# If someone shits in an olympic-size pool, do they have to drain the whole pool? **URL:** \ **Category:** Factual Questions\ **Created:** [May 3, 2009, 9:39pm UTC](https://boards.straightdope.com/t/if-someone-shits-in-an-olympic-size-pool-do-they-have-to-drain-the-whole-pool/495213 "2009-05-03T21:39:02Z")\ **Posts on this page:** 20\ **Page:** 1
**Author:** ![Cagey\_Drifter](https://avatars.discourse-cdn.com/v4/letter/c/b2d939/32.png) [@Cagey\_Drifter](https://boards.straightdope.com/u/Cagey_Drifter)\ **Post date:** [May 3, 2009, 9:39pm UTC](https://boards.straightdope.com/t/if-someone-shits-in-an-olympic-size-pool-do-they-have-to-drain-the-whole-pool/495213/1 "2009-05-03T21:39:02Z")
Just wondering if I should do it, but as an environmentalist, I would also like to conserve water if possible. ---
**Author:** ![Johnny\_L.A](https://sea3.discourse-cdn.com/straightdope/user_avatar/boards.straightdope.com/johnny_l.a/32/1084_2.png) [@Johnny\_L.A](https://boards.straightdope.com/u/Johnny_L.A)\ **Post date:** [May 3, 2009, 9:43pm UTC](https://boards.straightdope.com/t/if-someone-shits-in-an-olympic-size-pool-do-they-have-to-drain-the-whole-pool/495213/2 "2009-05-03T21:43:07Z")
There’s a large (I don’t know if it’s technically ‘Olympic-sized’) pool at the Barstow-Daggett Airport, where my dad was stationed in the '70s. There was a ‘kiddie pool’ behind the shallow end, that was connected to the large pool by a pipe. One summer (this is in the Mojave Desert, mind you) a child defecated in the kiddie pool and a bolus went through the pipe and into the main pool. The pool was drained and cleaned. It’s been a while, but it seems the process took two weeks. Maybe only one, but it could have been two. Even after the pool had been refilled, the filtration system had to be run for a few days. Most inconvenient for a kid who liked to swim! ETA: [Here’s the pool](http://maps.google.com/maps?hl=en&safe=off&client=safari&num=100&q=%22barstow-daggett+airport%22&ie=UTF8&ll=34.856469,-116.794925&spn=0.00136,0.002253&t=h&z=19). I don’t know if it’s still being used. It’s drained in this photo. ---
**Author:** ![Philster](https://avatars.discourse-cdn.com/v4/letter/p/13edae/32.png) [@Philster](https://boards.straightdope.com/u/Philster)\ **Post date:** [May 3, 2009, 11:59pm UTC](https://boards.straightdope.com/t/if-someone-shits-in-an-olympic-size-pool-do-they-have-to-drain-the-whole-pool/495213/3 "2009-05-03T23:59:05Z")
Most places don’t drain the pool. Clean it, shock it (high dose of chloriine), then let chem levels return to safe levels. The pool water is sloshing in and out of everyone’s but cracks and private parts all day anyway. Poop in a pool is purely a psychological issue, not really a health issue. And kids with swimmies on? Yeah, water is filtering through the feces laden pants the whole time anyway. Visible poop in pool: psychological ---
**Author:** ![Dynamo](https://avatars.discourse-cdn.com/v4/letter/d/d2c977/32.png) [@Dynamo](https://boards.straightdope.com/u/Dynamo)\ **Post date:** [May 4, 2009, 12:13am UTC](https://boards.straightdope.com/t/if-someone-shits-in-an-olympic-size-pool-do-they-have-to-drain-the-whole-pool/495213/4 "2009-05-04T00:13:18Z")
> [@Philster](#): > > Most places don’t drain the pool. Clean it, shock it (high dose of chloriine), then let chem levels return to safe levels. > > The pool water is sloshing in and out of everyone’s but cracks and private parts all day anyway. Poop in a pool is purely a psychological issue, not really a health issue. > > And kids with swimmies on? Yeah, water is filtering through the feces laden pants the whole time anyway. > > Visible poop in pool: psychological Comical but quoted for the truth. ---
