In unbalanced water, copper may ‘drop out of solution’ and cause staining of a pool’s submerged fixtures and pretty much all of its non-metal surfaces (i.e. vinyl liner, fiberglass bottom, concrete/gunite bottom, etc.). Typically a severe drop in alkalinity and/or pH can result in copper staining with the right amount of free dissolved copper present.

In the case where the pool in question has a heater tests for copper in pool water yielding positive results may mean the pool water has become corrosive and has started to eat away at the copper in the heating element(s) in their heater.

A second source of copper, and also a good reason to test for copper in pool water every once in a while, has to do with the pool owner’s choice of algaecides. Some of the algaecides on the market contain trace amounts of copper due to copper’s ability to effectively fend off an outbreak of algae in water whose chlorine or other oxidizer level has dropped. Long-term use, or most often improper overuse, of copper-based algaecides can lead to an excessive buildup of copper in the water. A severe change in alkalinity and pH, possibly as a result of a rainstorm or the addition of ‘new’ water to the pool, may cause that copper to ‘come out of solution’ and cause staining on the surfaces mentioned earlier.

Does Copper in Pool Water Always Mean Trouble?

Absolutely not! In fact, some pools rely on copper as their primary algistat and use very low levels of oxidizers such as chlorine to destroy any organics that do attempt to make the water their new home.

How Can Pool Owners Test for Copper in Pool Water?

Pool owners can test for the presence of free dissolved copper in their pool water using traditional wet kits, by taking a sample of their pool water into their local pool store for analysis, or by using a test strip such as the Pool Check^TM Copper test strip which detects free dissolved copper levels as low as 0.2ppm and as high as 2.0ppm in under a minute.

The Pool Check^TM Copper test strip also tests for pH and Alkalinity at the same time it tests for free dissolved copper residual. This product tests for pH and Alkalinity because they changes in those two pool water parameters can cause free dissolved copper to come out of solution, settle on surfaces, and stain whatever it lands on — sometimes permanently!

Although many people have concerns over the presence of lead and copper in their drinking water, few know what the United States Envoronmental Protection Agency actually said about the presence of lead and copper in drinking water.

Hence the need for this water testing blog entry.

“Lead and copper enter drinking water primarily through plumbing materials. Exposure to lead and copper may cause health problems ranging from stomach distress to brain damage. On June 7, 1991, EPA published a regulation to control lead and copper in drinking water. This regulation is known as the Lead and Copper Rule (also referred to as the LCR or 1991 Rule).

The treatment technique for the rule requires systems to monitor drinking water at customer taps. If lead concentrations exceed an action level of 15 ppb or copper concentrations exceed an action level of 1.3 ppm in more than 10% of customer taps sampled, the system must undertake a number of additional actions to control corrosion. If the action level for lead is exceeded, the system must also inform the public about steps they should take to protect their health and may have to replace lead service lines under their control.”  source

Testing for Lead and Copper in Drinking Water

For those wishing to test for the presence of lead and/or copper in drinking water, you may want take a look at the following easy-to-use, inexpensive home water quality test kits:

• Water Metals Check — Great for letting homeowners know if their water contains ANY metals such as copper, cadmium, zinc, iron, cobalt, nickel, etc.  Water Metals Check will not identify which metal the water contains, but it does give homeowners the ability to find out if they ought to perform more quantitative water testing for metals.
• Lead in Water — Very simple test which indicates whether water contains lead in concentration of 15ppb or greater.
• John’s Copper — Excellent home water quality test kit for detecting copper and ONLY copper in drinking water.  The manufacturer of this product claims it will not yiled false positives if exposed to other metals and that the test will detect levels of copper in drinking water as low as 0.05ppm.
• LEADQuick^TM — Obtain lead in water test results in under 5 minutes.  Accurate detection of lead in water concentrations as high as 700 ppb and as low as 1 ppb (+/-3ppb).  Used in conjunction with the Hach LeadTrak^TM Pocket Colorimeter^TM II.

Whether your pool/spa sits outside or under the protective cover of a roof, it still collects dust, debris and other nasty things which can ruin the fun of an afternoon swim or late night soak. Those same nasty items can ruin your health.

In an effort to prevent either of those tragedies, pool and spas come equipped with inline filtration systems designed to remove unwanted items from the water. Several different types of systems are commonly used:

• Sand — Often found on aboveground pools and on commercial pools. Water passes through a body of sand and as it does so, larger particles get filtered out.
• Diatomaceous Earth — Often found on inground pools of all sizes. Cloth covered fins or ‘fingers’ coated in a silt-like, white, material which looks very much like finely ground chalk filter out unwanted solids.
• Cartridge — Often found in spas and on very small aboveground pools. Porous paper sheets filter out unwanted solids.

Cartridge Filters

Sand Filters

DE Filters

Ever see the things that can grow in stagnant water? Ever SMELL the things that grow in stagnant water? We assure you those things neither look nor smell pretty. Now picture that same water in your swimming pool or spa. Again, not a pretty thought.

