Could it be that the pool is brominated, instead of chlorinated, for some reason? (like it is indoors, or heated during the winter, or something) In general, I think people are less irritated by bromine than chlorine, but it is more stable and will remain on your skin and in your sinuses much longer than chlorine does.

It also might be a problem with the pH or alkalinity of the pool. Or it could just be a stronger formulation of chlorine. You might want to ask the gym or pool owners what's up.

(Note: I am not an expert, but I have chemically balanced a hot tub before.)

Have you tried showering before you get in the pool? I hear that if your skin and hair is already wet with regular water, it helps to keep everything from being saturated with chlorine.

Damn. I wouldn't go for that last class.

even though I shower, with soap, right after getting out of the pool

The soap is probably not helping with the dry skin. Is there a gentler option?

Does the location of the new pool mean you are outside in the cold longer after the swim?

I would find out what product(s) they use at each pool. Could also be a different acid product, since urine raises the pH of a pool and acid is needed to bring it back to neutral. From my old pool manager days, I can tell you, the more people are in a pool the faster the pH rises.

They will be glad to share with you their protocol and products they use and they will have MSDS's (Material Safety Data Sheets) for these products.

Email me if you want more info, once you have found out what they use.

Muddgirl for the win!

I do shower both before and after swimming, so it was not that. But Muddgirl's mentioned brominated pools - which I had never heard of before today. So I've been Googling and it looks like that's definitely the culprit. It turns out that bromine is another compound used to kill bacteria in pools, and some places prefer it because it doesn't have the strong smell of chlorine. It's also more stable than chlorine, which is preferred for indoor, heated pools (which this is, it's an 82-degree pool, indoors). The sites say that because it's more stable, it's harder to wash off your skin. There's my dry skin problem. It's more expensive than chlorine, so it's less commonly used. It's more often used in hot tubs than in pools.

Some people find bromine less harsh than chlorine. But a few people develop what is essentially an ellergic reaction to the chemical. Here's a sad story just like mine: sniffles, runny nose, rash.

"The Centers for Disease Control report that approximately 5 percent of the U.S. population develops a sensitivity to chlorine. Researchers have determined that number jumps to 17 percent with reactions to bromine."

The reaction on the skin is sometimes called "hot tub dermatitis," which sounds totally gross, like something Burt Reynolds and Loni Anderson would get in the 70s.

Armed with this new information I Googled my pool's name and "bromine" and found a Health Dept. citation from 2002 saying that a law "Env. Ws 1105.01 requires a bromine concentration between 2.0 mg/L and 4.0 mg/L in public pool water. The bromine concentration of the indoor pool water was 15.0 mg/L on January 28, 2002." Well, they haven't been cited for it since, which is a good thing, but also indicates they have a history of using bromine and perhaps a bit of a heavy hand with it.

So thanks, muddgirl. I never knew I had this allergy because I never came across this before. I think I'll tough it out for the final class, but man, I'm really looking forward to going back to my regular pool at the Y where they use chlorine like the good Lord intended. There is no way I could swim in this pool regularly!

[on preview, thanks danf for the MSDS hint. I think I will ask about it when I go in for the last class. They would probably want to know when people have reactions anyhow.)

Yuck, that sounds unpleasant. I don't know if this would help you or not, but I find that using a good oily salt scrub after I swim really helps. The salt seems to take away more of the nasty chemicals (don't know if this works for bromine), and the oil base is great for moisture. Soap seems to do nothing besides dry me out more.

I just saw this thread and was all ready to bust in here with the bromine suggestion. I've had some bad experiences with bromine, same symptoms as yours (and then some!) luckily enough they aren't too common. It will also do a number on some fabrics, I remember having a pair of bathing suit short bottoms turn from black to a rusty brown color after like five days swimming in a resort hotel once.