**Author:** ![Otara](https://avatars.discourse-cdn.com/v4/letter/o/a88e4f/32.png) [@Otara](https://boards.straightdope.com/u/Otara)\ **Post date:** [May 4, 2009, 12:14am UTC](https://boards.straightdope.com/t/if-someone-shits-in-an-olympic-size-pool-do-they-have-to-drain-the-whole-pool/495213/5 "2009-05-04T00:14:05Z")
[http://www.health.vic.gov.au/environment/water/faecal.htm](http://www.health.vic.gov.au/environment/water/faecal.htm) Cite here suggests that for small pools like wading you drain, larger you increase chlorine. Diarrhea seems to be the real risk healthwise. Otara ---
**Author:** ![CookingWithGas](https://sea3.discourse-cdn.com/straightdope/user_avatar/boards.straightdope.com/cookingwithgas/32/485_2.png) [@CookingWithGas](https://boards.straightdope.com/u/CookingWithGas)\ **Post date:** [May 4, 2009, 12:19am UTC](https://boards.straightdope.com/t/if-someone-shits-in-an-olympic-size-pool-do-they-have-to-drain-the-whole-pool/495213/6 "2009-05-04T00:19:16Z")
> [@Philster](#): > > The pool water is sloshing in and out of everyone’s but cracks and private parts all day anyway. Poop in a pool is purely a psychological issue, not really a health issue. Aren’t there lots of bacterial and viral infections that are shed in feces that might not necessarily be picked up by mere butt-crack sloshing? I would agree that feces from a healthy person should not be a health crisis but if you don’t know about the health of the shitter then you have to take some precautions. Is the standard level of chemicals in the pool is high enough to wipe out anything that could be there? ---
**Author:** ![shimmery](https://avatars.discourse-cdn.com/v4/letter/s/d9b06d/32.png) [@shimmery](https://boards.straightdope.com/u/shimmery)\ **Post date:** [May 4, 2009, 1:00am UTC](https://boards.straightdope.com/t/if-someone-shits-in-an-olympic-size-pool-do-they-have-to-drain-the-whole-pool/495213/7 "2009-05-04T01:00:09Z")
> [@Philster](#): > > Most places don’t drain the pool. Clean it, shock it (high dose of chloriine), then let chem levels return to safe levels. Yes, when I was a lifeguard (in the early 00’s), we’d get solid poop with the skimmer, then shock the pool ( **CookingWithGas** , so much chlorine is used that it’s not safe to swim in for several hours - you’re effectively disinfecting the pool with bleach). Diarrhea, on the other hand - that might call for a draining. (Vomit generally did not call for a draining.) ---
**Author:** ![Johnny\_L.A](https://sea3.discourse-cdn.com/straightdope/user_avatar/boards.straightdope.com/johnny_l.a/32/1084_2.png) [@Johnny\_L.A](https://boards.straightdope.com/u/Johnny_L.A)\ **Post date:** [May 4, 2009, 1:03am UTC](https://boards.straightdope.com/t/if-someone-shits-in-an-olympic-size-pool-do-they-have-to-drain-the-whole-pool/495213/8 "2009-05-04T01:03:13Z")
Maybe things were different in San Bernardino County in the '70s. Or they were just being overcautious. ---
**Author:** ![Tenebras](https://avatars.discourse-cdn.com/v4/letter/t/977dab/32.png) [@Tenebras](https://boards.straightdope.com/u/Tenebras)\ **Post date:** [May 4, 2009, 3:55am UTC](https://boards.straightdope.com/t/if-someone-shits-in-an-olympic-size-pool-do-they-have-to-drain-the-whole-pool/495213/9 "2009-05-04T03:55:11Z")
Or they were going to drain the pool anyway and blamed it on some poor kid… I worked at a waterpark and we had all kinds of stuff in the water and we never drained anything. When diarrhea hits you get everybody out of the water and fill the thing up with chlorine for a while. **CookingWithGas** , the kids with the water diapers _are_ shitting directly in the water, because those things aren’t water tight even if you put them on right, which most parents don’t. As for germs, the normal chemical levels kill pretty much everything after a few