Common summer pool myths: What’s true and what’s false

LUBBOCK, Texas — Summer is getting even hotter and many people across the South Plains are turning to pools to keep cool and have some fun while they’re at it. While you’re taking a dip with your family and friends, different myths and urban legends about changing pool colors and chemical smells, but not all of these are true.

Here are some of the most common pool myths and whether or not they’re true.

You can smell when there’s too much chlorine in the pool
You are smelling chlorine, that much is true, but it’s not coming from the pool. It’s actually coming from the air. According to Pooltivity, chlorine attaches to bacteria – like sweat, cosmetics and urine- in your pool to create things called chloramines which turn into oxygen and escape into the air when the pool is shocked. So, instead of that smell indicating you have too much chlorine, it really means you don’t have enough!

Chlorine is what turns your blonde hair green
While yes, your hair can turn green from too much time in the pool, it’s not the chlorine’s fault. It’s actually a different chemical: copper. According to sources like Swim University, the copper in pools is meant to keep any algae from growing, but when it binds to hair proteins, it can cause a chemical reaction that leads to either faded or green hair.

A clear pool is a healthy pool
Just because your pool looks clean doesn’t mean it is. Micro-organisms can hide in plain sight, and testing your pool every week to correctly fix the chemical compounds in it is the only way to know for sure that your pool is good to go. Websites like Pleasant Pools & Spa have more information on what it means and how to keep your pool both clear and healthy.

Don’t swim right after eating or you’ll get a cramp
This one is partially true. While you won’t immediately get terrible cramps after eating a hotdog and jumping into the deep end of a pool, it will be more likely. When you eat, your blood goes from different parts of your body to your stomach to aid in digestion, meaning there’s less blood in the rest of your muscles. If you swim after eating a big backyard BBQ meal, you may have to overwork your muscles without the blood to help them, which leads to a cramp but isn’t exactly dangerous, according to the Mayo Clinic.

Peeing in the pool changes the color of the water
This myth, perpetuated through movies and concerned parents is false, but that doesn’t mean your kids should know that! Even if there is no chemical reaction that will change the color of your pool water, urinating in water that people swim in is not only awkward but unhealthy for you and others involved. While, yes, there are ways to detect urine in the water through color changing chemicals, they are not already present in pools, and, according to sources like Pool Training Academy, they’re extremely difficult to do and ultimately unnecessary.