Indoor Swimming Pool Design for Architects

  Being an architect is not easy. One has to understand the demands of the owner and shape them into the    most beautiful, most efficient, least expensive building. Along the way one has to work with engineers who want to change the design because of their issues and contractors who want to change them because of their issues and of course the owner want to change them because of money, energy efficiency, space, and so on and so forth.

The other problem is that few architects ever design an indoor pool and if they do, in general these pools are residential. With a market for new large pools of around 200 per year, one can imagine that few architects ever get to do the real work. And thus, few have a lot of experience.

So here is a list of considerations for every architect before he places a pencil on the paper to start the design:

Tip of the year

The mechanical room in any indoor pool has always been the step child. Architects should take an example from the watch industry where all famous brands now force the buyer to look at the beauty of the mechanics of a well built watch. Look at upscale restaurants and how they allow the visitor to see, at least, part of the food preparation. In an indoor pool, architects have the option to open up the mechanical wall and allow the swimmers to see. The advantages are clear. A clean and well maintained mechanical room. A clean and well designed mechanical room. A very happy owner.

Wild idea? Not really. Many swimschools in Australia have used the open mechanical room to improve efficiency and increase the bottom line. No one wants to be sloppy and for the swimmer it is great to see how well maintained the place is.

If you have a great idea too, please let us know. It is almost time for the next TIP OF THE YEAR. 

Energy

An indoor pool uses a lot of energy. Almost year round the pool water heater is on to compensate for the evaporation. Most of the year the air heater is on to keep the indoor space temperature at around 82 degrees F. (28 degrees C). By code, outside air is required, even during the coldest days, for which additional energy is needed. So it is very important that the building design uses little energy to heat or cool. That means, well insulated and glass only when and where it will enhance the building as well as the experience of the user. Extra glass to use more outside light is in general not a good approach. The architect should also realize that no reflection hits the pool water. A lifeguard must be able to see the bottom of the pool from every spot in the room.

Skylights

Please avoid skylights. Skylights are a huge problem in an indoor swimming pool because in general they are up in the ceiling, where the air is warm and moist. In general they are cooler then the roof around them and thus a source of condensation and water dripping in the pool and it is very difficult for the engineer to get warm, dehumidified air to the skylights without extra duct work, which is unsightly and extra expensive.

Sliding Glass Doors

Use of sliding glass doors offer many options even more so if the wall opens up to a grassy or sandy area that can be used for recreation. During the warmer days of Summer, the walls can be opened and turn the indoor pool into an outdoor pool with shade. They can dramatically lower the energy cooling requirements and enhance the atmosphere in the indoor swimming pool.

Vapor Barrier

An indoor swimming pool is controlled at a negative pressure to avoid the exfiltration of humidity and smell to areas connected to the indoor swimming pool. It will also help against moisture moving into the walls, but to make sure no moisture at all will get into the walls, the use of a vapor barrier is a must. The location of the vapor barrier is on the pool side of the wall. Even in climate zones with real warm and humid ambient air, like Miami or Houston, any condensation that will take place in the wall will evaporate as soon as the outside air drops in temperature and or humidity. On the other hand, with the vapor barrier on the outside of the building, during the cold month, condensate wil form in the walls and stay there for extended perios of time as the indoor conditions do not change.

Space

Few architects realize the size of indoor pool dehumidification and energy recovery equipment. To minimize cost they make the mechanical room as small as possible and often only consider the filters, pumps and other water related equipment. As a consequence the dehumidifier is pushed in the corner or hangs from the ceiling.

It would be good to realize that the indoor pool dehumidifier is the HEART of the whole operation. Want proof? Shut off the dehumidifier and wait 30 minutes and see how moisture is forming on windows and walls. Fog is forming in the space, often to the point that you can not see the other end of the poool. And if you do this in mid-winter you may see rain inside the pool. We all know what moisture can do to a building and although we could not find solid numbers, we guess that at least five major pools each year are closed because of the danger of collapse caused by corrosion and deterioration of the building. An architect can save an owner a lot of money by allowing a little more space for the heart of the building. It will allow the contractor to improve on his duct connection, saving a lot on fan power, and to actually service the unit, make sure the airflow is correct, the belt is tight and the refrigerant pressures are what they should be. Not to mention the filters. Indeed one would be surprised to see the number of units where it is almost impossible to chance the filters, just because there is no space. Help your owner save money and make sure that YOUR design will pass the test of time.