seconds. There are a couple of things that are really nasty that will survive\*, but if you have one of those things you usually know about it (ie you were already sicker than a dog) and your doctor told you “don’t go in the pool!” Also of note, there is no chemical that turns purple when you pee. Lots of kids and adults pee in the pool and it isn’t a big deal. - Cryptosporidum is the big one that everybody knows about. It’s a tiny parasite that causes diarrhea, and it is no more killed by normal chlorine levels than you are. We had a scare when someone with a confirmed case showed up at our waterpark. This was 10 years ago, but I seem to recall shutting the wave pool for the day (people were _not_ happy about that) and bleaching the hell out of the lawnchairs he interacted with. ---
**Author:** ![BrandonR](https://avatars.discourse-cdn.com/v4/letter/b/779978/32.png) [@BrandonR](https://boards.straightdope.com/u/BrandonR)\ **Post date:** [May 4, 2009, 4:45am UTC](https://boards.straightdope.com/t/if-someone-shits-in-an-olympic-size-pool-do-they-have-to-drain-the-whole-pool/495213/10 "2009-05-04T04:45:16Z")
… and suddenly I no longer have the urge to use public pools. ---
**Author:** ![Johnny\_L.A](https://sea3.discourse-cdn.com/straightdope/user_avatar/boards.straightdope.com/johnny_l.a/32/1084_2.png) [@Johnny\_L.A](https://boards.straightdope.com/u/Johnny_L.A)\ **Post date:** [May 4, 2009, 4:47am UTC](https://boards.straightdope.com/t/if-someone-shits-in-an-olympic-size-pool-do-they-have-to-drain-the-whole-pool/495213/11 "2009-05-04T04:47:57Z")
You don’t want to go into the pool, because children ‘go’ in the pool? ---
**Author:** ![Renee](https://sea3.discourse-cdn.com/straightdope/user_avatar/boards.straightdope.com/renee/32/287_2.png) [@Renee](https://boards.straightdope.com/u/Renee)\ **Post date:** [May 4, 2009, 4:55am UTC](https://boards.straightdope.com/t/if-someone-shits-in-an-olympic-size-pool-do-they-have-to-drain-the-whole-pool/495213/12 "2009-05-04T04:55:04Z")
> [@BrandonR](#): > > … and suddenly I no longer have the urge to use public pools. Yeah. Kind of wishing I hadn’t opened this thread. ---
**Author:** ![BrandonR](https://avatars.discourse-cdn.com/v4/letter/b/779978/32.png) [@BrandonR](https://boards.straightdope.com/u/BrandonR)\ **Post date:** [May 4, 2009, 4:59am UTC](https://boards.straightdope.com/t/if-someone-shits-in-an-olympic-size-pool-do-they-have-to-drain-the-whole-pool/495213/13 "2009-05-04T04:59:13Z")
Urine, I can deal with. Feces is a whole other issue. And diarrhea is the deal breaker. ---
**Author:** ![Great\_Dave](https://avatars.discourse-cdn.com/v4/letter/g/46a35a/32.png) [@Great\_Dave](https://boards.straightdope.com/u/Great_Dave)\ **Post date:** [May 4, 2009, 5:13am UTC](https://boards.straightdope.com/t/if-someone-shits-in-an-olympic-size-pool-do-they-have-to-drain-the-whole-pool/495213/14 "2009-05-04T05:13:36Z")
“Welcome to our ool. Notice there is no ‘P’ in it. Please keep it that way.” ---
**Author:** ![Bosstone](https://avatars.discourse-cdn.com/v4/letter/b/22d042/32.png) [@Bosstone](https://boards.straightdope.com/u/Bosstone)\ **Post date:** [May 4, 2009, 5:13am UTC](https://boards.straightdope.com/t/if-someone-shits-in-an-olympic-size-pool-do-they-have-to-drain-the-whole-pool/495213/15 "2009-05-04T05:13:57Z")
> [@BrandonR](#): > > … and suddenly I no longer have the urge to use public pools. No kidding. I may never visit a water park again. ---
