Courtesy of BioOx, a SwimSwam partner
BioOx, a cutting-edge air cleaning system from Air & Water Solutions, was put to the test this weekend at Valley Central High School as close to 1,500 swimmers came together for the Hawks Trials and Finals Meet. With additional units brought in specifically for the meet, and an updated layout to reflect the vastly increased attendance at the facility, swimmers, coaches and spectators reported a comfortable and enjoyable environment and an absence of the unpleasant symptoms that have come to characterize indoor competition.
“With the BioOx system it’s much, much better air quality – no burning eyes, no itchy scratchy throat,” said Karen Psilopoulos, a USA Swimming official. “Love it, love it!”
The BioOx system is composed of several free-standing units placed around the edge of the pool deck. BioOx media, a patented solution comprised of organic enzymes (no-chemicals), is added to each unit along with several gallons of water. The enzymes and water combine to form a solution that neutralizes harmful toxins in the surrounding air. Clean air is then expelled through an in-unit fan, which creates several Clean Air Zones around the room. The Clean Air Zones continue to expand and overlap the longer the units are in use, leaving behind crisp, breathable air throughout the entire facility.
From Ohio to New York to Georgia, pools across the country have seen dramatically improved pool air as a result of the BioOx system. A particular focus of Valley Central was whether BioOx would be up to the task of cleaning the air in a facility packed with upwards of two thousand people over the entirety of the three-day meet. With reactions to air quality varying widely from person to person, Air & Water Solutions added several units to its traditional Valley Central setup so as to ensure that even the most physically sensitive attendees would have a pleasant experience at the meet.
“We received inquiries from people based on their positive experience with the air at Tennessee, but we also know some attendees at Junior Nationals struggled,” said Director of Sales Ken Schapiro. “Here at Valley Central they’ve had BioOx units for weeks, but we brought in additional units specifically for last weekend to ensure that they could maintain their air quality once the meet picked up in earnest. We’re thrilled with the results.”
The vastly superior air quality was immediately apparent to veteran coaches and swimmers alike. Amanda Griffin, a former Valley Central swimmer and current coach of a travel team, noted that the teary eyes and itchy throat she’d experienced at the facility prior to the introduction of BioOx were notably absent.
“Day three, almost 20 hours on the deck here, I still feel good, my eyes aren’t irritated, I have no problems breathing,” she said. “I would highly recommend this system to any aquatics facility, especially if you have any kind of air quality problems.”
Swim coach Erin Quinn said she spends most of her weekends on pool decks, where she has grown used to poor air quality.
“For the first time ever, I had a wonderful experience with air quality while coaching a three-day meet,” she said. “BioOx does wonders for our athletes and coaches.”
David Murphy, a parent who’s been coming to meets at Valley Central for over a decade, said he was particularly impressed by the lasting impact of the BioOx units.
“All of us noticed a difference in the air quality on Friday night,” he said. “Today is Sunday and everyone is still commenting on it – the system does work.”
About Air & Water Solutions: At Air & Water Solutions, we’re changing the way people think about the air they breathe. We’re leaving a positive impact on the health of the Earth, and making it a safer, more enjoyable place for the people who live here.
Swimming report is courtesy of BioOx, a SwimSwam partner.
1st I will say I was personally at this meet, and the air quality was 95% better than in the past. Normally after just one day at this facility I would feel like I had the flu. Hacking, coughing, we all know the symptoms. After being at this facility twice now with this system running, I can honestly say that the air quality was soooo much better, and the after effects from being on the pool deck for days was close to nothing.
I was very skeptical bringing bio ox into our facility but it has proved to be a vast improvement in air quality. Our faculty and staff have noticed a big difference in air quality during our normal daily operations: morning swim, gym classes, high school swim teams, USA club swim team, diving club, and community swim. We also host many of this regions large swim meets for USA swim, ESSL, and section 9 NYS swim. To this date we have run the units during two large 3 day swim meets and the air quality difference has been amazing. They have helped with the chloramines, as well as making the air alot less thick. I have had nothing but positive feedback… Read more »
We swim regularly at this pool and I noticed a difference! My son, who swims at this meet, will usually be coughing to the point of retching by Sunday finals–not this time! We hosted our team meet at this pool a few weeks earlier, and again, a marked difference in air quality. We are interested in getting something for our pool!
I am the parent of a teenaged swimmer and he does several large meets each season at Valley Central. His past two meets at VAC the BioOx units have been on deck. I noticed a big difference in air quality and overall atmosphere quality… easier to breathe and less chemical smell in the air. Other parents agreed. All indoor pools should be taking steps to improve air quality for swimmers, coaches, officials and spectators. Thanks VAC!
I was a swim parent at a couple of recent meets at Valley Central with this system in place. I was in the bleachers for one meet and on the deck as a timer for another. The quality of the air in both places was noticeably better than any of the other local swim venues.
I know OSHA has standards for parts per million of chlorine in the air in the workplace (chlorinated water is used as a cleaning agent in some processing plants), and they also have a standard for how to measure it. Would be good to see BioOx use those measurements to prove what was observed.
PS — my daughter had several significant personal bests during those… Read more »
This “technology” has no way to measure its effectiveness. Its totally anecdotal. Its costly and difficult to measure many of the harmful chemicals in the air during large meets with heavy bather load. I was in Knoxville and EVERY KID AND PARENT on our team 30+ people had breathing problems at the facility. The grocery store next to the pool had a run on eye drops because so many people were having problems. Paid articles like this are a disservice. Its not just the chloramine causing issues its a cocktail noxious chemicals given off by the mixing of body oils, urine and whatever else ends up in the water. Cans of bubbling water are not going to fix that…
Ummmm it’s exactly the chloramines that are the issue seeing that they are the substance created by the mixture of body oils, urine, etc with used (combined) chlorine that causes eye and lung irritation among many things…
So your saying that chemicals not bound to the chlorine atom can’t be irritants? Free ammonia, free chlorine, anything on the body of the swimmer all can end up in the air. And yes, you are correct the chloramines are a major irritant…
CLEAN AIR on pool decks! This is such an important topic. Thank you BIOox for trying to do something about this matter that is way too often overlooked.
While this sounds great – I would like to see air quality measurements taken in a dozen places around the deck and in the stands that quantify the improvement.