My question is about pool backwashing. I have been brushing and then backwashing my pool once a week for years. The water which I have already paid for goes onto the road and then it disperses before it gets anywhere near a fresh water or storm drain, which means it does not go directly into the water system. I then pay again for the water that is coming in to top up my pool. I do understand you should not empty your pool this way, however I find it strange that people say it is illegal, even when because I do it once a week, I only backwash for about 2 mins each time. Could someone please confirm if it is illegal or just chitchat from busy bodies.
thanks
Thanks Hogs, I have thought about a tank it's an ongoing project, however price is the stumbling block at present. I know that in the long rum I will save money this way, but it is the initial outlay.
The answer to your question is Yes.
Quote from: seashells on August 10, 2017, 08:50:02 AM
My question is about pool backwashing. I have been brushing and then backwashing my pool once a week for years. The water which I have already paid for goes onto the road and then it disperses before it gets anywhere near a fresh water or storm drain, which means it does not go directly into the water system. I then pay again for the water that is coming in to top up my pool. I do understand you should not empty your pool this way, however I find it strange that people say it is illegal, even when because I do it once a week, I only backwash for about 2 mins each time. Could someone please confirm if it is illegal or just chitchat from busy bodies.
thanks
there is a load of google here wich should translate,it should be in there some were ,unless Mayor Done can list the Article number,ti save all the headwork & keyboard tapping
https://www.google.es/search?q=ley+piscina+privades+medio+ambiente+con+agua&oq=ley+piscina+privades+medio+ambiente+con+a&gs_l=psy-ab.1.1.33i21k1j33i160k1.10771.13056.0.16549.6.6.0.0.0.0.158.799.0j6.6.0....0...1.1.64.psy-ab..0.4.546.syxAzhRzriE
Lets not get to reved up wi it all ,i think" poo in pots" were EU banned in the late 80,s for unbanisation use........,wich is a little bit bigger prob localy than a chap back washin his pool, :))
What gets me if it is illegal how come the alfoquia public pool gets emptyed into the road
I'm afraid I get fed up with the Backwashing in our road, 3 above us do it, and the water is running down past our gate. leaving a mess and wrecking the road below, already the road has collapsed once, and several holes appearing again :38: :c002:
maybe we should keep legalities in perspective, Spain appears to have many many many things which are illegal, a few being, double parking parking on the pavement walking your dog without a lead burning your own garden waste on your own land, popular topic on here illegal dumping of rubbish, building houses without permission corrupt officials and even peeing in the sea, whilst not condoning any of these, nor suggesting we do these but lets be sensible, what was that saying " When in Rome do as the . . . . . ."
There are a few people in La Perla who backwash and empty their pools onto the road and nothing gets done about it, lack of police to enforce it could be one problem.
yes it does have it's effect on the road surface which could become a big problem as it continues.
Its anti-social, legal or not.
My mum always said that two wrongs don't make a right, unless someone is trying to justify their own actions. Just because someone else does, doesn't mean you should follow suit.
I Suppose glass half full at least theres some water ti back washi with.... :grin:
What you have all got to realise it is called chemical dumping, when you release Chlorine without neutralising it.
Chlorine in any levels kills. Wildlife,plants and burns through most things when regularly dumped .
Quote from: 1dezza2 on August 10, 2017, 18:27:28 PM
What you have all got to realise it is called chemical dumping, when you release Chlorine without neutralising it.
Chlorine in any levels kills. Wildlife,plants and burns through most things when regularly dumped .
Are you sure about that? We backwash straight into our garden and the plants nearest that water supply seem to be performing better than the those in the rest of the garden.....
We save our backwash in a tank along with the waste from the washing machine and leave for at least 3 days before using as recommended by a keen gardener. The guy who built our pool said he put the backwash on his oleanders straight away.
This is for chlorine maintained pools, if you have a salt water pool backwash must not be put on plants.
Quote from: sallyb on August 10, 2017, 16:48:28 PM
There are a few people in La Perla who backwash and empty their pools onto the road and nothing gets done about it, lack of police to enforce it could be one problem.
yes it does have it's effect on the road surface which could become a big problem as it continues.
