LANDSCAPING & EXTERNAL WORKS Poolside wellness
Steve Nelson of Certikin dives into one of the most crucial aspects of pool design that architects need to get right to make sure the environment is ideal for clients – the plant room
f you were planning on purchasing a sports car, the first thing you might notice is the colour, the styling and how great it looks overall. It may be a head turner, but what if the engine was not a suitable match? A car that looks fantastic, but has an engine that does not perform to expectations will not sell well, and will garner bad press and ultimately damage the company.
I The same can be said for a swimming
pool. You can design the most beautiful pool in the world, but if you do not size the plant room equipment correctly, you will end up with a pool that is cold and an environment which is hot and humid, making it feel uncomfortable. Or even worse, one that does not filter properly, which could result in the users getting ill. The plant room and associated equipment are the pool’s ‘engine,’ and are therefore crucial to its successful running. Starting with the basics – the flow and return fittings which take the water to and from the pool for filtering are available in a wide range of colours and finishes. However, it is important that you have the correct number to circulate the water in a timely manner, ensuring it remains warm and chemically treated.
Then take the pump and filter, the beating heart of the plant room. These must be specified to both the correct size and power to suit the type of pool you are building. They also need to be able to cope with the capacity of bathers whilst pumping the water to and from the pool. It is not just the case that one size fits all, and you need to ensure both the pump and filter are sized correctly, otherwise everything else will fail. No one wants to swim in a cold swimming pool, therefore the next important piece of the project to consider is the heating. As well as whether the pool is indoor or outdoor, key questions are whether it is for summer or year-round use – what water temperature does the client want? There are a lot of factors, but it is
79
A residential training pool by Whitewaters
very important to get the answers to deliver the right solution. For example, take an indoor pool with air handling to control the water and the wet humid environment. Specify this incorrectly, and you end up with windows steamed up and water running down the walls. Get it right and it will be a climate-controlled environment that is efficient and a pleasant place to enjoy the pool. For outdoor pools, size the heating wrong and you may never get the pool to the desired temperature, and will have very disappointed clients.
Sanitisation
When it comes to water sanitisation and the chemical balance of the pool, we all remember the old public baths or leisure centres where you would be hit with that
ADF JULY 2021
WWW.ARCHITECTSDATAFILE.CO.UK
If you do not size the plant room equipment correctly you will end up with a pool that is cold and an environment which is hot and humid
Page 1 |
Page 2 |
Page 3 |
Page 4 |
Page 5 |
Page 6 |
Page 7 |
Page 8 |
Page 9 |
Page 10 |
Page 11 |
Page 12 |
Page 13 |
Page 14 |
Page 15 |
Page 16 |
Page 17 |
Page 18 |
Page 19 |
Page 20 |
Page 21 |
Page 22 |
Page 23 |
Page 24 |
Page 25 |
Page 26 |
Page 27 |
Page 28 |
Page 29 |
Page 30 |
Page 31 |
Page 32 |
Page 33 |
Page 34 |
Page 35 |
Page 36 |
Page 37 |
Page 38 |
Page 39 |
Page 40 |
Page 41 |
Page 42 |
Page 43 |
Page 44 |
Page 45 |
Page 46 |
Page 47 |
Page 48 |
Page 49 |
Page 50 |
Page 51 |
Page 52 |
Page 53 |
Page 54 |
Page 55 |
Page 56 |
Page 57 |
Page 58 |
Page 59 |
Page 60 |
Page 61 |
Page 62 |
Page 63 |
Page 64 |
Page 65 |
Page 66 |
Page 67 |
Page 68 |
Page 69 |
Page 70 |
Page 71 |
Page 72 |
Page 73 |
Page 74 |
Page 75 |
Page 76 |
Page 77 |
Page 78 |
Page 79 |
Page 80 |
Page 81 |
Page 82 |
Page 83 |
Page 84
