Hot Tub Rash??? (kind of long)

[JohnBoston]

I am having a problem with breaking out on my legs after using my hot tub. I'll try to be as brief as possible with the details but descriptive enough to get informed input.
I first broke out in November and began doing some research. I have had some different things happening with my hot tub and I'm not sure what the problem is.

I used to use the dichlor/bleach method and it was easy because I was the only person using it and I used it pretty much every day. Recently I moved back to my home state close to my children and grandchildren and have been way less consistant on how often I used it and forgetting to add bleach when I wasn't using it. So my daughter suggested that I switch to the frog@ease system which is what she uses. I did that in July. Around the middle of October my daughter joined me in the hot tub one evening. A couple of days later I got in by myself and it really foamed up. At the time I thought it was probably from detergents or hair and body products that my daughter had used. I tested the water and found that both PH & TA were way too low. I added baking soda and got them both to come up and then didn't have a chance to use the hot tub for a few weeks. The next time I got in it foamed up again and again it PH and TA were very low. So I drained and refilled. Got it heated and the water balanced added some shock put the FROG back in and started using it again.
Shortly after is when I began breaking out. It took a few times of this happening for me to connect it with the hot tub use. So I researched about Pseudomonas folliculitis. I thought this could be the cause so I purged with AHHSOME, scooped out all the foam and biofilm, raised my FC to 10-12 with bleach and kept it that high for 48 hours, then I purged with Ahhsome again. I drained it, cleaned all of the surfaces with bleach water solution. replaced filter with a new filter and filled it back up.
I got it all started back up again and my pump went out. So Fast forward to now. I have finally gotten it repaired and started back up and the first time I used it I broke out again. No one else who has used it during the time period I have been breaking out has had any type of rash. So now I am wondering if Psuedomonas is really the problem, If I didn't do enought to get rid of it, or if I could be allergic to some chemical in the frog system. is there a way to have your water tested for psuedomonas specifically?

I am at a loss. Any help would be appreciated

Carrie
Current Chems
TH 50
FC 4
TA 120
PH 7.2

Same red bump/rash issues here. Visited dermatologist and allergist several times. It comes down to different people are more sensitive/allergic to different chemicals used to sanitize hot tubs. I use anti-histamines and steroid cream to treat the outbreaks, but on a mission to find the source. Started with changing the chlorine sanitization, which contains a stabilizer called cynauric acid. Likely the cyanuric acid caused the reaction and not the chlorine.

Changed the water, replaced the filter. Switched to Frog Serene two cartridge floating system; with bromine and mineral cartridge. Really nice product; keeps the water crystal clear. It does simplify the chemical treatments. The skin irritations have decreased quite a bit for the past 4-5 months. It's wise to only change one ingredient at a time when trying to figure out the root cause. Our thought is we may have a couple irritants causing the problem.

The next change will be the sanitizer. We have been using non-chlorine oxidizing shock, potassium peroxymonosulfate, with both the chlorine and Serene sanitizers. It was suggested to switch the shock to a sodium peroxybisulfate, which in general should be more gentle on the skin. Looking for this product now. Will be changing the water soon and will let you know how it works. I do like the post about Nature 2; and will consider that as an option.

 

[Mdragger88]

Same red bump/rash issues here. Visited dermatologist and allergist several times. It comes down to different people are more sensitive/allergic to different chemicals used to sanitize hot tubs. I use anti-histamines and steroid cream to treat the outbreaks, but on a mission to find the source. Started with changing the chlorine sanitization, which contains a stabilizer called cynauric acid. Likely the cyanuric acid caused the reaction and not the chlorine.

Changed the water, replaced the filter. Switched to Frog Serene two cartridge floating system; with bromine and mineral cartridge. Really nice product; keeps the water crystal clear. It does simplify the chemical treatments. The skin irritations have decreased quite a bit for the past 4-5 months. It's wise to only change one ingredient at a time when trying to figure out the root cause. Our thought is we may have a couple irritants causing the problem.

The next change will be the sanitizer. We have been using non-chlorine oxidizing shock, potassium peroxymonosulfate, with both the chlorine and Serene sanitizers. It was suggested to switch the shock to a sodium peroxybisulfate, which in general should be more gentle on the skin. Looking for this product now. Will be changing the water soon and will let you know how it works. I do like the post about Nature 2; and will consider that as an option.

The cya itself isn’t the problem- its when cya gets higher & the fc level isn’t also maintained at the higher corresponding level FC/CYA Levels- this makes the water unsanitary which leads to rashes. Also having zero cya can make most fc levels feel harsh. The key is balancing fc w/ cya level. This is the reason for the dichlor then bleach method.
Non chlorine “shocks” like u mentioned are only oxidizers - not sanitizers. Chlorine is both oxidizer & sanitizer.
The word “shock” leads people to believe they are sanitizing their water with these oxidizing products when in fact they are not. Appropriate amounts of sanitizer must always be maintained according to the FC/CYA Levels regardless of the use of other oxidizers or magic potions like the frog . In my opinion all these other things just complicate matters - & you still need chlorine. Just use chlorine.