As a retired highway engineer, I'd be interested to know the deleterious properties of chlorinated swimming pool water on tarmacadam or bituminous surfaces?
Quote from: Chisme on August 10, 2017, 18:37:33 PM
Quote from: 1dezza2 on August 10, 2017, 18:27:28 PM
What you have all got to realise it is called chemical dumping, when you release Chlorine without neutralising it.
Chlorine in any levels kills. Wildlife,plants and burns through most things when regularly dumped .
Are you sure about that? We backwash straight into our garden and the plants nearest that water supply seem to be performing better than the those in the rest of the garden.....
Yep agree. Seems to encourage growth!
We backwash into a couple of big barrels, let the water sit a day or two and then use it in the garden with no ill-effects to the plants. As Roger says it's illegal to run your backwash waste onto the road, and so I suppose that if you still do it and cause damage to the road surface etc you might well be billed for repairs.
A couple of big water butts don't cost very much at all!
Quote from: Karen4 on August 10, 2017, 20:43:28 PM
We backwash into a couple of big barrels, let the water sit a day or two and then use it in the garden with no ill-effects to the plants. As Roger says it's illegal to run your backwash waste onto the road, and so I suppose that if you still do it and cause damage to the road surface etc you might well be billed for repairs.
A couple of big water butts don't cost very much at all!
So what's the benefit of storing the water for two days before pouring it onto the garden, against pouring it straight onto the garden? Presumably the barrels are sealed, so there's no evaporation of chlorine. I think this process is a myth introduced by early immigrants! It seems the big barrels are simply an unnecessary eyesore in English immigrant gardens! Do the Spanish follow this regime? And let's be serious, do you really believe that pool water, with it's low level of chlorine, can have a detrimental effect on a bituminous road surface? It's just water...
The barrels have screw tops so can be open or closed. We don't need all the water every day so the water gets a chance to settle and evaporate where needed. Doesn't seem to be doing our plants any harm at all, and certainly better than spewing water out onto the main road where it's just wasted. I suppose now that Roger has clarified that it is illegal to divert waste pool water onto the road, offenders will now stop doing it!? Or maybe not.
It is probably the same reason that it is illegal to wash your car in the street. Water pouring down the road is considered to be a hazard. However, why are you back-washing once a week. You should only need to back wash when your filter is full. If you filter fills up with one pool clean then you either have a very mucky pool or need to change your filter medium.
Quote from: Elgin on August 10, 2017, 23:04:24 PM
It is probably the same reason that it is illegal to wash your car in the street. Water pouring down the road is considered to be a hazard. However, why are you back-washing once a week. You should only need to back wash when your filter is full. If you filter fills up with one pool clean then you either have a very mucky pool or need to change your filter medium.
Agree,
I back wash direct onto the garden and my plants grow like crazy
If it's illegal to allow backwash water from pools (chlorine or salt) to be pumped out onto the roads, why do so many pool cleaning businesses do it all the time. Do they not know the law??? Several of our neighbours have their pools cleaned on a regular basis (one a fortnight to once a month) by an assortment of different pool cleaning companies and they all backwash onto our road. We backwash ours straight into the rambla......seems to keep the olive trees happy :93:
We used to backwash over our back wall onto rough ground and the old olive trees on there grew huge. Then a new owner cleared it and planted new trees and told us not allowed to backwash onto his land. So bought 2 barrels for backwash and rinse and put it on the garden now his new trees look like they could do with some watering! We let it settle in the barrels to lose the same sand residue. The effect of backwash water on tarmac road is it finds the cracks and undermines the area beneath causing collapse of road as in La Perla.
Quote from: tandas on August 11, 2017, 08:32:46 AM
.... The effect of backwash water on tarmac road is it finds the cracks and undermines the area beneath causing collapse of road as in La Perla.
Oh dear, let's hope it doesn't rain.....
