You want to get rid of chlorine and make your swimming pool a more pleasant place to be. What choices are there and which works best??

• Salt Chlorinaters, (also known as - salt chlorination, salt generator)

• Ozone system,

• Ionisation, Ionizer systems

• UV sanitasion

These are the main types of alternatives to chlorine without using chemicals. There are also alternatives to chlorine that replace it with a different type of chemical or compound, such as "phosfree". Chlorine is a highly corrosive and dangerous chemical, it is known to cause lung problems, skin problems and is linked to cancer. It is because of these properties that it is such an effective disinfectant. Chlorine compounds where also part of the infamous "mustard gas", used in WW1.

One of the problems often associated with chlorine is the bad smell. The common misconception is that this is due to high chlorine levels. The opposite is true, the odour is due to the chlorine being used and being released as chloromines.

So what can we do to replace chlorine??

Salt Chlorinaters, salt chlorination, salt generator

These systems work by releasing chloride from salt in the water. Food grade sea salt is added to the water, making the pool salt water. A controller is installed in the pump house and an electrode is installed in the return water feed back to the pool. The rate of chloride production is governed by the controller.

Salt systems produce sparkling water, that is soft on the skin, they are often favoured with people that have skin complaints. The salt system is very popular as it is relatively easy to retrofit and is compatible with existing filter equipment.

Ozone system

The ozone system is installed in a similar way to the salt system, with a controller and a intermix chamber in the return pipe to the pool. Ozone is a gas that is produced through corona discharge (lightning). It is a completely natural product, but has excellent disinfectant properties. Ozone systems will also help to soften hard water in some cases it will even reverse calcium build ups. The actual ozone is just 2 particles of oxygen that are attached to each other.