It is officially reported that Maricopa County records 20 to 30 cases of Cryptosporidium each year.  According to Dr. Bob England, director of Maricopa County Department of Public Health, "In reality, I'm pretty sure it's in the thousands."  The infection is common but not everyone goes to the doctor to find out whether they have the parasite.

Unlike bacteria or viral parasites, Cryptosporidium is a Protozoa.  These are larger invaders and can survive in normal levels of pool disinfectant due to their size and thicker outer coating.  If a pool is infected with Cryptosporidium, a special high-dose shock treatment will be required, using ten times or more the normal level of chlorine.  It will also be necessary to disinfect surrounding areas and equipment or toys that may have been exposed.

The parasite causes stomach and intestinal pain, cramps, diarrhea and sometimes fever.  Healthy people can usually recover within a couple of weeks, but elderly people or those with weak immune systems may be at higher risks and prolonged or serious illness.

Is your pool at risk?  If your family and guests are careful enough to avoid swimming when they have diarrhea symptoms, residential pools used by responsible persons should be at fairly low risk to this invader.  However, if your pool service is sharing pool brushes, hoses, and other equipment with other pools, and especially those servicing large public pools, contamination from this organism, along with other protozoa type organisms is very possible.

To avoid this, Angelfish Pool & Spa Service takes proactive measures between each pool service that we perform.  It is a strict policy that none of our cleaning equipment is shared between commercial or public pools and customer's residential pools.

If you would like the peace of mind that comes from a company that goes the extra mile to protect customers, please consider making us your pool service!