We don't have any idea where our back water goes, cannot get an answer from the builder. We would love for it to go into barrels for the garden
chlorine is a soluble gas so it will disperse into the atmosphere ask any fish keeper you always spray the water into a tank to lose the chlorine out of the water be you let it into the tank
It really is simple. If your pool chlorine is at a reasonable level. you can pump it into a plastic barrel - or two - and they do no cost a lot. Leave it a couple of days, lids off. Put it on the garden - the plants will not mind at all. Saves pumping illegally on to the road, and saves irrigation water too. Chlorine kills everything? Rubbish. Chlorine is why your water is safe to drink!
Quote from: NorrieM on August 11, 2017, 15:37:31 PM
It really is simple. If your pool chlorine is at a reasonable level. you can pump it into a plastic barrel - or two - and they do no cost a lot. Leave it a couple of days, lids off. Put it on the garden - the plants will not mind at all. Saves pumping illegally on to the road, and saves irrigation water too. Chlorine kills everything? Rubbish. Chlorine is why your water is safe to drink!
So, I ask again: what's the purpose of the barrels?
Why prolong the task? Why not simply backwash straight into the garden? Or is it simply a matter of finding extra jobs to do, to alleviate retirement boredom?
So backwash straight onto your garden and wash it away unless you have an area you don't give a damn about. Barrels control the flow. As for what happens when it rains the same thing gets into the cracks and undermines the tarmac but at least it's natural. The Spanish house at the bottom of our road had to erect kerb stones to keep the backflush water from flooding their frontage every week.
Quote from: tandas on August 11, 2017, 18:54:07 PM
So backwash straight onto your garden and wash it away unless you have an area you don't give a damn about. Barrels control the flow. As for what happens when it rains the same thing gets into the cracks and undermines the tarmac but at least it's natural. The Spanish house at the bottom of our road had to erect kerb stones to keep the backflush water from flooding their frontage every week.
How do barrels control the flow? Are these smart barrels?
The Spanish owner of the house at the bottom of Calle Arbuli, added channels in the road to direct any pool water, which had been discharged into the road, directly onto his land. He was sensibly grateful for any
free water!
All our the water, except from all but the toilets, is dispersed straight onto our garden.
Everything thrives because, thinking logically, any detergent or chlorine used is automatically diluted.
I backwash straight onto the garden, only a splash pool so it's not a lot of water and soaks in very quickly. I imagine with a large pool there would be a lot more water, which would not just soak in. A barrel therefore would allow you to only release a small amount of water at a time. A watering can rather than a hose, if you see what I mean.
why are you backwashing every week, I vac my pool 2 or 3 times a week but I havn't backwashed for about 6 weeks or more. Have you not got a dial that goes from green to red on the top of your sand filter to let you know when to backwash, also only backwash until the water turns from brown to clear approx 1 minute then 20 or 25 seconds on rinse.
Backwashing is just not about clearing the filter of dirt/dust, it is about cleaning the filter of bacteria. Bacteria can hide out in the filter and chlorine alone will not sort this out. So for a few cents worth of water give the filter a good backwash.
Just seen this post very interesting my next door is ruining the road it has all sunk they are the only people whom empty into the street, I have now taken photos of it coming out of the hole in the wall and informed the town hall as I have spoken to the tenant but just got abused, spoke to the landlord about the barking dogs and got no where as all he is interested in is is rent, so thought no point saying about pool to him go straight to town hall. They have at least now taken the pipe into their own property, so let's hope it lasts. Can not see how much longer the road is going to last now as it is all sunk and the main drains is going to collapse if we get a heavy truck come this way.
Hi all,
Is it OK to Backwash pool water direct into Potho?
Thanks for any assistance.
Quote from: GRACAR on October 10, 2017, 11:45:52 AM
Hi all,
Is it OK to Backwash pool water direct into Potho?
Thanks for any assistance.
no coz you will fill yer potho with water,just chuck the backwash on yer land or patio its should soon dry out.
Nosun, it's such a shame that some don't agree with you, frankly it's selfish and arrogant and it damages roads, the damage where I am is severe, there is not many days a week when water is not flowing down the street away from their properties.
Makes you wonder if those who have pools which don't backwash into the waste water system ever received permission to install them.......
Back to basics..................
Water is a "luxury" ítem in this part of Spain which we should all respect........
