Tanning Oil and your pool
- Thread starter bbecky75
- Start date
With heavy pool use, we will see a slight sheen on the surface of the pool water. It's usually gone in a hour or two as my pool has strong skimmer action.
Thanks for the quick reply. I was told it could damage the filter, pump.... Which I thought was crazy but wanted to ask the experts here to see what you all thought. Also, my cousin said it creates lots of algea... Any thoughts on these assumptions?
Tanning oils and lotions can dirty the filter, but so do other things and filters do require ongoing maintenance. The sole reason that folks get algae is because their pools have inadequate sanitizer levels.
I hate sun block / tanning oil ect. It just washes of in my pool and leaves a bath tub ring around my title. I am sure it is coating the filter as well. I try to tell my wife and here friends that the stuff just washes off, but they are sure the will get skin cancer without it. They put it on themselfs, the kids, the dog, the neighbors kids and I have to deal with bathtub ring around my pool. Its not as if I could just get some Ajax soap or dish soap and remove it from the tile, I wouldn't want that stuff in my pool either. I hate tanning oil and sun block.
Thanks for the replies and both were just fine and along the lines I was already thinking. Why else do we backwash and sanitize....
Have a great weekend
We're gonna try to do some swimming if the storms hold out
Have a great weekend
We're gonna try to do some swimming if the storms hold out
Small amounts of tanning oil, sunblock, etc are hardly noticeable and get broken down by chlorine reasonably quickly.
Medium amounts of oil can be handled by using a Skum Bug or Scumball in the skimmer. They soak up the oil, and need to be cleaned or replaced occasionally.
Large amounts of oil can cause problems such as what atomicdog describes. You can help control major amounts of oil using an enzyme product designed to speed up the breakdown of oils, such as Pool Perfect or ProTeam Power Enzyme.
Really extreme amounts of oil can potentially clog the filter, though this is quite rare.
Medium amounts of oil can be handled by using a Skum Bug or Scumball in the skimmer. They soak up the oil, and need to be cleaned or replaced occasionally.
Large amounts of oil can cause problems such as what atomicdog describes. You can help control major amounts of oil using an enzyme product designed to speed up the breakdown of oils, such as Pool Perfect or ProTeam Power Enzyme.
Really extreme amounts of oil can potentially clog the filter, though this is quite rare.
I suppose in extreme cases, it can end up like the indoor pool where I'm staying. There was a huge pile of scum... looked like shaving cream or cake frosting about 6" high in one corner of the hot tub section. And a rainbow sheen on the pool. Why folks wear sunblock in an indoor pool is beyond me. Maybe it was just moisturizing lotion.
atomicdog said:
Just a word of caution/surprise from a newbie looking at getting a pool, but since it is a fact that sun exposure over time will lead to both benign and malignant types of skin cancer, isn't it worth the protection for skin cancer if you need to clean up the stuff?
kellyj, welcome to TFP!
Sunblock, tanning oil, etc isn't a problem for most pools. It all depends on the brands used and how many people are swimming. Most residential pool owners either won't notice any oil, or can keep everything under control easily with a scum bug, even if everyone in the family uses sunblock.
Sunblock, tanning oil, etc isn't a problem for most pools. It all depends on the brands used and how many people are swimming. Most residential pool owners either won't notice any oil, or can keep everything under control easily with a scum bug, even if everyone in the family uses sunblock.
I do get peeved at teenagers who goop themselves up and then immediately jump in the pool, leaving a spreading oil slick on my pristine waters. My rule is wait a half-hour after gooping or take a shower before jumping in. I encourage gooping AFTER dipping, not the reverse.
Similar threads
