By Laurie Whittier
THE ERICKSON TRIBUNE

Aside from its panoramic view of the Rocky Mountains, Wind Crest’s heated indoor swimming pool might appear like any other. Upon closer inspection,  however, the differences become crystal clear.

Not all water is created equal
The typical “pool water smell” is noticeably absent. That’s because the Wind Crest aquatics center features a saltwater pool and hot tub, with no chlorine  added.

“Rather than adding harsh chemicals to the water, the Wind Crest pool is equipped with a special system that converts saline to a gentler form of chlorine,” says Karl Kelsch, local territory manager of Ecolab, the company that maintains the pool.

The principal purpose of this salinebased chlorination system is sanitization, he says. But it comes with a host of benefits.

For one, the water doesn’t burn or sting the eyes, since the saline level in the pool is equivalent to that of the human eye. Kelsch says it’s also much gentler on the skin (not to mention on hair and swimsuits) than water treated with traditional chlorine, leaving swimmers soft and smooth.

Saline—the safer alternative
Wind Crest’s saline chlorination system is also safer, says Kelsch.

“Traditional systems use chlorine feeders or require staff to manually feed the chlorine to the water. [They] have no safety features like the remote monitored system at Wind Crest,” says Kelsch. The saline conversion system there sends an automatic fax alert if any adjustment is necessary.

The lack of stored chemicals, he says, adds even more protection: “With saline, the operator doesn’t have to go through the dangerous process of acid-cleaning a chlorinator.

“That means there’s no Muratic acid stored in the same room with chlorine, which removes the danger of potential toxic reaction.”