Use the backwash water in your gardens, respect disposal of this water if running onto someone elses property or public land (ie. roads etc) and learn to speak enough Spanish to ask for local advice if in doubt !!!!!!
:c002:
Quote from: Tetley on October 10, 2017, 12:28:34 PM
Quote from: GRACAR on October 10, 2017, 11:45:52 AM
Hi all,
Is it OK to Backwash pool water direct into Potho?
Thanks for any assistance.
no coz you will fill yer potho with water,just chuck the backwash on yer land or patio its should soon dry out.
Also too much chlorine could kill off the good bacteria that are digesting the solid matter
When we enquired at ZURGENA town hall we was told it IS illegal to back wash on to roads and there is a fine for this.
They said the chemicals eventually damage the roads
I live under the Zurgena area and today two locals have backwashed into the road again, and the road is breaking up, in the vicinity of where one of the local councillors lives.
Just as the dog owners wander the roads with dogs off lead allowing their dogs to defecating where they will and not cleaning it up
So much for rules and laws, which unless they are vigorously enforced mean absolutely nothing
Then again judging by previous posts on a range of subjects it seems some select which laws the accept and which they dont according to if it affects them.
Nosun tap water and pool water nearly the same. I think you a miss informed.
"Nosun tap water and pool water nearly the same" - where do you get that from? Nonsense.
Forth pool emptied down our road for maintenance! Good job the Spanish couple who live there are not doing so at the moment!
What is this dangerous chemical in pool water which is capable of destroying plants and roads whilst apparently harmless to humans?
Well you can drink coke but you can also clean a toilet and things with it, so I expect same principle.
Quote from: byrney on October 13, 2017, 18:44:22 PM
"Nosun tap water and pool water nearly the same" - where do you get that from? Nonsense.
Byrney,
If, as you claim, Nosun's comment is 'nonsense', could you please let us know what's different (assuming no-one's been urinating in either)?
What chemical might be in one but not the other?
There seems to be a lot of strange urban myth surrounding the properties of pool water and its danger to the environment!
So Chisme, you settle down with a nice glass of pool water then do you? Of course there are more chemicals in pool water - I know as I put them in !!!
Quote from: byrney on October 14, 2017, 17:04:45 PM
So Chisme, you settle down with a nice glass of pool water then do you? Of course there are more chemicals in pool water - I know as I put them in !!!
Do you mean chlorine? It's in such minute quantities and chlorine is in tap water too!
I don't settle down, as you so cynically put it, with a glass of pool water, but I do swallow a lot when swimming - it does me no harm!
Lets look at it from another perspective. If there is any danger to public health, do you really think Europe, with it's concerns about 'health and safety', would permit pool ownership or even pool swimming?
But however sensible the arguments, I'm sure the urban myths are more captivating and will prevail.....
Clearly there is no point in discussing this with you further. There is far more chlorine and other chemicals in my pool than there is in normal tap water, which is the point I was making.
You will remain unconvinced and continue to swallow copious amounts whilst swimming. I swim and never swallow water - so I don't know what you are doing wrong.
Anyway, let's leave it to the Town Hall and Police to decide what's legal and what isn't, eh?
For the last 11 years we have back washed straight onto our garden.
Although having always kept the chlorine high not only does it make our grass and flowers flourish but we dont even have the mearest indentation in the soft soil..which might occur if people backwash to waste thus draining the pool instead of. 20 second flush through.
Irrespctive of the legality it is a total waste to backwash onto the road instead of ones garden but cannot fathom how any of the chemicals, legally permitted for use in a swimming pool, could cause endangerment to the environment or damage Tarmac.
Right let's get the facts of chlorine in tap water and pool water.
Tap water chlorine rate is 0.002ppm
Pool chlorine around 3.0ppm
I think there is a big difference don't you?
Tell me would anybody drink household bleach? Bleach and chlorine are virtually the same - sodium Hypochlorite.
Household bleach is between 3%to 6% pool chlorine between10% to 12%. So if anybody wants to drink it carry on.
Now can you see why it shouldn't be dumped on the street ?
If you want to know my background it's over 40years as a water treatment engineer / consultant to various water boards and hospitals.
