Step 1

Here we have an open plan hall, the perfect location for a cocktail party or dancefloor..

Step 2

With the click of a button the transformation process begins..and your swimming pool begins to appear.

Step 3

…before you know it, your beautifull swimming pool appears..(impressive!)

Step 4

Ready for a relaxing swim?…refreshing tranquility away from the elements? In complete luxury and style, your swimming pool is ready for use.

Step 5 …with a click, your hall re-appears ready for your cocktail party in the evening…

To find out more about movable pool floors, click here.

Popularity: 14% [?]

Step 1

• Click the button, on your marks get set…and go!

Step 2

• The deck begins to elevate

Step 3

• Watch the transformation taking place…in a few moments the deck will be back to normal!

Step 4

• In no time the full deck is visible- lets get the chairs and table for lunch!

Step 5

• ..And maybe later we can have  a dip again…

have a look at other design options:

There are wide range of design options for your movable pool floor. To discuss options on this innovative design click here:

Popularity: 8% [?]

• Cloudy water is a nuisance, it does not look nice and it can create a safety hazard. There are five causes why pool water gets cloudy. Cloudy water results from one or more of the following:

1. Improper water balance

2. Low sanitizer or oxidizer level

3. Poor or inadequate circulation/filtration

4. Extremely high bather load

5. Chemical incompatibility

• These five causes will cover probably 99 percent of all cloudy water problems you are likely to encounter on a daily basis.
• There are a few other causes such as a car being driven into the pool, a flock of geese lands in the pool or some deliberate act. But even those might be covered under our broad causes above.
• If you correct, check or perform these five causes, you will have crystal clear water -

1. Balance the water.

• Adjust all chemical operation parameters to the proper range. High levels of calcium and magnesium hardness, high total alkalinity and high pH can all cause cloudy water. NSPI Recommended Ranges:
• Min. Ideal Max.pH 7.2 7.4-7.6 7.8
• Total Alkalinity 60 ppm 80-140 ppm 160 ppm
• Calcium Hardness 150 ppm 200-400 ppm 500-1000 ppm

1. Check for proper sanitizer or oxidizer levels.

• Bacteria and algae can cause the water to look cloudy. Superchlorination or shock treating with a non-chlorine treatment chemical may be required. The chlorine or bromine in the water can combine with contaminants brought in by a rain storm, dust storm or a heavy use period and become less effective. The water can turn hazy, cloudy or dull.  Superchlorinate by adding “enough” chlorine to bring the FAC (free available chlorine) up to 10 ppm or higher and keep it there for at least four hours – the longer the better. All chlorine products that can be used for superchlorination have label directions for using specific types of chlorine products. Follow label directions.
• Shock treat the water by adding one of the following non-chlorine shocking chemicals: potassium peroxymonosulfate, sodium persulfate, hydrogen peroxide or sodium percarbonate. Follow label directions.
• Again, superchlorinating and shock treating chemicals should already be on hand making this the next easiest step.

3. Check your circulation/filtration system.

• If the filter is not properly sized to the pool or the circulation/filtration system is not operating a sufficient number of hours per day, cloudy water can result. Most circulation/filtration systems must operate a minimum of six hours every day. Check the filter grids in the D.E. (diatomaceous earth) filter. Make sure they are clean, in good condition, not frayed or torn.

4. Sometimes the problem is just too much stuff brought in by swimmers.

• This is usually suntan oils and lotions, soap, makeup and other personal care products. The best way to stop this from clouding the water is to have swimmers shower or rinse off before entering the water. If you cannot police this and get people to do it, you may have to deal with the problem. Most clarifiers are not real good at removing bather- introduced stuff.
• However, enzymes can be a great help in these situations. Enzymes work slowly, but they do reduce the soap, oil and grease to carbon dioxide and water.

5. Chemical incompatibility.

This usually happens when a chemical is added to solve a problem and it doesn’t work. Then, another chemical is added to solve the same problem. It also happens when chemicals are added too close to one another.

Follow the above instruction for clear water in your swimming pool.

For any questions regarding your swimming pool, contact us here.

Popularity: 8% [?]

Chlorine is the chemical most often used to keep swimming pools and spas  free of bacteria that can be hazardous to humans. For your smimming pool design it is important that your water is treated with chlorine.

