Yes, you absolutely need to use chemicals in an above-ground pool. Without them, the water will quickly harbor harmful bacteria, breed mosquitoes, and turn green with algae within a few days.
A sore throat from a chlorinated pool is usually caused by chloramines, which form when chlorine binds to sweat, oils, or urine in the water. These irritants become airborne gas, inflaming your throat. Mild irritation usually clears in a few hours.
For a newly filled above-ground pool, the essential starter chemicals you need are chlorine (sanitizer), chlorine stabilizer (cyanuric acid), and pH/Alkalinity adjusters (like baking soda and pH increaser/decreaser).
Yes, norovirus can survive in swimming pools. While proper chlorination kills the virus within minutes, norovirus is highly resistant to standard disinfectants and can survive for days in inadequately treated water or on pool surfaces. Swallowing just a small amount of contaminated water can cause illness.
For a 10,000-gallon pool, you will need approximately 6 to 7 bags of pool salt (assuming 40-lb bags) to reach the ideal starting level of 3,000 to 3,200 ppm.
Baking soda (sodium bicarbonate) acts as a natural buffer that raises both your pool's total alkalinity and its pH. It prevents severe pH fluctuations (known as "pH bounce"), clears cloudy water, prevents equipment corrosion, and helps your chlorine sanitize more effectively.
Run your pool pump continuously for 24 hours after adding salt. This ensures the salt completely dissolves and disperses evenly throughout the water before turning your salt chlorine generator back on, preventing potential damage to the salt cell.
When you go into a swimming pool, hot tub, splash pad, lake, river, ocean, or other water, you can swallow germs that cause diarrhea. Diarrhea-causing germs include Cryptosporidium (Crypto), Giardia, Shigella, norovirus, and E. coli O157.
Norovirus is notoriously tough and resistant to many standard cleaners and alcohol-based hand sanitizers. The most effective and CDC-recommended cleaner to kill norovirus is a freshly mixed chlorine bleach solution (diluted 100010001000 to 500050005000 ppm). For specific EPA-registered products, always check the EPA's approved list.
Norovirus diarrhea is typically very watery or loose, and often comes on suddenly in large, frequent volumes. It generally has a strong, foul odor and is light brown, yellow, or greenish in color. It rarely contains blood or mucus.
Sulfuric acid (H2SO4cap H sub 2 cap S cap O sub 4𝐻2𝑆𝑂4) is widely known as the "king of chemicals." It earned this title because it is essential to a vast array of industrial processes, and a country's consumption of it is often used as a direct indicator of its overall industrial and economic strength.
Don't allow horseplay.
Rowdy behavior and any activity involving dunking or throwing people in the water should NOT be allowed.
Yes, you can get chlorine poisoning from a pool. It typically happens in two ways: ingesting highly chlorinated pool water or inhaling toxic chlorine gas that accumulates above the water.
Cryptosporidium spreads easily through water. People who have diarrhea should not swim or bathe with others until two weeks after it has resolved. And all it takes is a gulp of contaminated water for someone to get sick: watery diarrhea, stomachache, vomiting, loss of appetite, weight loss and mild fever.
Leave the area immediately and breathe fresh air. If possible, shower for 20 minutes and breathe in the steamy air from the shower to help soothe your airway. Change your clothes. If you have trouble breathing or have other serious symptoms, you should seek medical attention.
Unusually long poops (up to 2 feet) usually happen because of constipation, a high-fiber diet, or the physical size of your colon. If you skip a "poop session" or don't go as frequently, your bowel holds more waste, leading to a much longer single stool when you do finally go.
Black Poop
Black stool can mean there's dried blood present in your poop, and internal bleeding occurred somewhere in the upper gastrointestinal tract — far enough away from the rectum that the blood had time to dry. Call your doctor if you notice you have black stool. This can be a sign of a serious digestive problem.
C. diff stools are usually watery or loose and frequent, often yellow to yellow-green or light brown, with a very strong, unusual foul odor that some describe as sour, sweet, or barn-like; mucus or occasional blood can appear, and symptoms tend to persist or worsen, especially after antibiotics.
No. Most standard, non-bleach Lysol disinfecting wipes will not effectively kill norovirus. Norovirus is a "non-enveloped" virus, making it highly resistant to the active ingredients (like quaternary ammonium or alcohol) found in most common household wipes.
The best drinks for a stomach bug are Oral Rehydration Solutions (ORS), clear broths, and decaffeinated herbal teas. These replenish lost fluids and salts without overloading your digestive system.
Norovirus is highly contagious and can be spread from the moment you start feeling ill, but you are most contagious while symptoms are present and for at least 48 hours after they completely stop.
Common settings of norovirus outbreaks
Yes. While urine itself is usually sterile, peeing in a pool introduces body waste that can deplete chlorine and feed bacteria. Staying in a damp swimsuit creates a warm, moist breeding ground that allows these germs to travel up the urethra and cause an infection.
Norovirus illness usually begins 24 - 48 hours after exposure, but can appear as early as 10 hours after exposure. Symptoms usually include nausea, vomiting, diarrhea, and stomach cramping.