of whack.

It's so prevalent that even the government has figured it out: http://www.cdc.gov/healthywater/swimming/rwi/illnesses/hot-tub-rash.html

Although they recommend test strips and a drop-based kit is worlds better.

 

[tomchateau]

Hi,

Thanks for the reply.

We have a Taylor drop kit and will post the numbers tomorrow. What I learned tonight though, is that it looks like we have no measurable CYA (but I will confirm that tomorrow as well). I really and truly do hope that it is something that we can adjust. Pretty discouraged at the moment though because I have myself convinced it is a sensitivity to hot water.

Anyway, thanks again for your optimism - will post the numbers tomorrow (no decon though for now).

Cheerio...Tom

 

[teapot]

Hi,

Thanks for the reply.

We have a Taylor drop kit and will post the numbers tomorrow. What I learned tonight though, is that it looks like we have no measurable CYA (but I will confirm that tomorrow as well). I really and truly do hope that it is something that we can adjust. Pretty discouraged at the moment though because I have myself convinced it is a sensitivity to hot water.

Anyway, thanks again for your optimism - will post the numbers tomorrow (no decon though for now).

Cheerio...Tom

Tom if it is a hot water issue, does it occur after a normal bath?

 

[tomchateau]

Hi Teapot,

Although my showers are signficantly shorter than hot tub soaks, I can say that my showers also contribute to the itch and rash. Thanks for asking the question though, I had overlooked that. This is another reason that I am thinking it is a sensitivity to warm water.

I still plan on posting our water numbers though. It will propably be tomorrow by the time I get around to it.

This is all rather discouraging.

Thanks...Tom

 

[JTKen]

For what it's worth, I've had simular skin problems myself and they aren't related to the pool. If I take long hot showers, shower too much, use towels abrasively (instead of patting down) or if I work out too hard and over heat, I get flare-ups. I have a steriod cream prescription that works wonders, but I can't use it continiously for more than a week at a time.

 

[tomchateau]

Hi,

You mention that you get an outbreak when you shower of work out hard. Do you use a hot tub? Does that cause a flair too? If so, do you simply limit you tub usage? Are there any creams that you would recommend?

Thanks...Tom

 

[JTKen]

Hi,

You mention that you get an outbreak when you shower of work out hard. Do you use a hot tub? Does that cause a flair too? If so, do you simply limit you tub usage? Are there any creams that you would recommend?

Thanks...Tom

Well I just got the spa/pool a few weeks ago and haven't spent much time in it. It may help you also, if you cut down on using soap because it dries out your skin. The doctor prescribed me Triamcinolone Acetonide .1%

I didn't know at the time, but the rash was itching and the only relief I could get was a shower. But the shower was in fact making it worse by compounding the problem. So he told me to not work out so hard (not a choice because I'm in the military) not shower more than once a day, and to not use soap. I looked at him like he was crazy, but hey he's the Doctor right?

 

[poolgirl22]

May I suggest it may be the detergent used to wash your towels? The common denominator other than water of course is that you'd use a towel to dry off..