To get the most out of your cold water therapy, clean ice bath water is very important. Not only does clean water protect your health by preventing harmful bacteria and germs, it will make your entire experience more enjoyable.

Additionally, if you keep your ice bath squeaky clean and ensure all the proper maintenance happens, you will prolong the life of your cold tub significantly.

Can Bacteria Grow in an Ice Bath?

Cold does not prevent bacteria growth, it only slows it. You need to be especially careful with ice baths that have built-in chillers since they often begin with warm water, which likely has some kind of bacteria in it.

You have to make sure that you eliminate what was there before and take care to prevent growth in the future so that you are not negatively impacted when the entire point is to strengthen your body and mind.

How to Keep Your Cold Plunge Clean

A clean cold plunge is one of the most important aspects of the process if you intend to get the most out of your cold water immersion experience. Dirty water does very little to promote health or a peaceful mind.

Here's what you need to do to keep your ice bath clean and ready for daily use:

Cover the Plunge

It's important to keep your cold plunge covered. Using a well-fitted cover will improve your water quality by reducing debris and contaminants. Many cold plunges come with their own covers, but if you build a setup, you will need to include a cover in your plans.

Get a Filter

Maintaining a cold water temperature will help with bacteria, but it isn't all that needs to happen. Having proper filtration systems installed will go a long way to keeping your cold plunge water free from unwanted guests.

Additionally, you can use sanitation methods such as hydrogen peroxide and Epsom salt will boost the effects of your filtration system.

Keep Dirt Away

When you clean your cold plunge, make sure that you remove any dirt and debris that you can see. Do your best to prevent dust and dirt blowing in the water from off of other surfaces, and if your cold plunge is outside, make sure it is somewhere that is not likely to get a lot of dusty wind.

Maintaining a clean and safe environment at all times will allow you to get the most out of every one of your cold plunges.

Deep Clean Once a Month

Aside from the regular cleaning and maintenance, go deep at least once a month. Doing a deep clean at least once a month will remove any buildup of bacteria and germs. Using a mild detergent and a soft sponge, you can be very thorough without risking any damage to your tank.

Go about it like this:

• Unplug everything
• Drain the tub
• Wipe out the interior with a soft sponge or cloth and a gentle soap
• Thoroughly rinse all the surfaces
• Refill with fresh water

That's it! Make sure you're not carrying in any debris when you clean the interior, but as you can see, it's not a tricky process.

Shower Before

Any time you have the opportunity, we recommend showering before you take your plunge. Showering helps remove body oils and contaminants that naturally occur. Everybody has this buildup. As a matter of fact, a lot of those oils are evidence of healthy, naturally occurring processes happening in and on your body.

However, since those things will be removed by water anyway, we want them to go down the drain instead of sitting in the icy water where they will fester and grow things we would rather avoid. Showering before getting into the tub will keep the water clean for much longer.

Can I Keep My Cold Plunge Clean With Chemicals?

You certainly can. In fact, chemicals such as chlorine or bromine are necessary to fight off bacteria and maintain a certain level of cleanliness.

While chemicals are useful in this way, it is very important to monitor them and always ensure they are within safe ranges. You are, after all, exposing your entire body to these chemicals and their effects.

Always keep a close eye on your chemical levels and adjust when necessary before getting into the water. In fact, if you're building cold plunges into your schedule, allow time to check all the levels and make sure everything is just right.

Is it Hard to Keep Ice Bath Water Clean?

It is not! Anyone can do it.

Keeping ice bath water from being spoiled is something that requires some conscientious thought, but it isn't that complicated. As long as you keep the pH level well-balanced and use water purification methods, you will be okay.

Other things you can do include:

• Switching the water: Changing the water regularly allows for a fresh start, which is critical to keeping things clean. It also allows your filtration system a little break and an opportunity to reset.
• Using clean ice: Using ice off the top of your backyard creek isn't the best option. That ice is full of dirt and contaminants that will clog up your filters and decrease the benefits you can get from your cold plunges. Instead, use fresh, clean ice that hasn't been around dirt.
• Wearing clean clothes: As you can imagine, this step is similar to showering before taking a plunge. You don't want to bring the clothes you've worn all day into the water, or you bring all the buildup from your day into the water, as well.

How Often Should I Change Cold Plunge Water?

Changing the water at least once every few weeks is a must. It's important to refresh and restart. However, you may need to clean your tub more often depending on if you treat your water or not.

Treated water, as you would expect, will need to be refreshed less often than water that is not treated. This is because the chemicals used to treat any pool water are highly effective at keeping harmful bacteria at bay.

Can You Build Your Own Cold Plunge?

You can build your own cold plunge. We are no longer living in the days where big companies can gatekeep information and charge whatever they like without any challengers.

Brandon at DIY Pools and Spas saw that there was a large demand for cold plunges without a lot of access. He took it upon himself to gather the parts, figure out the process, and make it available to everyone. He compiled a comprehensive course that properly and safely guides anyone through the process of building their own cold plunges. He has taken what felt out of bounds for many and turned it into something that anyone can do.

With this course and the DIY Cold Plunge Kit, you can build a cold plunge that is suited to your needs, you can build it on your timeline, and with your budget. You no longer have to stress about finding the best rate from the best company or achieving that impossible balance of good reviews and a reasonable price.

When you have the time, when you feel it's the right option, you can simply follow along with the course and have yourself a beautiful, professional, DIY cold plunge.