Enzymes are proteins that speed up chemical reactions of other substances without being destroyed. They are highly specific and target narrow ranges of compounds to break down. Enzymes reduce the overall contaminant load in pools, improving efficiency of other chemicals. They provide a secondary point of attack for common pool problems and can help reduce physical maintenance by breaking down contaminants before they build up on surfaces. Enzymes make pool treatment easier by cleaning up dead algae and other organic material faster.
2. ENZYMES?
➤ In traditional pool care—including the BioGuard
®
care systems—routine
maintenance is required to prevent the buildup of organic material in
the pool and on surfaces. This includes routine preventative shocking,
but it also includes physical maintenance like brushing pool surfaces.
➤ The buildup of organic matter in the pool can contribute to a variety of
pool problems:
➤ Cloudy water
➤ Algae
➤ Chlorine demand
➤ While regular brushing of surfaces is still important, chemicals called
enzymes can help to reduce the organic contaminant load in the pool to
make treatment easier.
3. ENZYMES?
➤ Enzymes are proteins that speed up the chemical reactions of other substances
without being destroyed or altered.
➤ This is different from what we see with chlorine, which is broken down into
various byproducts once it interacts with bacteria or other contaminants.
➤ Enzymes are highly specific; they are designed to target a narrow range of
compounds to interact with and break down.
➤ Enzymes possess locations called activity sites on their structure which
interacts with organic material to perform their chemical reaction and then
releases the resulting products, leaving the activity sites open to perform more
reactions.
➤ Enzymes are highly sensitive to conditions like water temperature, pH, and
sanitizer levels. While not “living,” these molecules will slow their processes as
water temperature drops or may decompose in the presence of high sanitizer
levels.
4. WHY USE ENZYMES?
➤ Enzymes can reduce the overall contaminant load in the pool,
improving the efficiency of other pool chemicals.
➤ Enzymes can provide a secondary “point of attack” for
common pool problems; cleaning up dead algae, for instance,
can be accomplished faster with an enzyme/clarifier
combination to break down dead algae and assist the filter in
removal of contaminants.
➤ Enzymes can help to reduce overall physical maintenance in
the pool by prematurely breaking down contaminants before
they have an opportunity to congregate on pool surfaces.