Pool water that does not get ‘turned over’ properly and circulated through the filtration system will eventually become stagnant. That means Little Tony’s urine, bile, spit, or worse will never get removed from the water… which means you get to swim in it over and over again. Yuck.

“What about the chemicals? Don’t those keep the water safe?” — Not without proper circulation, no. You will wind up with concentrated pockets of the chemicals in some parts of the pool while other areas will contain no chemicals; thus making both types of water potential health hazards.

Consult with your pool builder, pool technician, owner’s manual, or local pool supply store for more information on this topic. Typically they will want to know your pool size, the size of the pump/motor on your filtration system, and the number of hours you run your pump and motor.

For a lot of people the phrase Water Chemistry brings back memories of nightmarish chemistry exams in school. In this case, though, checking the chemistry means keeping track of certain parametrs in the water and making sure they stay in the proper ranges.

Monitoring the water chemistry in a pool will not cause you the pain you suffered through earlier in life. For the average pool owner, simple dip-n-read Pool Check test strips will work just fine. They allow for easy monitoring of the basics: Chlorine Level, pH, Total Alkalinity, and Hardness. Additionally, a trip to the pool store with a sample of water works equally well. Plus the fine folks at the store will give excellent directions on how to correct any problems they may find.

For those who maintain commercial or public pools, use of dip-n-read test strips will typically NOT suffice.

Most local Health Departments prefer to see pool/spa professionals using EPA Compliant methods for the monitoring of certain things like Free & Total Chlorine. They also want to see a host of other parameters like Cyanuric Acid (chlorine stabilizer) monitored on a regular basis. Sound intimidating? Let us help you with that.

Prior to the introduction of portable, easy-to-use handheld meters like the eXact Micro 7+ Advanced Photometric System, EPA Compliant chlorine testing required messy wet kits, dropper bottles, titrants, tablets and/or irritating dusts. No other chlorine detection method involving DPD Chemistry existed.

Now, however, with affordable EPA Compliant (for chlorine monitoring) water quality testing meters such as the eXact Micro 7+ Advanced Photometric System which makes use of a new, more convenient DPD Delivery System known as DPD ReagentStrips available, chlorine testing has become a lot easier and pretty much anyone can obtain accurate, reliable water test results in minutes.

Per the request of several men and women currently serving in the United States Armed Forces and other branches of the Unites States Government, we will begin posting possible alternate products for popular (established) NSN’s (National Stock Numbers) related to water quality testing.

6640014907587 — Chlorine Test Paper

“BOTTLES OF 50. DETECTION RANGE OF 0PPM TO 10PPM. HACH.”

Alternatives:

• Chlorine Test Strips — Easy to use dip and read test strips for free and total chlorine. Detection ranges vary, but can start at low as .005ppm and reach as high as 2,000ppm. Packaged in bottles of 50 or individually wrapped in foil packs.

The above link will take you to a general chlorine test strip page listing a number of different products but if you know more precisely the range of detection you require, the links below will take you directly the chlorine testing product best suiting your needs:

Free Chlorine Test Strips:

• Range: 0 ppm to 6 ppm
• Range: 0 ppm to 25 ppm
• Range: 0 ppm to 80 ppm
• Range: 0 ppm to 120 ppm
• Range: 0 ppm to 750 ppm
• Range: 0 ppm to 2,000 ppm

Total Chlorine Test Strips:

• Range: 0.005 ppm to 0.2 ppm
• Range: 0 ppm to 10 ppm
• Range: 0 ppm to 80 ppm

Free and Total Chlorine Test Strips:

• Range: 0 ppm to 5 ppm

Whether you need to test for high levels of chlorine or test for low levels of chlorine, rest assured that reliable, safe and easy-to-use test strips from Industrial Test Systems, Inc. can and WILL get the job done right each and every time.

Note: We have found that the products suggested above meet or exceed the specifications of the original NSN (National Stock Number) item. This does not mean, though, that you may substitute them in place of the item on a Government Contract. We provided the above information as possible sources of water quality testing products for consideration in future Contracts/Bids only.

Per the request of several men and women currently serving in the United States Armed Forces and other branches of the Unites States Government, we will begin posting possible alternate products for popular (established) NSN’s (National Stock Numbers) related to water quality testing.

NSN: 6550012191061, 6550014257957 — Chlorine Test Tablets

“DPD REAGENT TEST TABLETS FOR CHLORINE ANALYSIS. PACKAGED IN INCREMENTS OF 100. LAMOTTE.”

Alternatives:

• DPD 1, 3 and 4 ReagentStrips — Faster and more convenient than traditional DPD test tablets. No MSDS required. Safe to use on production room floors of food processing facilities. EPA Compliant testing method. Packaged in bottles of 50 or individually wrapped in foil packs. Costs as low as 8 cents a test.

eXact^® Strip DPD ReagentStrips

Note: We have found that the products suggested above meet or exceed the specifications of the original NSN (National Stock Number) item. This does not mean, though, that you may substitute them in place of the item on a Government Contract. We provided the above information as possible sources of water quality testing products for consideration in future Contracts/Bids only.

