Bromine Salt Water Systems
Swimming pool salt water systems are almost entierly chlorine based systems that use sodium chlorine (NaCl) to generate chlorine in the water. There is however another type of system that uses sodium bromide (NaBr) as the base ingredient, and these systems generate bromine sanitizer instead of chlorine sanitizer.
There are a number of differences between bromine and chlorine however the primary thing to realize is that both are approved chemical sanitizers for swimming pools and hot tubs and have the ability to keep the water safe enough to use.
Do Many People Use Bromine?
Approximately 90% or more of swimming pools are chlorine based where 90% of more of hot tubs are bromine based. There are a number of reasons why this is, and many of them have to do with how well bromine operates at higher temperatures like in spa water.
While these are the averages, ultimately using bromine in a swimming pool or chlorine in a hot tub is a viable option. Some people find that they are sensitive to one chemical or another and prefer either bromine or chlorine. Many times this decision is even simply based on the distinct smell that each of these sanitizers have. If you are looking for chlorine alternatives then you may want to consider a bromine system.
Bromine & Hot Tubs
Almost all salt water generation systems in spas and hot tubs are bromine based. While very similar to how a pool salt water chlorinator works, a bromine system requires an additional step that chlorine users often will skip.
Bromine, either refined or generated from sodium bromide, requires regular shock with an oxidizer to keep the sanitizer levels active. Large doses of oxidizer will have the effect of increasing the free sanitizer levels in the water dramatically. Not using oxidizer regularly can cause the bromine in your system to be rendered inactive despite having a sanitizer residual in the water.
If you have a salt water system in your pool or hot tub then you will need to learn about how to control pH fluctuations in the water as salt water systems tend to impact the pH of the water.