Chlorine kills bacteria though a fairly simple chemical reaction. The chlorine solution you pour into the water breaks down into many different chemicals, including hypochlorous acid (HOCl) and hypochlorite ion (OCl^-). Both kill microorganisms and bacteria by attacking the lipids in the cell walls and destroying the enzymes and structures inside the cell, rendering them oxidized and harmless. The difference between HOCl and OCl^- is the speed at which they oxidize. Hypochlorous acid is able to oxidize the organisms in several seconds, while the hypochlorite ion may take up to 30 minutes.

The levels of HOCl and OCl^- vary with the pool’s pH level. If the pH is too high, not enough HOCl is present and pool cleaning can take much longer than normal. Ideally, the level of pH in the pool should be between 7 and 8; 7.4 is ideal — this is the pH of human tears. Once the HOCl and OCl^- are done cleaning the pool, they either combine with another chemical, such as ammonia, or are broken down into single atoms. Both of these processes render the chlorine harmless. Sunlight speeds these processes up. You have to keep adding chlorine to the pool as it breaks down.

While the bacteria-killing properties of chlorine are very useful, chlorine also has some side effects that can be annoying to humans, and possibly even hazardous. Chlorine has a very distinctive smell that most find unpleasant, and some find overwhelming. There is also the “itch factor” — chlorine can cause certain skin types to become itchy and irritated. The hypochlorite ion causes many fabrics to fade quickly when not rinsed off immediately after exiting the pool. This is why your swimsuit looks faded and worn so early in the summer.

Extremely high amounts of chlorine gas hovering above your pool can be hazardous to your breathing. Some companies have developed alternatives to chlorine, including other chemicals and ion generators. Some of these are good alternatives, but they don’t achieve the cleanliness, oxidation levels or low price that chlorine provides.

• The standard for chlorine in pools is 1-3 ppm.
  The standard for chlorine in spas is 3-5 ppm.
• Most people can not detect by feel, taste or smell free chlorine in water at levels up to 15 ppm.
  The EPA guideline is swimmers may enter the water when free chlorine levels are below 5.0 ppm.The chlorinous smell around heavily used pools is chloramine not free chlorine. It is chlorine combined with ammonia. The combined chlorine level can be smelled at only 0.2 ppm. They are also body and skin irritants at that level. You remove them by superchlorination with 10 times the amount of combined chlorine or by using a non-chlorine shock.

To find out more about your swimming pool designs click here

Popularity: 10% [?]

• As light penetrates water the water absorbs light rays. Your water is probably crystal clear already.
• The bluish tint is something that cannot be taken away. It is the laws of physics at work.
• As light penetrates water the water absorbs light rays. Blue light has the ability to travel the furthest in water. So as your pool gets deeper there is only going to be more blue light reflecting off the bottom.
• This is the reason it looks more blue as the pool gets deeper.

To find out more about swimming pool design click here

Popularity: 10% [?]

1. Select the right heater for your  swimming pool design. There are three basic types: gas, heat pump and solar pool heaters. The best way to approach choosing and installing an energy-efficient pool heater that works best for you is to talk with a reputable swimming pool professional and learn how to maintain your investment
2. Trap your heat with a pool cover. You’ve spent the money on the pool heater and are spending more money to run it, so now keep your money from vanishing into thin air literally. Buy and use a good pool cover to reduce evaporation and heat loss.
3. Control the water temperature. How warm you want to keep your pool is a personal choice, but the average comfortable temperature is somewhere between 78 and 82 degrees. Keeping it steady reduces the cost of reheating the water frequently, but if you’re going to be away, it’s best to turn your heater down.
4. Install an energy-efficient pool pump as your pool size allows. By using a smaller yet higher efficiency pump, you can maintain your pool’s temperature by using less energy . Be sure to consult a pool professional to find out which pump is best for your pool.
5. Block your pool’s exposure to wind. By installing a fence or investing in some tall hedges or small trees around the pool’s perimeter, you can prevent the pool from losing heat in even the smallest gusts. Even a wind blowing at a rate of 7 miles per hour can cause your heat loss to triple.

