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Story: Thermal pools and spas

Corroded pipes, Rotorua

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Corroded pipes, Rotorua

Maintaining the Rotorua bathhouse was a nightmare, partly because acidic waters and hydrogen sulfide gas caused corrosion. Soon after the bathhouse opened in 1908, government balneologist Arthur Wohlmann noted that all the piping between the pumps and the baths had deteriorated, and had to be replaced.

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How to cite this page

Nancy Swarbrick, Thermal pools and spas – The end of a dream, Te Ara – the Encyclopedia of New Zealand, https://teara.govt.nz/en/photograph/6583/corroded-pipes-rotorua (accessed 25 June 2026).

Story by Nancy Swarbrick, published 2 March 2009.