WEATHER CONCERNS
How does weather affect the swimming pool?
What is a swimming pool but a large tub of water, open to the elements and capable of conducting electricity. If the ambient temperature is hot, your pool water will warm. Conversely, if the weather is cold, so too will be the pool water. When water is heated, it tends to evaporate. As the water evaporates, the chemicals in the water tend to concentrate. So it wouldn't hurt to check your water chemistry more frequently when the weather is hot.
In addition to the weather temperature, storms and lightning provide a concern when operating your pool. Most, if not all public swimming pool operations have specific rules that become effective whenever there is a threat of inclement weather, specifically lightning storms. Since the threat posed by lightning doesn't care whether a pool is "public" or "residential", you need to develop an emergency plan for your pool as well.
Indoor swimming pools are not exempt from the dangers of lightning strikes, either. If lightning strikes the ground near an indoor pool, it can be conducted into a home by way of electric or telephone wires, cable television lines, metal water pipes, or even wet ground around the home. If your pool is indoors, it may be wise to keep out of the water during a lightning storm.
Take a careful look at the article re-printed below. These recommendations are designed to keep swimmers from harm in the event of lightning events. This means your family, too! Want to know more? Click here.
Indoor/Outdoor Swimming Pool Safety
Lightning’s behavior is random and unpredictable. We recommend a very conservative attitude towards it. Preparedness and quick responses are the best defenses towards the lightning hazard.
Swimming pools are connected to a much larger surface area via underground water pipes, gas lines, electric and telephone wiring, etc. Lightning strikes to the ground anywhere on this metallic network may induce shocks elsewhere.
The National Lightning Safety Institute recommends the following swimming pool safety procedures:
- Designate a responsible person as the weather safety lookout. That person should keep an eye on the weather. Use a "weather radio" or the Weather Channel or other TV program to obtain good localized advanced weather information.
- When thunder and/or lightning are first noticed, use the Flash-To-Bang (F-B) method to determine its’ rough distance and speed. This technique measures the time from seeing lightning to hearing associated thunder. For each five seconds from F-B, lightning is one mile away. Thus, a F-B of 10 = 2 miles; 15 = 3 miles; 20 = 4 miles; etc. At a F-B count of thirty, the pool should be evacuated. People should be directed to safe shelter nearby.
- Pool activities should remain suspended until thirty minutes after the last thunder is heard. The distance from Strike A to Strike B to Strike C can be some 5-8 miles away. And it can strike much farther away. Why take a chance with lightning?
Teach this safety slogan:
"If you can see it, flee it; if you can hear it, clear it."
Source: National Lightning Safety Institute
