When you try to enjoy a nice dip in the swimming pool, one of the things you might notice is that the tiles are almost always either white or blue is almost never black. This has become a curious topic for different people as you will hardly ever see black tiles in a swimming pool. But why is that so? Are black tiles in a pool actually dangerous?
Technically, no, black tile pools are not very dangerous. It might be true to some extent that the tiles would end up absorbing sunlight faster than most other tiles but the difference will be minimal at best and a black-tiled pool won’t end up becoming marginally more dangerous than other pools.
There is actually a Tumblr post where the legend of the black-tiled pool has sparked interesting theories about using black tiles on your pool. Still, that post is all made up and is purely theoretical because there is no actual proven science behind it. However, there are some cases where black tiles in a pool can be more dangerous than regular tiles. Then again, the difference will be minimal at best.
Why you shouldn’t have a black pool?
The thing about black is that it is the perfect minimal color that you can use when it comes to decorating homes because of the very fact that it looks luxurious and still minimal. This minimalist movement has reached a point where people are actually considering using black piles in their swimming pools so that they could have a more luxurious swimming pool that goes well with the home’s all-black motif.
That said, one of the things you may have noticed is that you hardly ever see resorts, hotels, schools, gyms, and recreation centers using black tiles for their swimming pools. In most cases, swimming pools are usually using blue or white tiles (that can appear to look blue due to the water). Some of you probably haven’t seen a swimming pool using black tiles. But why is it that black tiles are avoided when it comes to swimming pools?
For starters, when used in open areas where there is plenty of sunlight and when it is the middle of the summer, black swimming pools may end up absorbing more heat than most other swimming pools. That’s because black is a color that is capable of absorbing more light than any other color considering that black itself is the result of how light is absorbed. As such, the more light that black tiles are capable of absorbing, the faster it is for a swimming pool to heat up in the middle of a hot summer day.
So, the first reason why you shouldn’t be using black tiles in your swimming pool is related to how the pool would end up heating up faster. And no one wants to stay in a hot swimming pool in the middle of a summer day when people simply want a dip in the pool to stay cool and fresh.
Meanwhile, even if it isn’t a hot summer day and if you want to enjoy a nice night swim in the pool, you still shouldn’t want your pool to be black. This is due to how you probably won’t be able to see well in the pool if the tiles are black unless you really have a well-lit swimming pool.
Then again, the possible risks that are associated with black tiles in a swimming pool are not really that serious to the point that you should completely avoid them. As long as your pool is kept indoors and that you are sure that the pool is lit well enough, then you might not have to worry about a black-tiled swimming pool.
Are black tile pools dangerous?
If you do a quick Google search, one of the things that you will read about black-tiled swimming pools is that these pools are completely dangerous and can end up burning someone to death the moment you step inside the pool. However, this has simply become an urban legend that was interpreted by people on the internet.
It all started when someone posted a black swimming pool on Tumblr and a user claimed that a pool that is made using Vantablack, which is the darkest material we have today and is capable of absorbing 99.965% of all available light in the area, can burn people due to how it will immediately boil the moment sunlight hits it. And when the pool water boils, the chlorine in the water will turn into toxic gas that can instantly kill anyone within the vicinity.
However, the science behind this theory is yet to be proven as this is all speculation and theoretical in nature. That means that there is no certainty as to whether or not there is some truth to that possibility.
So, in that sense, black tiles in a swimming pool are not as dangerous as that post claims to be because of how the post was talking about Vantablack and that everything is pure speculation. This means that black tile pools are not that dangerous.
Still, as previously mentioned, there are some risks that can be tied to swimming pools in black tiles such as the tiles absorbing heat faster. But rest assured that black tiles in a pool aren’t completely dangerous and are quite safe as long as measures are put in place to minimize the chances of anything dangerous happening in the pool.
Is it safe to swim in a pool with a black spot?
While we did say that black pools are not that dangerous, what about the black spots that you see in pools? What are these black spots? And is it still safe to swim in a pool that has these dark spots all over the water?
The black spot that you may see from time to time in a swimming pool is actually algae, which usually tends to grow on the darker side of the pool or in the pipes connected to the pool. This is the same type of algae that grows in between the tiles of a bathroom due to a combination of different factors such as excess moisture.
If you do find these black spots in a pool, the one thing you need to know is that the algae itself will not cause any harm or illnesses to you. But the problem here is that the algae can attract bacteria and insects that could be the cause of any illness that you may end up suffering from after swimming in the pool.
So, in short, the black spots are not dangerous but the consequences of not cleaning out these black spots will end up becoming the cause of any sickness that a person may suffer. That means that you probably should avoid swimming in a pool that is full of these black spots.
Sources:
https://didyouknowfacts.com/the-real-dangers-of-black-tiled-pools-as-told-by-the-tumblrati/
https://www.pupperish.com/nightmare-swimming-pool
https://www.quora.com/What-would-happen-if-you-put-Vantablack-tiles-in-a-swimming-pool
https://rearfront.com/pure-black-pool-nightmare