**Author:** ![Snnipe\_70E](https://avatars.discourse-cdn.com/v4/letter/s/b5a626/32.png) [@Snnipe\_70E](https://boards.straightdope.com/u/Snnipe_70E)\ **Post date:** [May 4, 2009, 5:14am UTC](https://boards.straightdope.com/t/if-someone-shits-in-an-olympic-size-pool-do-they-have-to-drain-the-whole-pool/495213/16 "2009-05-04T05:14:58Z")
> [@Philster](#): > > Most places don’t drain the pool. Clean it, shock it (high dose of chloriine), then let chem levels return to safe levels. > > The pool water is sloshing in and out of everyone’s but cracks and private parts all day anyway. Poop in a pool is purely a psychological issue, not really a health issue. > > And kids with swimmies on? Yeah, water is filtering through the feces laden pants the whole time anyway. > > Visible poop in pool: psychological Wife works for the county office of Ed with physically and mentaly handicap kids. They use a pool and it happens every few months. The above description is right. ---
**Author:** ![Bearflag70](https://avatars.discourse-cdn.com/v4/letter/b/8e7dd6/32.png) [@Bearflag70](https://boards.straightdope.com/u/Bearflag70)\ **Post date:** [May 4, 2009, 5:18am UTC](https://boards.straightdope.com/t/if-someone-shits-in-an-olympic-size-pool-do-they-have-to-drain-the-whole-pool/495213/17 "2009-05-04T05:18:40Z")
…and all this time, I’ve been getting out of the pool to poop. :smack: ---
**Author:** ![Myrrajh](https://avatars.discourse-cdn.com/v4/letter/m/87869e/32.png) [@Myrrajh](https://boards.straightdope.com/u/Myrrajh)\ **Post date:** [May 4, 2009, 6:58am UTC](https://boards.straightdope.com/t/if-someone-shits-in-an-olympic-size-pool-do-they-have-to-drain-the-whole-pool/495213/18 "2009-05-04T06:58:45Z")
Yeah, I think I’ve been cured of any desire to swim in a public pool again. Thanks! ---
**Author:** ![Tenebras](https://avatars.discourse-cdn.com/v4/letter/t/977dab/32.png) [@Tenebras](https://boards.straightdope.com/u/Tenebras)\ **Post date:** [May 4, 2009, 9:54am UTC](https://boards.straightdope.com/t/if-someone-shits-in-an-olympic-size-pool-do-they-have-to-drain-the-whole-pool/495213/19 "2009-05-04T09:54:08Z")
It’s really not a big deal. That’s why there’s chlorine (or bromine or what-have-you) in the water, because it kills all the nasties. But yeah, when you get in the pool, you’re interacting with the same water that sloshed around every single person in that pool’s bunghole. That’s bad. But you’re also cavorting in the water that dripped so invitingly off that hot girl’s boobs! That’s good. But it’s the same water that touched her boyfriend’s wiener. That’s bad. And none of this matters _because the water is chlorinated_… (That’s good, for those of you keeping score at home.) Oh, and for a total mindfuck, if a pool smells all “chlorine-y” and makes your eyes red, it’s because there’s not enough chlorine in the water, not too much. The chlorine solution that you add to pools undergoes a two step process to sanitize the water. First it binds to organic compounds (sweat, perfume, accidental discharges, purposeful discharges…) and forms chloramines. These chloramines are then broken down into nitrogen and water. (The chlorine, if I remember right, dissipates into the air?) The thing is that the chloramines smell and make your eyes burn. So if the pool smells wicked chlorinated, the most likely cause is that there’s not enough chlorine to break down all the chloramines from the previous occupants. Happy swimming! ---
**Author:** ![Ferret\_Herder](https://avatars.discourse-cdn.com/v4/letter/f/e47774/32.png) [@Ferret\_Herder](https://boards.straightdope.com/u/Ferret_Herder)\ **Post date:** [May 4, 2009, 10:41am UTC](https://boards.straightdope.com/t/if-someone-shits-in-an-olympic-size-pool-do-they-have-to-drain-the-whole-pool/495213/20 "2009-05-04T10:41:47Z")
> [@BrandonR](#): > > … and suddenly I no longer have the urge to use public pools. Fish poop in lakes, rivers, and oceans. 😃 [Next page](https://boards.straightdope.com/t/if-someone-shits-in-an-olympic-size-pool-do-they-have-to-drain-the-whole-pool/495213.md?page=2)