Using Safety Turtle in Salt Water Pools

A higher concentration of salt in your pool reduces the ability of the Turtle to communicate with the Base Station. The salt increases the pool's conductivity, thus increasing the power loss of a radio signal passing through a given height of water.

Therefore, for a salt chlorinated pool, the Base Station is best located pool side, at least 3 feet (1 meter) above the water surface. [An Extended Range System is then required to accomplish alarming in the house.]

Depending on distance [and physical obstructions] between where the Turtle is immersed and the Base Station, beeping in test mode may stop (indicating the signal is lost) before the Turtle reaches the recommended test depth of 4-6 inches. If a child free falls into this pool, the Turtle may not have time to transmit before the signal is effectively blocked.

Reducing the distance [and physical obstruction] to the Base Station will increase the achievable Turtle test depth.

For maximum safety when using with pools, the Turtle wristband should be locked on your child's wrist, not attached to another part of his/her anatomy or clothing. In the eventuality the alarm is not triggered on the way down, buoyancy, weight distribution and involuntary arm movement will still result in alarming within 5 - 10 seconds.

Most salt-water chlorinator manufacturers recommend that salt concentration not exceed 3,600 ppm. Terrapin also recommends that your salt concentration be measured and kept within recommended limits.