Bromine and skin rashes! Help!

[Campsalot]

 This newby may have a skin reaction to Bromine.  Strange and weird types of rashes have been coming and going on my arms and neck since we got our tub.  I would like to hear about others reactions to Bromine so I can use the data to pinpoint the cause of these annoying and itchy little rashes.  I know Bromine can be much more harsh on skin than chlorine.
Should you shower after you have been in your tub even if you thoroghly shower before you go in?  Bromine is much tougher to wash off then Chlorine so this may be a loaded question.  My wife says I'm nuts but I've never had rashes like this before and the only different thing  in our life is the tub.  And....if it is the Bromine, why just my arms and neck and nothing on my legs.  Could it be from the other chemicals like the natural enzyme?   I would love to hear from anyone who has had a similar experience.  Also, can I change a bromine tub over to a chlorine tub by depleting the bromie to 0ppm and then introducing chlorine?  Or should I dump the water again?  What about my Microclean filter and the residual bromine?  Questions, questions....I need answers!  Help!

[bulmer4nc]

Hey Campalot,

We also seemed to have a reaction to Bromine.  There's some skin issues that we deal with already as myself and my son have some Ezcema issues.  We found that with Bromine, all of us were affected though.  The Ezcema flared up pretty bad but all our skin dried out and we did see little rashes as you are seeing as well.  In our case though it was our whole bodies that were affected.  Our skin seemed really dry all over and the small rashes were mostly on arms and legs.

I tried several things with Bromine and we lasted about 5 months before we finally decided to switch to chlorine.  At the time I also asked about 'switching' and answers I got were that it was best to dump and start over.

Since then, we've been using strictly dichlor.  I try to use defender every couple of weeks to protect the plumbing and every once in a while I add some Sea Klear clarifier if it gets a bit cloudy after guests are over.  Very simple though.

We made our change in January of this year and we have not any skin problems since.  My only assumption is that it was something to do with the Bromine.

As for you question about the Microclean filter, I'm not sure.  I'd say that it's probably ok.  What I would do is maybe just pull it out and while you're switching the water just soak it in a 5 gal bucket or something just to get rid of any bromine that might be in it.

Good Luck!!

Ken

[HotTubMan]

This newby may have a skin reaction to Bromine.  Strange and weird types of rashes have been coming and going on my arms and neck since we got our tub.  I would like to hear about others reactions to Bromine so I can use the data to pinpoint the cause of these annoying and itchy little rashes.

It is often difficult to pinpoint what causes a rash. It could also be stain & scale inhibitors. I am curious though, who is being affected? If it is just you, I suspect something other than bromine. One thing for sure it is not an allergic reaction. If it were, your whole body would react and more severely. This is not to say Bromine is not the culpret, just that it is not an allergy.

 I know Bromine can be much more harsh on skin than chlorine.

very subjective.

Should you shower after you have been in your tub even if you thoroghly shower before you go in?

Tubbing should not be that much work. You should be relaxing, not cleaning before and after.

 And....if it is the Bromine, why just my arms and neck and nothing on my legs.

Again, is it just you. If so, I suspect Pseudomonas folliculitis .
You can find more information regarding this at one of these sites:http://www.google.ca/search?hl=en&q=pseudomonas+folliculitis&spell=1

 Could it be from the other chemicals like the natural enzyme?

Possibly, although I would suspect the bromine or scale inhibitor first. Are you using a borate based softener/conditioner?

Also, can I change a bromine tub over to a chlorine tub by depleting the bromie to 0ppm and then introducing chlorine?  Or should I dump the water again?

The latter. If you switch to chlorine you need to drain the tub. If you use a chemical/puck dispenser, it would advisable to buy a new one. 

What about my Microclean filter and the residual bromine?

Not much experience with these, but I would lean toward a new one.  

[drewstar]

I had a bad reactions to Bromine.   Symptoms were dry, itchy skin, blotchy red patches and the worst was  red pimply bumps like tiny bug bites.  I was scrathing my skin off.  

I'm getting itchy just thinking about it.


Showering helped a bit,  as well as rubbing down with hydrocortsone cream, but  never fully alivated the problem.

Can you switch to a dichlor set up?

[Bill_Stevenson]

Have you consulted with your doctor?  It might be a good idea to get the problem looked at before going off half cocked.  No one can figure this out over the internet.  We can take blind stabs at it that is all.

Some people will find that they react to bromine, others say that bromine is wonderful for them, but dichlor is bad.  Others say chlorine is the ticket.  It is all pretty subjective information and the evidence is anecdotal.  Have you checked your pH?  Total alkalinity?  Have you taken a sample of your water to your dealer for them to verify your numbers?  

One thing you should do no matter what is dump your water and start again.  Also, consider Baqua Spa as it works well for people who have had problems with the halogens.

Regards,

Bill  

[bulmer4nc]

Another thing that I've considered in our scenario is that we were reacting to sanitizer in general.  Lately I've been spending a lot of time at the neighborhood pool and my skin is quite a bit dryer than normal.

When we switched from Bromine to Dichlor we changed the amount of sanitizer that we are subjected to because of how we add the dichlor.  We add it AFTER we use the tub so by the time we use the tub the next day the level is down to almost nothing as it burns off before we get in again.  The fact that there is very little chemical in the water when we get in is likely why we have seen such a big improvement in our skin.  The problem with Bromine is that you have to keep the reserve up and there is typically a constant feed to keep the levels constant.  It's a bit easier as you know that there's always sanitizer available so you don't have to worry about it but you are subjected to that sanitizer every time you use the tub.

[Spatech_tuo]

When we switched from Bromine to Dichlor we changed the amount of sanitizer that we are subjected to because of how we add the dichlor.  We add it AFTER we use the tub so by the time we use the tub the next day the level is down to almost nothing as it burns off before we get in again.  The fact that there is very little chemical in the water when we get in is likely why we have seen such a big improvement in our skin.  The problem with Bromine is that you have to keep the reserve up and there is typically a constant feed to keep the levels constant.  

BINGO!!

[Campsalot]

I still have to go with the fact that this is a bromine problem.  Why, because  I never have gottern rashes before we got this tub.  I am cusrious about the stain and scale theories though.  I never realized nor thought that this could be the problem.. I will dump the tub and try Chlorine.. Dichlor I am not at all familiaiar with.  I would have toread about it first.  I'll even go with a new Microclean filter because I'm not sure about the resdual capabilities of Bromine.  I'll keep everyone posted.  Just so you now what my spotty rashes looked like.  They were long streaks about 1" wide and 2" or 3" wide. with tiny white spots inside and boy did t itch.  Thnaks everyone, I'll keep you all posted as tis goes on!