Bromine Swimming Pools \ Testing for Bromine - Spanish Real Estate forum - Spanish property

Homefinder · 09-17-2008, 02:09 PM

Testing for Bromine in Swimming Pool Water

A client mentioned recently that her skin stills smelt of chlorine after showering off and the question was how was this possible as it is a Bromine pool. I found the answer quickly: the tap water had 2 ppm of chlorine and, as this is achieved by chlorine gas the sanitizer combined very quickly with her body waste and caused the “swimming pool” smell.
I could not actually suggest to her that her body was secreting waste and dead skin cells all the time but I suggested that she stopped showering after swimming because the pool water was better treated than the tap water. She tried this and reported that it worked!

Now pool professionals have always had the problem of testing for the Bromine Bank and there is still no test available except for laboratory analysis. However, I should explain this fully –

When chlorine, in any form, is added to water Hypochlorous acid is produced but this has hardly any taste or smell. When it goes to work cleaning up the debris in the water it combines with nitrates to produce Bromamines – which have that awful chlorine smell!
However, if there is Bromine in the water then Hyprobromus Acid is produced and this also combines with the debris to form Bromamines – but they hardly have any smell at all.
Once added the Bromine always remains in the water but has to be topped up periodically due to water loss (splashing out, back-washing and leakage) but the problem is knowing how much Bromine is present. If the “Bromine Bank” is deficient then both Hyprobromus and Hypochlorous acids are formed and the chlorine smell comes back. So how do we know how much Bromine we have –

The Dirty Arm – Clean Arm Bromine Test

Firstly get the sanitizer level up high (5 – 6 ppm) then roll up a sleeve and sniff to make sure that the arm does not already smell of chlorine from another pool – should just smell of “dirty arm”.
Dip the arm into the water and allow it to dry naturally without shaking any water off. When it is completely dry sniff it. It should smell of “clean arm” with all that sanitizer but, if there is any chlorine smell at all then the Bromine bank is deficient and has to be topped up.

I am not joking about this – try it! If the pool is normal chlorine your arm will stink but if it is a Bromine pool it just smell clean.
Now I wonder if I could patent my “Clean Arm Technology”

Further info about non-chlorine alternatives for swimming pools.

Homefinder