One of the most comprehensive resources is this YouTube video.

To summarize, previous anti-entrapment cover manufacturing/testing standards including ASME ANSI/APSP-16 2011 have been updated with new criteria for approving the maximum flow and sump compatibility. Contact our office for more information or to request assistance in determining which retro-fit cover options are optimal for your pool.

The province has given the green light for re-opening of indoor & outdoor whirlpools, hot tubs, dry saunas & steam rooms!

As always, stay safe and follow all recommendations & guidelines.

For additional information, please see below:

TDS – What is it good for?

Total Dissolved Solids is something most pool operators are aware of but its value as a water test parameter isn’t always understood.  Unfortunately a lot of literature on it is quite dated and has roots in bad science & biased marketing.  Some literature in the 1980s resulted from some falsified information trying to blame TDS on dramatically reduced chlorine disinfection capacity in water treated with stabilized chlorine.  There isn’t any research that backs claims of TDS having any negative effect on water quality.  TDS is generally measured with a conductivity meter and calibrated to a ‘442’ standard that assumes a constant ratio of common ‘salts’ dissolved in water.  The pure conductivity measurement unit is microsiemens (μS) and that gets ‘calibrated’ to a parts per million (ppm) value that is a more applicable unit for pool operations.  TDS increases overtime as ‘salts’ are added to the water (sodium bicarbonate, sodium bisulphate, sodium hydroxide, sodium hypochlorite or, in the case of a pool running salt water chlorinators; sodium chloride).  This shouldn’t be looked at as ‘good’ or ‘bad’.  Eventually TDS will contribute to a ‘salty’ taste, we know from experience that pools running at 3000 ppm ‘salt’ for saltwater chlorination have a slightly saline taste/feel – and a lot of bathers generally prefer the slight salinity.  It is likely because the low levels of salt in this case is similar to the salt concentration of our eye fluid.

As levels approach 6000 ppm (depending on individual preference) the water starts becoming ‘too salty’ for most people and it’s not uncommon for bathers to start commenting on the taste of the water.  For reference, ocean water is about 35,000 ppm.  Most pool equipment is rated for a ‘salt’ level of 5000 ppm, because at that point the risk of chemical corrosion starts to become an issue.   The over generalization of the term ‘salt water pool’ leads some to believe they need to use higher grade materials (marine grade stainless steel or titanium).  There are special considerations for true ‘marine’ or ocean water materials but the average pool running 3000 ppm or less does not carry the same risk of corrosion.  Higher conductivity levels can accelerate problems related to galvanic corrosion but that’s a story for another post!

There’s no need to drain/dump water purely based off the old adage of keeping TDS ‘under 1500’ or ‘under 1000’ (depending on the source of info).  Even though TDS isn’t a factor I put much value in, it would still be something I measure and track on at least a weekly basis.  The value being that if you aren’t tracking bathers per day (to assist in setting up your dilution program) then TDS is another way to gauge how much ‘stuff’ has gone into your water.  If you normally see TDS increase 100-200ppm per week and then you see it jumps 500 ppm – that’s a good indicator that the pool has been seeing more use and the dilution rate should be increased.  If TDS is climbing to an extreme high (I would say 5000 ppm is a good number, consist ant with most equipment manufacturer warranties) then that could be a good sign to implement some more dilution.   A good dilution practice in Europe/UK is 30L fresh water per bather per day – if you are able to run with this you are unlikely to see TDS climb much above the initial fill levels (about 500 ppm for most fresh water pools and 3000 ppm for pools running salt water chlorinators).

Conductivity based ‘salt’ test meters that salt water chlorinated pools occasionally use have a drawback when it comes to accuracy.  These meters are calibrated initially to a set water condition assuming a constant ratio of usable salt (sodium chloride) to other salts dissolved in the water.  The dynamic nature of chemical additions & pool dilution changes this balance over time so at best, the conductivity meter is ‘estimating’ the salt.  We recommend a titration based ‘sodium chloride’ kit using chemical reagents to specifically measure the usable salt for this application, this is the only type of salt that can be used to generate chlorine.

References:

Lowry, R. Neil The Langelier Saturation Index Revisited – Pool & Spa Marketing 2000 Canadian Show Issue

Pump strainers are often overlooked as a simple piece of equipment that doesn’t really affect your system. In reality, they are extremely important to maximize the lifespan and efficiency of your circulation pumps and keep your pool filtration system operating at peak performance.

There are a lot of different strainers on the market, but the vast majority of them are simple T-Style strainers. A T-style is pretty basic and does catch debris, but it is far from the most efficient design. T-style strainers tend to load up quickly, and they can cause extra wear on pumps, reducing overall system performance. Strainers that load quickly and cause premature pressure loss can reduce flow rates, and filtration effectiveness.

We recommend the Mer-Made FO (Full Outlet) series of strainers.

The FO Series has a superior design; strainer housings are fiberglass-reinforced plastic construction, pressure tested to 50 PSI.  They feature quick-opening latches, see-through acrylic lids,  and 316 stainless steel v-wire baskets; all features that put the Mer-Made line ahead of the competition.

Historically, strainers have been required to have a basket total open area that is a multiple of incoming pipe area. A generic strainer specification may call for a basket open area to be four times the incoming pipe area. Tests have shown however, that in many designs very little of the basket area is used before a maximum pressure loss, (typically 5 PSI) is achieved. The usefulness of the strainer basket is much more dependent on the amount of opening in the chamber that houses the basket – instead of the basket area itself.

The FO Series strainer maximizes the chamber opening so the flow more even distributes over the full basket area as the basket loads with debris. See the following graphic which shows this a bit more clearly:

Traditional ‘T Style’ strainers don’t effectively utilize the full strainer basket area, and are prone to sharp pressure drops. There was  a test performed showing the pressure loss across a strainer with water flowing at 1000GPM, with grass clippings added every two minutes. This test (results shown below) compares a full outlet (or FO) to a normal T-strainer:

As you can see the pressure drop is exponentially higher with a normal T-style strainer. With that small area that catches debris, they really don’t efficiently strain anything! Frequent cleaning is required to keep a T-strainer operating well. The frequency may be so high that staff aren’t doing it and put pumps at jeopardy.

There’s really no excuse to use a T-strainer when you are upgrading a system. There are even eccentric reducer body options available for improved hydraulics and reducing air pockets from larger influent piping. This makes it easy to retro-fit Mer-Made strainers without extensive re-plumbing.

So in summary, a strainer is a bit more complex than we would initially think. As the first step in your pool filtration system, strainers should be a key factor considered when building, upgrading and renovating systems. As always, feel free to get in touch with our team for more information.

We hope you are enjoying the new website, keep checking back as we add more info and products. I intend to post some technical writing here to discuss trends/technologies and solutions to common pool problems. We also have some how-to videos planned to cover metering pump maintenance.

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