Thenew coronaviruspandemic has thrown a huge, infectious wrench into peoples summer plans.
You might be getting antsy and have questions like: Whats the deal with coronavirus pool safety?
Can the virus spread through pool water?
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The very short answer: It depends.
Its completely natural to be fed up with the pandemic.
SELF: What do we know about whether this virus can travel through water?
William B. Greenough:A pool thats well-regulated should not transmit COVID-19.
Sorana Segal-Maurer:It does not transmit through water.
Its really person to person, throughrespiratory droplets, or touching surfaces and then touching your face.
Is chlorine effective at killing germs in the pool?
The SARS-CoV-2 virus is killed by thechlorine or brominethat youre using in the pool.
Kulkarni:Proper operation of pools and routine disinfection should inactivate the virus.
One caveat: Chlorinated water shouldnt be used as a surface disinfectant.
You should stillclean other surfaceswith regular Environmental Protection Agencyapproved household disinfectant.
How safe are gatherings at private pools with people outside of your household?
So there arethe usual thingsthat make gatherings riskier and the usual things that make gathering less risky.
The higher the number of people, the higher the risk.
Outdoor options typically are lower risk than indoor options.
The air is constantly moving around, so circulation is better.
Segal-Maurer:Theyre not safe.
it’s crucial that you plan very carefully to socially distance in a pool.
But children are naturally going to start gravitating toward each other in a pool and playing.
What are your thoughts on the safety of that?
Kulkarni:The details matter.
Segal-Maurer:If you dont have a regular pool, thats a nice way to gather.
The problem with kiddie pools is that you dont have chlorine disinfectant in them; theres just tap water.
You have to have a really good plan for how youre going to be cleaning them.
It just depends whos going to take care of it when that person has exited.
How safe is it to go to a public pool?
What are the factors that come into play?
Is everyone going to be wearing amask?
Is everyone going to be washing their hands?
They should keep up a very robust cleaning and disinfection schedule.
Greenough:Its not always a one-size-fits-all answer.
So its a question for the person to judge how their neighborhood pool or their community pool is doing.
Some are probably taking precautions, some may not be.
My advice is for people to do their homework for their local area.
If their own neighborhood doesnt look good, then dont go to pools.
you’re free to look at theJohns Hopkins websitefor whats going on in your area.
Since you cant wear a mask in a pool, youmustdo social distancing.
Should people avoid lockers and locker rooms at public pools?
Kulkarni:It depends.
How frequently are the lockers and locker room being cleaned?
You have to inquire about the extent to which things are being cleaned.
Thats probably the biggest component, and then how many people are traversing that area?
Greenough:Its hard to enforce social distancing in the locker room.
It would be good to see that they have spray cans and wipes easily available in the locker room.
Segal-Maurer:I wouldnt avoid them.
What about shared surfaces, like pool toys, lounge chairs, and towels?
What we do know about SARS-CoV-2 is that that transmission is primarily through respiratory droplets.
Fomite transmission is not necessarily thought to be the predominant form of transmission.
Greenough:My first recommendation would be keeping objects in open sunlight.
If you have an alcohol solution or a bleach spray, you could spray things down.
But this generally doesnt seem to be the main form of transmission.
Segal-Maurer:You shouldnever share towels, ever.
So it is best that the towel only has a personal use.
Any other final thoughts or tips for safe pool time, both privately and publicly?
Kulkarni:If you are feeling ill, just dont go to a pool environment.
Definitely stay out of any public kind of environment.
This is the overarching theme for, frankly, pools and everything else.
you could have a small alcohol-based hand sanitizer with you, or use regular soap and water.
Greenough:Go to a public pool at a time when its less crowded.
You dont know what you just touched.
And if you dont remember whether you washed your hands, go wash your hands one more time.
I dont want people to be paranoid.
I dont want people going out there with ski gloves.
People really should beenjoying the outdoorsbecause the lockdown has been psychologically and physicallyvery difficult.
But people should not go out there and damn the consequences.
They should just be thoughtful.
Quotes have been edited and condensed for clarity.
