Samui Phangan Real Estate Magazine April-May

ULTRAVIOLET POOL CLEANERS
By harnessing the unique power of ultraviolet light,
these pool cleaners blast contaminating particles as
water flows through them. It’s true that these wont
allow your pool to be 100% chlorine free, but they
can greatly decrease the amount of chlorine, bromine,
or other pool chemicals that you might need to use.
These systems have been around in other countries
for quite awhile now and popularized due to their
efficiency.
The Intellichlor chlorine generator is a great example
of an eco-friendly pool cleanser. It creates chlorine
naturally from salt water pool systems, reducing the
amount of additional chlorine.
SALT WATER POOLS
Often misunderstood – salt-water pools do not
function by utilising extremely high levels of salt to
maintain water balance. Instead, salt is added to the
pool water and then utilised by a chlorine generator
(such as the IntelliChlor chlorine generator) to create
chlorine naturally. If you’re interested in utilising a
salt water system, be sure you have a complete
understanding of how the system works and are
prepared to carefully watch your pools levels.
OzONE POOL CLEANING SYSTEMS
Pools utilising ozone-cleaning systems do need to
utilise chlorine, but as with ultraviolet cleaning systems,
the amount can be greatly reduced. Essentially ozone
is generated through a variety of ultraviolet light and
mixed in with pool water via jets or other circulation
systems. The generated ozone breaks down into the
pool water and then destroys unwanted contaminants
mixed into the water.
While no system is perfect, each of these three
common chlorine alternatives/reducers can help you
move away from a heavy dependence on common
pool chemicals.
USE YOUR POOL PUMP MORE EFFICIENTLY
Standard pool pumps are single speed and big
enough to pump at the highest flow rate when needed,
including jets for your luxury spa. The problem is that
this big, honking pump uses way more energy than it
needs to because it probably doesn’t need to pump as
much water most of the time it’s on. Make sure you put
in a variable speed pump.
Variable speed pumps adjust to pump the amount of
water needed, using less power in the process. You
should also put your pump on a timer so it runs only
when you need it. Depending on how much swimming
you do, your pool may work fine with the pump running
six to 18 hours a day instead of full time. More energy
saved!
There are other unique options such as aquatic plant
pools and self-sustaining pools that can allow you
to enjoy natural beauty and a great chemical-free
swimming experience as well. Although not readily
available in Thailand, it won't be long until we too can
enjoy our sunshine, our swimming pools...and all with
less impact on the planet!
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