No, it's not safe to swim in a pool with metal stain. Barack James (author) from Green City in the Sun on April 11, 2020: Before adding chlorine, you need to be sure you are dealing with green algae and not copper metal stains.
If you shocked your pool water and it turned brown you probably have metals. Oxidized iron usually turns a brown or rusty color in the water. Use the No-Drain Metal Stain Eliminator Kit to reduce, sequester, and eliminate the metals to clear up your water and prevent recurrence or staining of your pool surface.
Whether mild or severe, it isn't recommended. Significant amounts of swimming pool algae welcome a breeding ground of harmful bacteria that feed on algae. These bacteria pose health risks to swimmers, most commonly resulting in a skin rash. It can also cause various bacterial infections of the ears or eyes.
Without proper maintenance and care, a dirty pool can cause recreational water illnesses (RWIs). These illnesses include diarrhea, ear infections, respiratory infections, rashes, and/or inflamed eyes and lungs. That may sound alarming, but a well-maintained pool leaves nothing to fear.
Typically, you will need to run your pool for 6 to 8 hours during a shock treatment. The shock will destroy harmful contaminants in your swimming pool's water. You'll want to scrub the sides of your pool during the treatment to loosen any iron that is stuck to the pool's walls.
Answer: It is probably safe for swimmers to get in the water. The only real risk is the staining that the metals can leave behind. A metal removing chemical can aid in removing the metals as well.
The best way to determine if a body of water is safe and the risk of water borne illness is low is to sample the water and check for Escherichia coli (E. coli) bacteria. E. coli is commonly found in the intestines of humans and other mammals.
If your pool is very dirty, it may need MANY gallons of liquid chlorine (shock) over a period of days before the water clears. Start off by adding 3 or 4 gallons, and if you see no results overnight, add 3 or 4 more gallons the next day.
Brown-colored algae is actually a form of yellow or mustard algae, and not a separate strain of its own. The extremely rare mustard algae forms in pools with poor chemical balance and in shaded areas that get little sun.
And brown stains concentrated on the bottom can likely be attributed to dirt stains, typically enhanced by calcium buildup. The first step to deal with organic materials is to shock your pool, and scrub it. This will take care of organic material present in the pool, and the scrubbing will take care of the stains.
Proper chemical balance and sanitizer levels will prevent many opportunities for algae to bloom. High pH and low chlorine (or other sanitizer) can give algae a great start.
Feces can also spread germs like Shigella, norovirus, and E. coli O157:H7. Just a small mouthful of water that was contaminated by any of these germs can make you sick. Some of the symptoms of these illnesses include fever, nausea, vomiting, cramps and diarrhea.
Swimming in stagnant water can expose you to serious health hazards. Stagnant water becomes a breeding ground for parasites, mold, and bacteria. When mosquitoes breed in this dirty water, they carry diseases like malaria, Zika virus, and West Nile virus.
Yes, but they need to be minimum of 14 years old. Children under 16 years old must be accompanied by an adult from the same household and swim with a tow float and wear a green swim hat.
The Bottom Line about Pools and Chlorine
As mentioned above, you could probably swim in a pool without chlorine without any major health issues. However, long-term use of a pool lacking chlorinated H2O could make you sick or, at the very least, contribute to rashes and other types of skin irritation.
If the chemicals used to kill germs (chlorine or bromine) in pools, hot tubs, and water playgrounds are not kept at the right level, these germs can multiply and make swimmers sick.
Using liquid chlorine raises the pH of the water.
When added to water, liquid chlorine (which has a pH of 13) makes HOCl (hypochlorous acid – the killing form of chlorine) and NaOH (sodium hydroxide), which raises pH.
Oxidation with chlorine Iron and manganese in water can also be oxidized by chlorine, converting to ferric hydroxide and manganese dioxide. The precipitated material can then be removed by filtration. The higher the amount of chlorine fed, the more rapid the reaction.
Depending on the type of iron, it can often be removed using a whole house water filter designed to remove iron or a water softener system. Water softeners use salt to help remove iron and other minerals from the water. For extreme iron problems, an additional rust remover can be added to the water softener system.
Baking soda, also known as sodium bicarbonate is naturally alkaline, with a pH of 8. When you add baking soda to your pool water, you will raise both the pH and the alkalinity, improving stability and clarity. Many commercial pool products for raising alkalinity utilize baking soda as their main active ingredient.
It's important to note that you should not try to vacuum green pool water until you have removed any and all organic debris using a pool net, and have added the proper chemicals to the water, and done proper brushing so that the green algae has visibly settled to the bottom of your swimming pool.
Pools can immediately turn green after shocking when they have metals like copper in the water. These metals oxidise when exposed to high levels of chlorine which makes the pool water turn green. Adding a metal control product such as Zodiac Metal Remover will help to restore the pool water.