6. Hang a thermometer from your ladder. This simple but useful technique can help you figure out the right temperature for you. Once you feel comfortable, mark the temperature on the thermometer and you can better maintain it in the future.
7. Service your heater regularly. The best way to make sure that your heater maintains its efficiency is to schedule annual routine service appointments. Keeping it running properly will maximize energy-efficiency and reduce your swimming pool heating costs.

SOME HEATER INFORMATION

• On Avg. you need about 100 Btu for every 10 sq. ft of surface area for every 1 degree F. of temp. rise.       L x W = sq. ft.         sq. ft/10= a       Answer  x 100Btu = Btu needed for each degree of heat rise desired.

• Answer  x your desired heat rise in degrees F= Btu needed per hour to hold temp.
• answer X 24 hrs/day = Btu total
• Btu Total/ hrs of circulation per day = size of heater
• Þ      answer X .75% efficient = actual out put
• Þ      Or cubic ft x 7.5 (gallons per cu ft) x 8 lbs. per gal x heat rise desired__________________
• Heater size / 15,000= # ton heat pumpq       Spa
• Sq. ft. x  avg. depth = cubic ft.   Cu. Ft. x 7.5(gal in each cu ft.) x 8 (lbs. Per gal.)= POUNDS OF WATER.
• POUNDS  x avg. 25° heat rise = Btu total
• q       Cost of operation.
• Knowing one Btu is the amount of heat needed to raise the temperature one pound of water one degree Fahrenheit .  A Therm  (unit of measurement on gas bill) = 100,000 Btu/hour of heat.      Heater Btu.  Divided by 100,000 Btu per hr. = Therm per hr.  Therm per hr x  hrs per day of use = Therm per day to run heater. Therms per day  x  cost per Therm = cost per day.

To find out more about swimming pool designs click here

Popularity: 13% [?]

How does acid work?

When Muriatic Acid is being used, care must be taken to protect the operator from both the liquid and the fumes. Proper safety precautions must be exercised. Use plastic safety glasses, rubber gloves, and protective clothing. When mixing Muriatic Acid with water, ALWAYS POUR THE ACID INTO THE WATER. Use a plastic or porcelain lined container. Muriatic Acid will corrode metal. A concrete surface to be acid etched must be free of grease, oil, and similar contaminants.

If present, they will insulate the concrete from the acid. Muriatic Acid will not remove grease, oil or paint from a concrete surface – it is not intended to be used as a concrete cleaner. The concentration of Muriatic Acid required to etch concrete varies depending on the concrete texture and degree of etching needed. Hardened or very slick steel – toweled floors, for example, may require a higher concentration of acid to effectively etch the surface.

Start with a solution of 20 parts water to 1 part 32% acid. Apply to small area of concrete as a test. Acid should bubble and fume on concrete surface. If there is no reaction, add small quantities of acid to the water / acid solution already prepared and repeat the testing process until a reaction occurs and the desired amount of etching takes place. When testing is complete and the acid solution is ready for use, the concrete area to be etched is normally marked off in sections and the acid solution is applied and allowed to bubble. Areas not showing bubbling of the acid indicate a contaminant on the surface that prevents contact of the concrete by the acid. Some very dense, smooth surfaces may need more than one application of acid. The most important requirement in acid etching is surface cleaning after the acid etch. The spent acid, together with the salts formed by the reaction, must be completely removed by scrubbing with a stiff -bristle broom or brush and copious water rinsing. The final rinse should be checked for pH before the surface is allowed to dry to verify that all acid residues have been removed. A properly etched surface should have the texture of fine to medium grit sandpaper.

NOTE: Water only dilutes muriatic acid. To neutralize the muriatic acid, use bicarbonate of soda, baking soda, soda ash, or lime. These neutralizing products can then be disposed of as any other floor sweep would be disposed of.

