Why is oxidation required? - When sufficient ammonia and nitrogen are in the water, the water must be oxidized to remove these and the associated organic compounds that are usually present. Some of these compounds are introduced into the water by swimmers and bathers in the form of perspiration, urine, saliva, sputum and fecal matter. Ammonia and nitrogen compounds are also introduced into the water by rain. Each drop of rain has some dissolved nitrogen from our atmosphere and from automobile emissions.

Ozone oxidizes soap, deodorant, hair spray, cologne, makeup, perfume, body lotion, hand cream, sun tan lotion, saliva and urine. Ozone takes care of the big job of oxidizing all these organic contaminants.

To remove these organic compounds - add ozone to the water. When an ozone generator is installed on a pool or spa, then oxidation of the ammonia and nitrogen compounds will take place whenever the ozone system is operating.

What is ozone? - Ozone is an oxygen molecule - O₃. The normal molecule in the air is O₂. Ozone (O₃) is a very active molecule and combines very easily. Ozone is produced by passing air through a high voltage electrical discharge, or corona. Air or concentrated oxygen dried to a minimum of -60°C dewpoint passes through the corona arc which causes the O₂ bond to split, freeing two O₁ atoms which then collide with other O₂ molecules to create ozone. The ozone/gas mixture discharged from the CD (corona discharge) ozone generator normally contains from 1% to 3% ozone.

At Wailani we use corona discharge type ozone generators that produce far more ozone than comparably sized UV ozone generators.

The amount of ozone produced by an ozone generator is insignificant compared to the normal atmosphere we live in. When dissolved in water ozone is extremely save. Excess ozone quickly converts back to oxygen. Ozone will not hurt you, in the quantities necessary to be effective for pool and spa oxidation ozone is gentle to humans in the water. Ozone has been used for about 50 years to help purify water.

Ozone vs. Smog - Sometimes there is confusion over the difference between ozone and smog. Smog is not the same as ozone!

Smog is a combination of harmful pollutants and chemicals found in the air. Smog is air pollution created by combustion polluters. Smog is a combination of hydrocarbons, primarily CO₂, CO and SO₂ that react with UV rays from the sun to form nitric oxides (NOX).

When referring to air quality at ground level, what is commonly called "ozone" is really a mixture of different toxic hydrocarbons, not ozone. So the two cannot be the same.