Fountain water

Question

Hello,

We are planning a vacation abroad. The travel organizer informed us that all pools are filled with fountain water that is exchanged every two to three days.
The tap water is also fed by this fountain. Can a stay for a CF patient be recommended?
Best regards

A second question has been posed on this topic by the same questioner after the first answer:
"This is the information of the travel organizer; is usage okay now for a CF child? Kindly excuse all these questions.":

"The water in the children's swimming pool is not rain water but water from our fountain. In the basin there is a constant fresh influx. Therefore, it is unchlorinated. The pool is emptied and cleaned bi-weekly approximately since strong solar irradiation causes a slight algae accumulation that we remove by steam blasting. – thus permanently fresh water from our fountain with drinking water quality."

Answer

Hello,

If the organizer indicates that the fountain water has drinking water quality, we havt to take into accout that we do not know anything about the definition of "Drinking water" in the special foreign country. At the same time one has
to take into consideration that in some countries the so called "drinking
water" should not be drunken by individuals that are not used to it unless
it was boiled before. This is typically not a pseudomonas problem but it puts the feeling of safety into perspective with regards to the term “drinking water”. However, in Germany you can rely on it, generally speaking.

Back to your question about the swimming-pool: generally speaking there are no concerns about swimming-pools in case they are chlorinated sufficiently, or ohter measures to reduce the amount of germs, like salting or ozon-treatment, are performed. In case the pool seems to be conspicious, like the condition of cleanness or caregiving appears to be insufficient, one has to be extra careful. In case of a private swimming-pool one has to make sure that a sufficient disinfection of the pool is performed.
So at the moment, we have not to much information about the measures in your case, therefore it would be advisable to be careful about using that pool unless we do not know more about it.

Best regards,
Prof. Dr. TOF Wagner

Anwer on the second question:
"Hello,
we can conclude from your information, that the pool is not chlorinated and there is some accumulation of algae. According to the general information which was given to your first question it would therefore not be advisable to swim in that pool as the danger of aquiring germs like Pseudomonas can not be ruled out.

Best regards,
Prof. Dr. TOF Wagner"

09.04.2008