HA PROPERTIES

Formula Cl

Molecular Weight 6.47

Specific Gravity .15

Boiling Point 180§C

Bulk Density 9.67 lbs / gal

Freezing Point 74§C

Color Colorless to light yellow

Solubility Soluble in water

Vapor Pressure 25 MM Hg @ 70§C

Find out more about swimming pool solutions here:

Popularity: 16% [?]

how alum works

• Alum is the name used for aluminum sulfate, chemical formula Al2(SO4)3. It is also known as soda alum, filter alum, concentrated alum, pearl alum, pickle alum, cake alum, papermaker’s alum and patent alum. Alum’s main function is to clarify or floc the pool water.
• When alum is broadcast into the water (not added to the skimmer of a sand filter as a filter aid) with a pH near 7.0, it forms a gel-like precipitate that bridges or sticks together. The precipitate is aluminium hydroxide, chemical formula Al(OH)3.
• The alum precipitate then forms small bundles (called flocs) that trap suspended particles as they fall through the water.
• This bridging process is known as flocculation. It creates a large amount of sediment on the bottom of the pool made up of both the dirt (suspended particles) and the gel-like alum precipitate.
• The sediment is then usually vacuumed to waste ratherthan filtered out because the amount of sediment is more than most filters can handle. The secret to using alum as a floc is to adjust the pH of the water to near 7.0. For alum to work properly, the pH must be adjusted to 7.0.
• When alum is used as a sand filter aid, the alum initially plugs up some of the “holes” between the sand particles in the filter. If the pH has been adjusted to near 7.0, the alum then begins to form that same gel-like material that can trap dirt particles on their way through the filter. This effectively makes the filter remove smaller particles than it normally is capable of removing.

The big question is whether to use alum or not. This is not an easy question. Liquid, organic polymer water clarifiers are far better, faster and a lot less of a hassle to use than alum. If the purpose is to clarify cloudy or hazy water, it is better to recommend using a water clarifier than alum. If the water is really dirty for instance , if you can only see down into the water an inch or two . In that case then a one-time dose of alum may be better than multiple doses of a water clarifier. If the purpose is to make a sand filter more efficient, then alum may be a better choice. The last reason is that alum has been around for a very long time and some customers like using alum instead of the “new-fangled” polymers.

To find out more about swimming pools click here.

Popularity: 11% [?]

Home Check for Leaks

There is a easy way to check for evaporative loss. Try these steps

1. Take a bucket and set it on the top step.

2. weigh down the bucket

3. make a mark at the water level of the swimming pool and fill the bucket to that level.If it is evaporation, the pool should lose the same amount as the bucket.

If the loses are different: Try these steps1.

Mark the level and run the pump for 24 hours.

2. Measure the loss.

3. Refill and leave the pump off for 24 hours.

4. Measure the loss again.

This test can help determine the source of the leak (return line, suction line, or vessel).

to find out more about your swimming pool designs click here.

Popularity: 46% [?]

Salt in swimming pools

Salt-water swimming pools do have chlorine content. A salt-water pool is one that utilizes a chlorine generator. Chlorine generators have been around for decades. As technology and materials continue to evolve, chlorine generators continue to improve in performance.

Ocean water has a salt content of around 35,000 parts per million (”ppm”). Humans have a salt taste threshold of around 3,500 ppm. Most chlorine generators require a salt content of 2500 – 6000 ppm in the pool. A unit that needs less than 3500 ppm to operate effectively is optimal. If the salt content is higher, that warm, salty water will be pretty horrible!

Generally, when people swim in a non-chlorine generator pool (a pool with no salt water in it) they often notice that their skin dries quicker when they come out of the pool. They may feel and/or see whitish residual, chlorine flaking, on the skin. In a salt-water pool (one with a chlorine generator) the water feels smoother, the skin feels smooth and many people feel more refreshed.

For starting up a salt generator the usual level of salt in the water is 2500 to 3000 ppm. In a 10,000 gallon pool that would be about 200 to 250 lbs of salt. A 25,000 gallon pool would need more than 500 lbs. Always test the water for salt before adding more salt. The type of salt to use is granulated, evaporated, non-iodized salt. Be careful, many salt products contain tricalcium phosphate to prevent caking. It’s insoluble and ends up on the bottom or in the filter. Watch out for iodine. Do not use rock salt or water conditioner salt. The salt makes chlorine (technically HOCl, the killing form of chlorine and OCl-, the fairly inactive form) and sodium hydroxide and hydrogen gas. When the chlorine is used in oxidation, it becomes chloride. The chloride is recycled back to chlorine. In a perfect world, you would only have to add chloride (salt) once. However, some reactions of chlorine with organic material tie up or use up the chlorine making it unavailable to be recycled. Therefore, the water must be tested periodically to make sure the salt content is OK.

To find out more about swimming pools click here.

Popularity: 21% [?]