The Pool water chemical controllers on the market today are outstanding. They've changed the pool maintenance game as it relates to water quality. But what some aquatic facility professionals don't realize is that a high-end chemical controller can act as a full- scale automation system for every mechanical component in a pool system.
This can lead to reduced treatment chemical and energy expenses, labor savings, increased mechanical equipment longevity, simplified maintenance, improved comfort, and even a reduction in liability.
However, reaping all these benefits depends on the maintenance professional's understanding of the chemical controller and their ability to properly implement and maintain the unit, leveraging it as a tool beyond simply maintaining pool water conditions.
First, let's cover what a chemical controller really does. All brands accomplish the same task, but they do it in different ways. A chem controller, at minimum, measures ORP and pH. Higher-end controllers measure direct- free chlorine, TDS, water temperature, and flow rate. The controller then doses what chemicals are needed to maintain the desired setpoints.
Patriot Water Works Lead Water Management Technician Tyler Boyde tests water and verifies chemical controller reading accuracy.
Unfortunately, what we've witnessed in the commercial market, especially with small, seasonal pools, is that a pool company will be hired to install an entry-level controller and walk away from it, expecting it to do its job forever without any maintenance checks.
When you buy a car, it requires fuel, the oil must be changed, tires rotated, fluids added, brakes inspected, and the transmission should be serviced after 50,000 miles. It's no different with a chemical controller. This is a vital piece of equipment that ensures the health of the pool. A completely hands-off approach doesn't work.
Further, installing an entry-level chemical controller leaves a great deal of functionality on the table.
Three VFD pump controls mounted in a climate controlled electrical room and not within the pump room, providing better equipment longevity.
Using the Controller as a Tool
One of our company policies is that we won't manage a pool unless it features a chemical controller with cloud-based remote monitoring. We use remote monitoring to identify problems long before the customer realizes there's an issue.
At the larger facilities we manage, we use the chemical controller as a hub for integration among the other pieces of equipment in the system by expanding it with a heater control, pump control and flow meters. Every board of health in the country requires flow meters, ensuring that the pool receives the proper turnover rate. Integrating a flow meter with the chemical controller provides a full picture of the health of the pool.
Just a quick note on flow meters: This is not the place to cut costs. High-end flow meters are far less likely to clog than budget models.
Using a high-end chemical controller and expanding it to include other equipment adds expense, but in the long run, it saves the customer a great deal of time and money.
Here's a real-world example. Early on a Sunday during the 4th of July weekend, we received a no-flow alert from a chemical controller on a large system we manage. After logging into the system remotely, I called our point of contact at the facility and asked if there was an electrical glitch. He wasn't sure, but I talked him through restarting the main system pump.
Chemtrol chemical controllers and associated controls.
Electrical glitches are the cause of no-flow alerts 90% of the time. We've gone as far as to use the extra relays on the chemical controller to start and stop pumps remotely. In a scenario like this, a call to the facility isn't even necessary. We can restart the pump and watch the flow rate pick up without leaving our office.
Many of our customers have additional features in their pools, such as slides, water cannons, splash pads, etc. These features only run while the pool is open. When a chem controller is accessorized with pump controls, we can set up schedules to automatically start and stop these feature pumps.
We also provide the head lifeguard with limited access through the chem control remote interface or app to start or stop attraction pumps. The lifeguard can turn them on or off, overriding the schedule. This way, features can be shut down manually in the event of a storm or an emergency.
Patriot Water Works Install Technician Thomas Soukup checks chlorine tank level to determine the chlorine delivery schedule.
Mitigating Liability
Beyond using the chem controller as a tool, there's another massive benefit to utilizing all the functions of a controller. Most high-end chem controllers can be set up to provide an electronic log of pool conditions. This provides accountability and reduces liability.
Our general approach is to program the control to generate an electronic log entry at 15-minute intervals. Each log entry provides water temperature, flow rate, ORP, pH and free chlorine.
Most state health boards require, at minimum, handwritten log entries at various intervals throughout the day. Using the chemical controller to generate 96 electronic log entries each day, without human error, helps pool maintenance professionals fine-tune the systems for bather load, etc., but also protects the property owner in the unfortunate event of a health claim.
A technician's chemical testing kit.
Let's say a child gets sick after bathing at the pool. As often as not, the pool gets blamed for the illness. The parents call the board of health, which opens an investigation.
The child was exposed to pool water between the hours of 10:30 and 11:30 a.m. on a specific day. If manual records were being kept, the last titration test may've been logged at 7:45 a.m., right before the pool opened. If an intelligent chemical controller was programmed to log at 15-minute intervals, the entire day would be recorded, and proof of safe bathing conditions can quickly and easily be provided.
Having an electronic log with this level of detail also improves relationships with health inspectors. Many pool managers like to complain about health inspections, but inspectors have a job to do and their own rules to adhere to. Time and again, we've found that inspection visits are expedited when the facility can provide extensive electronic logs. Professionally handling health logs in this manner has built a great deal of rapport between our customers and local health inspectors. Investing in an automated pool chemical management system isn't just an investment in technology, it's an investment in a quality aquatics experience, bather well-being, and risk mitigation.
If you don't believe that, consider the incident that occurred at a hotel in South Carolina in May 2020. A family's vacation turned tragic when their three-year-old child was severely burned by over chlorinated pool water. The aftermath resulted in prolonged medical treatment and trauma for the family. The resort owners also had to pay $26 million to resolve the lawsuit.
Acid carboys for managing pH in pool water sitting on a containment safety skid with acid chemical pumps in view.
The Big Picture
There's yet another advantage to using an intelligent chemical controller. Having all the electronic log data available allows pool maintenance staff to look at trends that impact water treatment.
For example, we found that on Tuesday mornings, the level of sanitizer in one of the pools we service was falling a little below what we like to see. We inquired as to why this could be occurring, and the pool staff informed us that 400 kids at a local summer camp use the pool on Tuesday mornings.
We leveraged this information by altering the program on the chem controller to slightly increase the level of sanitizer at 4:00 a.m. on Tuesdays.
Patriot Water Works Install Technician Thomas Soukup starts a filter pump VFD.
These trends discovered through data logging can also help staff estimate chemical usage, procurement, storage and budgeting.
Using chemical controllers to their greatest capacity makes them an information-gathering tool. Information is king, especially where public health and energy efficiency are concerned.
This article first appeared in the November 2024 issue of AQUA Magazine — the top resource for retailers, builders and service pros in the pool and spa industry. Subscriptions to the print magazine are free to all industry professionals. Click here to subscribe.
