POOL OPERATOR ACTUAL EXAM PAPER 2024
COMPLETE QUESTIONS AND VERIFIED
ANSWERS
◉ Algae. Answer: a simple nuisance plant life that colonizes in water
under favorable conditions
◉ Alkalinity. Answer: A measure of the pH-buffering capacity of water
◉ Aluminum Sulfate. Answer: Alum; a flocculating agent frequently
used as a supplement in rapid sand filters only!
◉ Ammonia (NH3). Answer: A chemical compound of hydrogen and
nitrogen that combines with free chlorine in pools to form chloramines,
or combined chlorine.
◉ Automation. Answer: Electronic equipment that senses water
variables (primarliy chlorine, ORP, temperature, and pH) and controls
chemical feeder or heater systems to maintain desired levels.
◉ Backwash. Answer: The process of cleaning a swimming pool filter
by reversing the flow of water through it.
,◉ Balance. Answer: In pools, use to refer to a condition of the water that
is neither scaling nore aggressive/corrosive.
◉ Basic. Answer: Opposite of acidic, a pH condition above 7.
◉ Bleach (NaCIO). Answer: Sodium hypochlorite, usually 12%
strength, "liquid chlorine" for pool use.
◉ Body Coat (Body Feed). Answer: Biatomaceous earth contimuously
added to filter elements during the course of a filter run to help maintain
filter efficacy and extend filter runs.
◉ Breakpoint (Chlorination). Answer: The point in a rising chlorine
residual at which the concentration of available chlorine becomes great
enough to oxidize most organiz matter, chloramines, and ammonia
compounds in a pool. Chlorine added thereafter will be in the
uncombined, or free, state.
◉ Bromine (Br2). Answer: a heavy, dark-reddish-brown liquid in the
same chemical family as chlorine gas. It is sometimes used as a
bactericide in pools, usually in a solid-compound or salt form.
◉ Calcification (see also Scale). Answer: Formation of calcium
carbonate on walls of pools or pipes, or in a filter or heater, due to
precipitation of calcium carbonate.
, ◉ Calcium Hypochlorite {Ca(CIO)2}. Answer: Compound of chlorine
and calcium used in white granular or tablet form as a disinfectant in
pools. Typically, 65% chlorine by weight and a pH of ~11 in water.
◉ Calcium Saturation Index (CSI). Answer: Derived from the Langelier
Index, for determining water's tendency to scale or be aggressive.
Sometimes known at the LSI or SI.
◉ Carbon Dioxide (CO2). Answer: common gas found in air; exhaled in
human breath. Forms of carbonic acid when dissolved in water and
contributes to bicarbonate alkalinity when added to water, thereby
lowering pH and raising alkalinity.
◉ Caustic Soda (NaOH). Answer: See "Sodium Hydroxide"
◉ Channelization. Answer: The undesirable process whereby filter sand
is permeated by tubes or channels of calcified or oily material, allowing
water to pass freely through the filter.
◉ Chemical Feeder. Answer: A device designed for automatic addition
of chemicals to swimming pool water.