The Brand Story
Rola-Chem: Sixty Years of Keeping Pool Water in Balance
At a busy hotel pool on a Saturday afternoon, the water is changing by the minute. Swimmers carry in sunscreen and sweat, the sun burns off chlorine, and every new arrival shifts the chemistry a little further. A service technician can test and dose by hand in the morning, but by midafternoon the readings have drifted. For more than sixty years Rola-Chem has built the equipment that fills that gap: pumps and controllers that measure the water and feed chemicals continuously, so the pool stays balanced whether anyone is watching or not.
Chapter 1 · Six decades
A company that does one thing
Rola-Chem is based in St. Paul, Minnesota, and has worked alongside pool professionals for more than sixty years. It describes itself as focused only on pool water quality systems, for both commercial and residential installations, and its customers range from large pool service companies to owner-operated businesses with a single truck. Rola-Chem belongs to a family of companies that includes Specialty Manufacturing and shares catalogs with Paradise Industries, a sister line of pool cleaning and maintenance products.
The company says its designs are shaped by feedback from service technicians, and it shows. Rola-Chem equipment is built to be opened, cleaned and rebuilt in the field, which is why replacement rollers, squeeze tubes, clamps and fittings make up so much of its catalog.
Chapter 2 · The squeeze
How a peristaltic pump feeds chemicals
The heart of most Rola-Chem systems is the peristaltic pump. Inside, a rotor carries a set of rollers that press against a flexible tube. As the rotor turns, each roller pinches the tube and pushes a small pocket of liquid chlorine or acid ahead of it, much the way muscles move food through the body. The chemical touches only the inside of the tube, never the pump's moving parts, so corrosion is kept to a minimum and the only routine wear item is the tube itself. Peristaltic pumps also self-prime and can push chemical into a pressurized return line, which makes them a natural fit for pool rooms.
A pump alone just doses on a schedule. Paired with a controller, it becomes a closed loop. Rola-Chem's digital controllers read the water through sensors in a flow cell, measuring pH and ORP, the oxidation-reduction potential that indicates how active the sanitizer is, and switch the pumps on and off to hold both within a set range.
The Lineup
What Rola-Chem builds today
Rola-Chem's catalog covers peristaltic pumps, digital controllers, flowmeters, chemical storage tanks, Ready-to-Mount systems that combine pumps and controllers on one pre-assembled panel, and the parts needed to keep them running. The Rola-Chem equipment HVAC365 carries includes:
- Chemical feed pumps: PRO Series 300 peristaltic pumps, such as the 38 gallon-per-day 120-volt model, and small chlorinators such as the 0.9 gallon-per-day RC301MC.
- Chemical controllers: digital ORP and pH controllers, including versions with a flow switch and the 555XXP Ready-to-Mount system with dual ORP and free available chlorine measurement.
- Ready-to-Mount systems: PRO Series 300 panels that pair a 77 gallon-per-day pump with a second peristaltic pump, pre-plumbed and pre-wired for faster installation.
- Water leveler: the Pool Sentry, a non-electric float valve for in-ground pools that tops up water lost to evaporation and splash-out.
- Service parts: three-roller rotor assemblies, flow cells, hose clamps and other components for field repair.
At a Glance
Rola-Chem in brief
- Headquarters
- St. Paul, Minnesota
- Experience
- More than 60 years
- Product focus
- Pool water quality systems
- Core technology
- Peristaltic chemical feed pumps
- Sister lines
- Specialty Manufacturing, Paradise Industries
Questions
Frequently asked questions about Rola-Chem
Where is Rola-Chem located?
Rola-Chem is based in St. Paul, Minnesota, and has been building pool water quality equipment for more than sixty years.
What is a peristaltic chemical feeder?
A peristaltic feeder uses rollers to squeeze a flexible tube and push liquid chemical forward. The chemical only contacts the tube, which limits corrosion and makes the tube the main wear part.
What does an ORP/pH controller do?
A Rola-Chem ORP/pH controller reads sanitizer activity and pH from sensors in a flow cell and turns chemical feed pumps on and off to keep the water within the set range.
What is the Rola-Chem Pool Sentry?
The Pool Sentry is a non-electric water leveler for in-ground pools. A float valve adds fresh water automatically when the level drops.
Is Rola-Chem equipment for commercial or residential pools?
Both. Rola-Chem builds water quality systems for commercial and residential installations, from single backyard pools to pools maintained by large service companies.
