November 2023 • Florida Pool Prosm 9 By Tommy Diaz, 365 Pool Service / tdiaz@365pools.com Chlorine shake-up! Regulation updates for commercial spas I am sure that by this time, if you are in the commercial pool sector, you have seen this new rule. Spas residual chlorine limits have been lowered from10ppmto5ppm. You heard me right, lowered. If this is the first time you have seen this new rule your mind is in overdrive thinking about all the ramifications to your business and your customers. You might ask yourself, as I did, why would we want lower chlorine levels in spas? Socrates was declared to be the wisest man in the world by the oracle at Delphi when he said, “I only know that I know nothing.” I can’t answer ARTICLE New Rule: Rule 64E-9.004(1)(d)2.: Disinfection – Free chlorine residual shall be as follows: 1 milligram per liter (mg/L) to a maximum of 10.0 mg/L, inclusive, in conventional swimming pools; 2 mg/L to 10.0 mg/L, inclusive, in all other type pools such as swim-up bars, wading pools, special purpose pools, water recreation attraction pools, and interactive water fountains; and 2 mg/L to 5 mg/L, inclusive, in spatype pools; or available bromine residual shall be 1.5 mg/L to 6 mg/L, inclusive, in conventional swimming pools and 3 mg/L to 6 mg/L, inclusive, in all other type pools. Except that, for indoor conventional swimming pools, themaximumdisinfectant residuals shall be 5 mg/L free chlorine and 6 mg/L free bromine. the reasons for these changes, however, I hope I can help you navigate them. Let’s talk about the perils of a lower chlorine residual in a spa. Bathing Load: In my experience most spas are not regulated by a pool attendant to meet bathing load requirements. Comparing 1.5 bathers in a 1,500-gallon spa, it is roughly equivalent to 6.67 bathers in a 10,000-gallon pool. That’s right folks, that ten-person party in a commercial spa on Friday night is equivalent 66.7 people in a 10,000-gallon pool. Water Borne Diseases 1.Cryptosporidiosis: This is an infection caused by cryptosporidium. Cryptosporidium, as we all know from public pool service certification class, is notoriously resistant to chlorine. Low chlorine levels can allow this harmful bacterium to persist in spa water, leading to gastrointestinal illness. 2.Gastroenteritis: Low chlorine can enable the survival and transmission of
RkJQdWJsaXNoZXIy MTExMzEx