Backgarden Pools Says More Education on Energy Saving and Safety Needed

Leading supplier of swimming pool products, Backgarden Pools, warns that owners are losing a bundle on energy consumption and risking tragic accidents by not using or being aware of a simple, affordable product when it comes to their swimming pools.

Swimming Pool Covers are an easy way to radically cut on heating costs. Not only do they prevent heat from escaping from a swimming pool and thus reduce the energy needed to keep it warm, they also reduce the size needed for a solar pool heating system, which creates further savings.

The main cause of energy loss in pools is evaporation. The rate at which this happens varies according to individual factors such as pool temperature, wind speed and humidity, The higher the wind speed and pool temperature plus the lower the humidity, the greater the evaporation rate. It only takes 1 Btu (British thermal unit) to raise 1 pound of water to 1 degree, but each pound of 27ºC water that evaporates uses up 1,048 Btu of heat from the pool. The use of natural windbreakers such as planting shrubs or trees can help reduce the amount of evaporation, but the downfall is that this measure can also prevent the solar power of the sun from reaching the pool and thus helping to keep it warm.

While indoor pools don't suffer from the environment, they are still subject to a huge loss of energy through evaporation. In addition, they require ventilated air to control indoor humidity plus exhaust fans which are an extra energy cost.

Swimming pool covers are able to reduce evaporation from both indoor and outdoor pools by 50%–70%. They also reduce the amount of refill water needed by 30%–50% and cut a pool's chemical consumption by 35%–60%. A further benefit is the time saving in having to clean a pool of dirt and other debris.

While in principle any plastic can be used to cover a swimming pool for the above reasons, those not specifically designed for pools are not only cumbersome to handle and store, they deteriorate fairly rapidly due to sun exposure and generally will only last for one or two summers. Swimming pool covers in contrast are suitably fit for purpose, they contain materials specifically designed for pools such as vinyl, UV-stabilized polyethylene and polypropylene.

Another important reason people are advised to buy a swimming pool cover is safety – there are products available that withstand the weight of children or pets, preventing the risk of drowning tragedies. The top of the range models can carry the weight of up to 15.5 stone/ 220lbs/ 100kg. Since the French government makes it compulsory for all pool owners to have a safety covering, French manufacturers tend to be leaders in this type of product.

Francesca Bailey, manager of Backgarden Pools, concludes, "Whether it's to drastically save on your energy bills, have peace of mind when children are playing unsupervised around the pool area or simply to cut back on having to clean the water of debris, everyone who owns a swimming pool should have a suitable cover. The fact is that the affordable initial cost of this product will save you money, time and possibly even prevent a serious accident. It is my feeling that there needs to be more public education on this in the UK."