Tag Archives: indoor air quality

Common facility operational issues are often blamed on the dehumidifier

Canada has thousands of indoor swimming pools. Unfortunately, many of them are more problematic than facility operators would like to admit. Too often, the pool’s dehumidifier is blamed and the real cause of a natatorium problem is never discovered nor addressed. Chlorine odours, mould, condensation, or poor indoor air comfort, generally have causes unrelated to the dehumidifier. Instead, they may be due to building pressurization imbalances, improper vapour barrier, poor ventilation design, unbalanced water chemistry, or unsuitable architectural materials. They can also be related to inadequate maintenance, or perhaps just a slow, unnoticed degradation of operating parameters. Additionally, a few seemingly minor items missed during design and construction can also contribute to facility problems. Natatoriums have many unique design challenges and considerations that are not always obvious to anyone unsure about these facilities’ state-of-the-art requirements.

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New dehumidifier technologies

A myriad of new energy-reduction and environmentally friendly dehumidification technologies have been introduced to the indoor swimming pool market in the last 10 years. These innovations not only provide significant advancements in system performance and reliability, but also considerably reduce operating expenses. These systems also provide natatorium owners/operators a quick return on investment (ROI), which has prompted more facilities to consider upgrading their existing dehumidification equipment even before its useful lifecycle is over. For new construction projects, these systems can potentially save hundreds of thousands of dollars over the equipment’s lifecycle.

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Operating an Olympic-sized pool

By Roy D. Vore, PhD

When it comes to water maintenance, a pool is just a pool, right? But how about treating and managing a 50-m (164-ft) Olympic pool with 1,135,624 L (300,000 gal) of water, which must be sparkling clear every day? Regardless of a pool’s water volume, disinfection, water balance, and filtration remain the same.

However, a casual stroll through the pump room of one these massive facilities can be quite eye opening … Continue reading Operating an Olympic-sized pool

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Using ultraviolet (UV) technology to improve water and air quality

Various halogens and sanitizers are used to treat waterborne pathogens in pool and hot tub water; however, as frequent reports on recreational water illnesses (RWIs) (i.e. Cryptosporidium [Crypto] and Giardia) and bacteria outbreaks abound in the press, many commercial pool operators and some residential pool owners are now incorporating a supplemental disinfection system (SDS) to assist in water sanitation.

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