Wetlook World Forum

   In the last 20 years, my wife and I have owned two different homes which both had swimming pools. Our pools have been used for many wetlook photo sessions and I can say, clothed swimming does not damage or cause problems. I also service and maintain our pools and can explain what really happens

In response to each of your points;

1) Yes clothes do create some "fuzzles" or fuzz. (Depending on the type of material) Some heavier materials may settle to the bottom, but some lighter materials remain in suspension, where it will be captured by the filter. Human hair is very similar. Heavier items such as buttons, ear rings, jewelry, and plastic high heel tips will sink to the bottom, requiring a vacuum. For public pools this can be a problem but it's not unusual. People always lose small items in a public pool.

2) Dirt in small quantities isn't uncommon. Dirt can be blown into pools by wind, or via lawn mower. Some will be captured by the filter and some will settle on the bottom where the vacuum will pick it up. Unless a person jumps into a pool after wallowing around in mud, the amount of dirt on clothing is not as much as what the wind can carry. Human sweat isn't a big problem either. Sweat is mostly salty water and how much a person sweats is far less than the volume of water in a pool.

3) Laundry soaps do not really cause pool problems. When clothes are laundered, the machines usually rinse out the clothes during the last cycle, so very little soap would remain. Laundry soap will not change pH of a pool, there is nothing in laundry soap that can change the pH. To understand, pH is an important part of pool maintenance. If the pH isn't correct, the water will be bad. It can either be too acidic or too alkaline and the chlorine will become ineffective. Simple rain can change pool pH. To control pool pH, you must add chemicals to the water. If the pH is too high, you must add muriatic acid, if it's too low, you must add soda ash. Perfect pool pH will allow the chlorine to be effective, the water will be crystal clear and your eyes will not burn.

4) The only issue I can see with clothes dripping all over the floor is safety. Some pool side surfaces may become very slippery and create a safety concern and are a liabilitiy for the owners of the pool. However, I believe that pool builders today must now provide non slip surfaces near the pool to reduce liability and increase safety.   I would counter by saying that wet athletic shoes would have more traction then bare feet

5) Yes, clothes could increase the risk of drowning because clothes make swimming more difficult. However, people should learn how to swim in clothes because if there is an emergency situation where a person ends ups in water, they will not have time to change into a swim suit. Keep in mind that in survival swimming clothes can be used to make floatation aids which reduce the risk of drowning.

In the end, its hard to change some people's mind. If they are concerned with clothed swimming, it's better to use a private pool if possible.

EdwinR

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