The term pH refers to the concentration of hydrogen ions in water. Measured on a scale of 0 to 14, neutral water has a pH of 7, acids have a pH of less than 7, and bases have a pH greater than 7.

While the desired pH for drinking water typically hovers around 7.0, the acceptable range for the pH of drinking water is between 6.5 and 8.5.

Why Does pH Matter?

Water with low pH tends to corrode metals. This can lead to premature wear and tear on plumbing fixtures and more importantly, it also means the water may now contain potentially harmful metals such as lead, copper, iron, etc.

Water with a high pH can leave deposits and cause sanitizers/disinfectants like chlorine to not work as well as they would in water with a lower pH.

Acids and Bases in the Real World?

Many popular drain cleaners make use of a very strong base called NaOH (sodium hydroxide). Other common bases in everyday life include baking soda and ammonia.

Common acids in everyday life include soda, vinegar and lemon juice.

Mixing Acids and Bases?

In a nutshell, DON’T DO IT! Depending upon the concentrations and relative pH values of the compounds you mix, a violent and sometimes explosive, reaction may occur.

How Does One Measure pH?

Test strips such as pH Check work very well for this application and require users to simply compare the color on the test pad to a color chart. Other methods for testing pH require the use of pH meters. Although typically more accurate than pH test strips, pH meters require calibration and frequent cleaning of thin glass membranes and/or metallic probes.

WaterWorks^TM pH Check Test Strips (0 to 12 range)

The term biguanide refers to a sanitizer that uses a complex polymer as its base rather than traditional chlorine or bromine molecules. Use of a biguanide sanitizer elimiates the offensive ‘chemical smell in a pool/spa, puts a stop to the bleaching of hair and swimwear, reduces eye irritation and makes it possible for those with allergic reaction to chlorine or bromine to enjoy a dip in the pool/spa.

Mixing Biguanide With Chlorine/Bromine?

A definite no-no. The chlorine or bromine will destroy the biguanide polymer and in some cases cause insightly preciptates to fall out of solution. You will NOT enjoy cleaning up a pool or spa in which biguanides have met up with oxidizers such as chlorine or bromine.

Switching Between Biguanide and Chlorine/Bromine Sanitizers?

For those who seek to switch from a biguanide system to chlorine/bromine system, or vice versa, make certain you remove ALL of the former biguanide system’s chemicals before adding the new system’s chemicals.

In the case where a person wants to switch from a chlorine/bromine system over to a biguanide system, they should perform a test for Total Chlorine/Bromine before adding any of the biguanide chemicals. Test strips work well for this application and pool/spa owners can choose from a number of multi-parameter test strips to get the job done:

• Pool Check 6-in-1: free chlorine, total chlorine/bromine, pH, total alkalinity, total hardness, cyanuric acid
• Pool Check 5-in-1: free chlorine, total chlorine/bromine, pH, total alkalinity, total hardness
• Pool Check 4-in-1: free chlorine, total chlorine/bromine, pH, total alkalinity
• Pool Check Low Chlorine 3-in-1: free chlorine, pH, total alkalinity

And for those who REALLY want to make sure no chlorine resides in their water, try using the WaterWorks^TM Ultra Low Total Chlorine Strips. Their lowest detection block starts at 0.005ppm total chlorine — an incredibly detection level for a dip and read test strip!

Products such as Chlorine & Bromine Neutralizers effectively remove the oxidizers in most cases but you should ALWAYS test to make sure.

Many people use hydrogen peroxide to treat/clean cuts and scratches, but did you know that it also functions as a ’shock’ treatment in pools and spas? While not used in conjunction with chlorine or bromine, biguanide based sanitizer systems make use of hydrogen peroxide’s strong oxidizing power roughly every other week.

Why is Peroxide Needed

Peroxide works as a shock to the system. Its strong oxidation potential makes it ideal for ‘burning’ organics out of the water that the polymer based sanitizer could not get rid of.

How Can One Test for Peroxide in Swimming Pools?

A good product for testing peroxide levels in swimming pools goes by the commercial name of WaterWorks^TM Peroxide Check and has the ability to detect hydrogen peroxide levels as low as 0.5 ppm and as high as 100 ppm.

WaterWorks^TM Peroxide Check Test Strips

What is a ‘Safe’ Level of Peroxide in Swimming Pools?

The answer to that question depends on the exact type and brand of biguanide system you use in your pool or spa. We have heard that most biguanide systems recommend hitting and/or reaching a peroxide level of 30 ppm, but we HIGHLY suggest you speak with your local pool and spa dealer, or the company who manufactures the peroxide you use, and ask them. . . just to be sure.