I hope this clears up this thread.
Thanks you 1dezza2 - I rest my case Chisme.
Because for 11 years we have back washed onto our garden without problem to plants and sans corrosion thought to do some research on this interesting subject and came up with this snippet that appears to be at odds with the forum experts.
"Drinking water in fact has 3 to 5 times more chlorine that pool water. :040:
Normal home pool water has 1.5 to 2 ppm chlorine, drinking water has 20 to 25 ppm chlorine.
There may be other chemicals in pool water that some people put in.
So chlorine is not a problem, but there may be other chemicals like water qualifiers and de foamers.
We use drinking water to water plants all the time - so its ok to use pool water, just don't use for 3 to 4 day after adding chlorine"
IMO the MAIN cause of the problem is when people refer to "backwashing " it is not the recommended way but via waste which pumps out water by the gallons.
Fact JessicaH if you drink water with 20/25 ppm chlorine make sure 1. you are in a hospital 2. You have a preacher. Because you will need Both!
I have lived in Spain since 2000 and the thing that gets my back up is that because someone has a pool , overnight they become experts in water chemistry .
Quote from: 1dezza2 on October 15, 2017, 08:49:04 AM
Fact JessicaH if you drink water with 20/25 ppm chlorine make sure 1. you are in a hospital 2. You have a preacher. Because you will need Both!
I have lived in Spain since 2000 and the thing that gets my back up is that because someone has a pool , overnight they become experts in water chemistry .
Am just quoting what many sites on www state. So arrogant responses not necessary especially as I have NEVER said I was an expert in the subject but mearly stating the truth as I see it and read it.
The recommended outdoor home pool the acceptable level is 1.5ppm NOT the 3ppm you stated and it was because you wrote this I decided to investigate further.
raysun, Suggest you stick to your Irish ??? whiskey, because swimming and imbibing in sufficient alcohol to kill :32 is not a good idea...
My pleasure....raysun... :kiss:.
JessicaH if you read my post its states ABOUT 3ppm. On average an outdoor pool in warmer climates should be kept at levels between 2/3ppm as the Sun will burn the levels down during the day. If you only have 1.5ppm on a really hot day the level could be zero at the end of the day, then you have no protection. Indoor pools where the Sun does not affect ( only pool heaters) should be kept around 1.5/2ppm. This is lower due to the fact that chlorine fumes within a building can harm/ affect people with breathing problems. I think you may be getting information from sites that only give basic information (American usually)
Also I hope you do not believe everything that you read as they are misleading at times. For example:-
The World Health Organization has raised its safe level for chlorine in drinking water to to 5ppm. This is to combat bacteria in water in Africa, but doctors are now finding that this level is causing just as much harm as the bacteria. Do you think that they are going to own up to this? Until the chlorine kills more people than the bacteria nothing will be done.
I didn't mean to offend only clarify and this will be the last time I will respond to this thread or any other.
Staying on the water theme and to LIGHTEN up the mood we have just returned from church where the head honco gave a lovely sermon on the marriage feast at Cana.
there jesus turned the water into wine and everybody had a great wedding. Some were so merry they had to hire lorenzos chariot to take them home.
now why would the sun of god and a holy man turn clean water into a horrible alchohol based drink.
Maybe the water quality in Cana is similar to the brown stuff that comes out of our taps after the heavy rain.
i dont have the answer to that but Jesus will be first on my invitation list the next time i invite my only two friends or maybe three round for a few drinks.
Please no anti religion posts.
HAve a great day all including the lovely jessica.xx
My favourite tipple is wine. I always say " If it was good enough for Jesus, it's good enough for me " . :72:
The ordinary people in times gone by drank beer, because it was safer than most supplies of drinking water. In the UK, there
was " small ale" or ' big ale", depending on the strength. ( I may not have quoted the exact phrases. )
Im just suprized folks have got water to have a back wash with............ :))
How typical of men on this forum to write...." One shouldn't believe all one reads....
......EXCEPT of course the dictat (ph) of the FORUM EXPERTS.
You boys really are something else..... :hee20hee20hee: