Photo Credit: Aquatic Design & Engineering
When it comes to adding any type of aquatic feature into a park—whether a community pool or a splash pad—there are important safety elements to take into consideration, some of which may not seem like the most necessary use of the budget. But what you don’t know can cost you. Discover the smart design decisions that can actually save money for a community in the long run.
Water Treatment As A Part Of Safe Design
It’s as critical as the lifeguard perched in the tower overlooking the pool: safe, clean water. For an aquatic engineer, preventing the spread of recreational water illnesses is a top priority in designing any public pool or splash pad, and it is why the right filtration and chemical-sterilization treatments are so important.
Any pool-maintenance technician should be familiar with how to identify unsafe water quality. Having the wrong levels of pH and disinfectant means that a pool can pose a health risk and warrant closure, which will cost a facility or park cleaning fees and potential lost revenue. When designing or renovating an aquatic amenity, remove human error by looking at new technology, such as automatic chemical feeders and monitors. As well, advances in filtration have changed the pool industry, creating not only a much safer pool environment, but also a more sustainable one. The historically used sand filtration screens dirt and bacteria particles from the water down to 20 microns. Another filtration technology being used more often by designers since its introduction 20 years ago is regenerative media filtration. It filters down to one micron, while saving hundreds of thousands of gallons of water annually in backwash when compared to sand filters, making it one of the most sustainable and safe options. For added water sanitation, the Centers for Disease Control also recommends the use of a supplementary, optimally designed, in-line disinfection system, such as one using ultraviolet light that can reduce the reliance on pool chemicals like chlorine.