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Factors to consider for Sustainable Pool Design

April 3rd, 2010 No comments

Sustainability is a serious issue, not a fad that can be taken lightly, and it cannot be achieved by lip service alone. Affordability and implement ability are key factors, not the least because without these it would all be only preaching and not practice, which is why real sustainability has a social responsibility component to it. In our industry of swimming pool design and construction, the established practices are so deeply embedded that sustainability will require change at grass root level: the way we think about designing and running pools. Little tweaks or fine tuning won’t cut it, although trying to run existing facilities in a better way certainly would. Truly sustainable practices will require more than the perceived notion of selecting green materials, it will require more labour inputs than do the “efficient” industrial practices we’re now used to and there will naturally be issues of scale.

Our company design and install deluxe indoor and outdoor swimming pools in Central and Greater London areas. This is a mix of architecture and construction and for us sustainability means meeting the needs of today without compromising the ability of future generations to meet their needs. We try to achieve sustainability by designing swimming pools that use less virgin or recyclable material, less energy, cause less pollution and less waste while offering benefits that match or exceed the traditional construction methods.The foundation for the whole process lies in balancing design, installation, environmental and operational considerations. Swimming pool projects are monitored and evaluated through the life cycle as they progress through the various stages from initial concept to commissioning and use by the swimmers. There are three main stakeholders in our industry and we would like to put forward our opinion on how each one individually influences and would continue to influence sustainability.

Leading manufacturers of pool equipment like Certikin and Calorex, who in our opinion also happen to be more environmentally conscious than others, are enviously placed in this sustainability chain. They can, and increasingly do, improve sustainability in two ways: They develop products that use recycled or recyclable plastics and other materials like stainless steel, so the initial input is more sustainability oriented. They also design the products like air to air and ground source heat pumps that use less energy during their life cycle and last longer than conventional pool heaters produce less wastage at the end of it.These practices are set to be become the norm across the pool industry, especially the tiles and finishes manufacturers who are now offering natural materials like slate and granite to finish an increasing number of modern swimming pools.We as the designers and installers have the opportunity to educate the end user about the advantages and considerations of sustainability for their pool. We can advise them on energy saving heaters and pool covers that not only reduce running costs but also reduce carbon footprint of their premises.We are also moving towards using sustainable materials like concrete and stainless steel to build the pools. Use of concrete can offer significant sustainability benefits in the life cycle of pools and associated structures. Its thermal mass is highly efficient in reducing the energy needed to heat buildings, and it also allows a high level of air tightness. Concrete is highly durable and so needs minimal maintenance and can thus reduce whole life costs. Long life of the material also means that concrete structures are appropriate for change of use, although that is usually not the case with swimming pools.

End Users (Swimmers and Spectators) End users have tremendous influencing power on the overall sustainability of swimming pools, let me explain how. Traditionally the pools have been heated to around 28c, but better heating systems have allowed the temperatures that people keep their pool to creep up to 36c. If you heat your pool to a significantly higher temperature, not only you have to use more energy and bear subsequent heat loss, but algae and bacteria can cause problems unless you increase the chlorine levels significantly. This leads to use of more chemicals as well. If the end users can be educated to keep the pool at or below 28c, not only energy and chemical consumption is reduced, but the water loss due to evaporation can also be cut down. Since water supplies are running low throughout the world, it would also help if more people used pool covers to reduce evaporation and conserve water. Use of pool covers is an important consideration; pool covers reduce the amount of make-up water needed by 30 to 50 percent and reduce chemical consumption by 35 to 60 percent. Reflective pool covers can also be used to reduce the amount of light reflected by the average pool, and in cold countries, dark pool covers are useful in reducing heating costs (as they absorb heat from sunlight) End users can improve sustainability in the following ways: Install a pool cover, as much as 70 percent of a pool’s heat loss is caused by evaporation. Reduce pool’s water temperature and the number of months to heat the pool. Keep the pool’s cleaning and heating equipment clean and lubricated. Well maintained equipment is more efficient and will last longer before it needs to be replaced. Use a time switch to operate the pool filter and sweeper operations to off-peak hours. Install a water-saving cartridge pool filter. One backwash with a traditional filter uses 3000 to 5000 liters of water. Shorten the operating time for swimming pool filter and use and automatic cleaner. g) Create a windbreak around the pool with fence, plants and shrubs. This wind break will prevent breezes from reaching the pool and keep air from sucking away moisture. Really sustainable practices have a lot to go further, there are lot more changes that can be done to save water, reduce chemicals, and minimise energy consumption. Salt water pools are one option – they have slightly lower evaporation rates and use fewer chemicals than other pools.

To finish and summarise, we think that interest and investment in the development sustainable practices will continue to rise, and given a little push by government incentives and right attitude to fulfill CSR, the pool industry will emerge much cleaner and greener.

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South-Western Home Decor

April 3rd, 2010 No comments

So what exactly is southwestern home decor and how can you get it into your own home? Well, to begin with southwestern home decor reflects the southwest and all its most famous traits. Southwestern home decor uses colourful throw rugs, gorgeous wall hangings, and if you look hard enough, you can even find great kitchen accessories as well.

If you’re thinking about bringing southwestern home decor into your home, first of all, you need to determine whether it will blend in with your existing decor or whether it will clash badly. Almost all southwestern home decor involves bright, eye catching colours and stunning designs and motifs.

