Cathodic protection of reinforced concrete swimming pools

Many swimming pools were built in the 1960s and 1970s as parr of leisure facilities or schools. These typically comprised of a cast in situ reinforced concrete base and walls with cast in situ promenade decks around the pool. These structures are now often in severe distress due to corrosion of the reinforcement in the walls and promenade decks. The use of cathodic protection to stop this degradation of the reinforcement has been developed to be the standard repair method in Denmark. The use of anodes in the pool water has become the most popular system of cathodic protection of swimming pools in Denmark. The anodes are installed in boxes, recessed into the pool side walls of rite swimming pool. The economic benefits of this form of repair are so impressive that it is now being used in Great Britain. This paper describes the first installation of this type in Great Britain at Tenby Leisure Centre in South Wales. In this installation, the swimming pool walls and base are protected using anodes in the pool water The support columns and other concrete parts which also suffer from reinforcement corrosion are protected by internal anodes placed in holes drilled in the concrete. The cathodic protection system is computer controlled. This gives an accurate continuous control of the output current to each parr of the structure based on real-rime readings from reference electrodes. This gives a better and more even protection from corrosion, increases the life of the anodes and switches off the anodes in the water when bathers are in the pool. The computer control system has a modem and a telephone connection allowing remote monitoring and control of the system.