This is an open letter from Bob McCallister, Cobb County Aquatics Manager.
To All Owners, Operators, and Users of Indoor Pools,
My name is Bob McCallister, and I am the Aquatics Manager for Cobb County, Georgia. We own and operate four indoor pools that are heavily used throughout the year, and like thousands of other pool managers, I have battled air quality issues on a continual basis. Fortunately for me, the battle is over.
I no longer have to fight chloramines and spend my budget on costly repairs from corrosion. I no longer receive complaints about the air quality, and when we host swim meets, our spectators no longer wait outside in the parking lot to breathe.
Our air quality problems are gone. Our air is fresh, and my patrons and staff are happy. Allow me to explain my story so that you can appreciate how amazing it is for me to say that.
Our main facility is the Mountain View Aquatic Center, in Marietta. It is an indoor 50-meter natatorium with an extra warm-up pool. We had a terrible air quality problem there for years, especially during swim practices and meets. We discovered UV treatment through the recommendation of Paddock Industries in 2003. It helped tremendously with our water quality, even though we had good water chemistry to begin with. However, during heavy bather loads, the chloramine problems persisted, and we had continuous complaints from swimmers, coaches, parents and staff. The air was causing burning eyes and skin, coughing fits and general discomfort.
Needless to say, UV did not solve our problem.
As the Aquatics Manager, I received complaints and blame for the problems we faced. It was frustrating and embarrassing; especially since I knew we were doing the best we could. Our water was balanced, our systems were running, and yet we were still suffering. It was a problem we had to deal with for decades, and it cost us a fortune.
We had a major renovation scheduled for the summer of 2012, which included replacing the HVAC system (which had been corroded because of chloramines), resurfacing the pool and repainting. The most exciting part of this renovation, for me, was the installation of a new technology at the time, called The Paddock Evacuator. We believed this system would help our air quality problems by capturing and removing chloramines from the room.
Immediately after installing The Evacuator, the difference was obvious. For the first time since the facility opened, we finally had fresh air. Since then, we have hosted meets and busy swim practices regularly, and we have not received one complaint since The Evacuator was installed.
As a veteran pool manager, I can assure you this quality of air was unattainable without the help of Paddock and their knowledge of chloramines and air quality problems. Since fixing Mountain View, we have installed Paddock Evacuator systems on the rest of our pools, and they are working great.
I believe that in the near future, pool owners, operators, designers, users and possibly health departments may demand the Paddock Evacuator as part of the HVAC system for commercial indoor pools. Our pool environment is constantly comfortable, and our problems have been eradicated.
If your pool has an air quality problem, The Evacuator may be the answer you have been hoping for—because it certainly was for me. The Cobb County Parks, Recreation and Cultural Affairs Department could not be happier with the results of installing The Paddock Evacuator system, and I urge you to share this testimonial with those it may concern. Thank you.
Sincerely,
Bob McCallister
Cobb County Aquatics Manager
See the Paddock Evacuator Liquid Nitrogen test at Mountain View Aquatic Center:
WHO IS THE PADDOCK EVACUATOR COMPANY?
We are swimmers and swammers, just like you, who have suffered through bad air quality for countless years. We know how miserable an indoor pool can be during swim practice or a meet, because we’ve lived it. It is personal to us, and we have devoted our careers to not only educating the swimming community about air quality, but actually solving the problem. Our mission is to make the indoor pool a healthy, desirable place to be—not just a tolerated amenity. More at www.paddockevacuator.com.
Learn more and like Paddock Evacuator on Facebook here.
Swimming News / Swimming Opinion via Bob McCallister is courtesy of Paddock Evacuator, a SwimSwam partner.