So, if your existing furniture would clash with any of these lovely pieces you can do one of two things. First up, you could always just throw out every single piece of ratty and unwanted furniture that you already have and replace it with gorgeous pieces of southwestern home decor. Or you could just buy one or two pieces of the southwestern home decor range and match it selectively to your existing knick-knacks.

Personally speaking, I would rather replace everything I have since there’s some wear, but in reality that’s just not possible. For one thing it would just be too expensive, and for another I would rather not have to listen to a lecture from my mother about extravagance. I’ve found out that you can get away from from your friends but not from your mother!

Besides, I’m also a little relieved that I didn’t give into my first impulse and redecorate everything in the southwestern home decor style. Sure, it does look really nice, but sometimes I also like the serenity that some of my other pieces of furniture bring about in me. Therefore, I have now come up with the ideal solution and have instead resorted to purchasing one-off pieces that catch my attention and dotting my home with those instead.

And I must admit that its made quite a difference in the look and feel of my whole home. Expensive pieces of the more traditional furniture now sit quite comfortably with the more flamboyant and stunning designs of my southwestern home decor. I’ve even got hold of a great rug for my bathroom floor along with a gorgeous set of hand towels. My kitchen has a new set of southwestern motifs, and my foyer has the most wonderful lampshade and statuette in full view.

Though all of this might sound over the top, I’ve found that this is the best way to bring the glories of southwestern home decor into your life, without going all out and replacing my entire house with southwestern decor and motifs.

After all, you just want to bring a dash of southwestern decor to your home, not the whole sheebang. Oh, and did I forget to mention the beautiful tapestry I bought the other day? It’s just perfect.

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Shaping And Trimming Grapes

April 3rd, 2010 No comments

Success in grape growing depends greatly on pruning. Best time for this is the early months of the year. A warm day in January or February when the ground is clear of snow is ideal, but the job should be accomplished before the middle of March when the sap rises.

Pruning is perhaps the most important skill the vineyardist must master. He must realize that fruit is borne only on wood of the present season which arises from wood of the previous season. This means that last year’s new wood is the only source of buds which grow into shoots bearing probably one to four clusters of grapes each.

The problem becomes (first) one of cutting back a limited number of good canes to a few buds which will produce as many new bearing shoots as the vine can support, and (second) cutting off entirely all remaining (even good) canes which would over-tax the vigor of the vine. With experience the grape-grower learns to tell from the looks of the cane, the size and growth of the vine in the previous year, and the variety’s characteristics for bearing, which and how many buds to leave.

He must constantly plan ahead for new wood low on the vines, so that the vines do not have to spend too much of their energy maintaining a great amount of unproductive wood. This necessary balance between fruiting canes this year and new wood for next year’s crop is difficult both to explain and to achieve, but usually the tendency of the beginner is not to prune severely enough.

More trimming and shaping comes after the grapes have bloomed and set the bunches. Each fruiting cane tries to grow on out into a long leafy cane beyond the three or four clusters which have formed. To make the plant use its strength for the fruit, these should be snapped off at about the second joint beyond the grapes. New shoots will try to grow at these points and often at the joint opposite the grape cluster, but these should be kept broken off as summer progresses. Keep just enough foliage to support the plant properly by making food and to shade the fruit. Usually the bunches of grapes should be thinned by about one-third so that they will ripen faster and more evenly.

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How To Build A Chicken House – Choose The Right Color For Success

April 3rd, 2010 No comments

A chicken house can be very fun and rewarding to build but one thing most people never think about is what color should they paint the coop.You should paint your chickens new home a color that will make it look good to people who might see it from their backyard or from the street your property should not look like a farm just because you are raising chickens.Choose a good quality exterior latex paint for the outside walls and the roof of the structure use a name brand paint it might cost more but it’s worth every penny because it will last longer. In Russia it is rather Посуда с уникальными характеристиками.

There are many different types of chicken coops you can build there are large medium small and even portable coops. The color you choose for your project can depend on the size of your coop if you have a really big coop you should not choose a loud bright color that could be seen miles from miles away.If you are having trouble picking the color just do a image search on Google or any of the other search engines and you can look at many different chicken house designs and colors.Take you time to figure out just what you want to do and how you want your chicken shelter to look and if you follow this advice you will be happy with your finished project.

Your coop will be a home to your chickens for years to come so make sure you don’t buy the cheapest quality materials you should want your chicken house to represent you and your birds.Building your own backyard chicken coop in many ways is like building a a home for yourself you have to take the same steps starting with the blueprints choosing the right materials and picking the best colors.You will have a great chicken shelter if you take your time and follow the correct steps.Raising chickens is fun for the whole family so don’t make building your coop harder than it really is you can do this project in 3 days if you start with a good set of chicken coop blueprints.

If you build a very good looking chicken house you will get attention from your friends and family they may like your chicken shelter so much that they might just ask you to build them a coop and offer to pay you very good money. Yes you can make a huge amount of money selling chicken coops you can tell your customers to buy their own plans and you will build the chicken house for them.One thing to remember is you can have your friends refer people to you so can get more customers.

Make sure your home for your birds is built for both performance and looks.Many people just throw up any coop without thinking about the looks and they end up with a total eyesore just because you are building a home for animals to live in your backyard should not look like a zoo.So choose colors that are nice to look at and blend in with the look of your own house.Yes the color of your coop makes a big difference in the way your property looks to others.

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