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• Burning and itchy eyes
• Skin irritation
• Difficulty breathing
• Other asthma-like symptoms

Like many kids, your daughter loves the pool. She’s a blonde and you can’t seem to keep the green tint out of her hair. There could be two reasons this is happening – one is easily fixed, and more common, and the other is a more difficult (but luckily, less common) issue. Let’s start with the more common of the two – the presence of copper in your pool water.
Some people believe it is because chlorine is green and that it only happens to those with blonde hair. Neither of these beliefs is actually true. Pool water contains high concentrations of copper compounds that chemically interact with chlorine and can then bind to hair follicles. These copper compounds do not seek out or favor blonde hair. In fact, the compounds bind to hair of all colors. It is easier to see on blonde hair because it is so light.
One cause of copper buildup may be the corrosion of copper in your pool heater, if you have one, which can come up if you use chlorine or bromine to treat your pool. There is a solution for this. After testing your water for copper and once you know exactly how much copper is in your pool, you can treat your water with a double dose (for each 1 ppm of copper) of a quality mineral treatment. Something like phosphate-free liquid METALTRAP will do.
Another possibility as to why your child’s hair is turning green is the chlorine is reacting with his/her hair and/or hair products being used. Simply using ¼ to ½ cup of baking soda mixed with enough water to form a paste can be applied to the green areas of the hair, then rinse with clean water. Then, shampoo and condition as usual once her hair is free of the baking soda. This should help bleach the green (without damaging her hair) and return her hair to its natural color.
However, not all situations are equal and will be treated with these two solutions. Contact us today to schedule an appointment.