While people want their Sacramento pools to have crystal clear water, they also want them to be green nowadays. After all, environmentally friendly pools might cost homeowners up front, but they pay off in the long run, says Brian Geremia, project assistant for Geremia Pools, which serves the greater metropolitan area in Sacramento, CA. There are a number of products you can incorporate into Sacramento pools to make them green, says Geremia. Here are suggestions for making Sacramento pools more environmentally friendly:
UV Sanitation Systems
A UV sanitation system uses ultra-violet rays to kill 99.9 percent of the bacteria in your pool’s water. Salt-chlorinating systems are also a good sanitizing option, yet they require reloading the pool with many pounds of salt in the spring, which can be inconvenient and costly, says Geremia. Chlorine, the traditional method of keeping pools clean, is very expensive and can be harsh on the skin and hair. You’ll still need chlorine as a backup sanitation, but a UV sanitation system significantly cuts down on chlorine, says Geremia.
Variable Speed Pumps
A variable-speed pump operates the pool’s filtration system more efficiently than standard pumps by adjusting flow rates. Rather than operating at one speed, the pump can work on the lowest, most efficient setting possible to accomplish the task at hand. The pump can increase its speed when more pool features are being used. It’s particularly good for pools that have a number of water features on them. “The goal of a variable-speed pump,” says Geremia, “is to turn the water over one time per day in the most efficient way possible.”
GeoSmart Technology
GeoSmart Technology uses geothermal heat – heat from the earth, which is constantly resupplied because it comes from the sun’s force. Although Sacramento’s temperatures vary from season to season, the temperature a few feet underground remains fairly constant, says Geremia. Using that heat, you can heat and cool your home, which is environmentally friendly with its cleaner source of energy and its ability to conserve energy resources.
Geremia Pools buries GeoSmart panels about six feet into the ground on your property and connects them to the pool and the home. In the heat mode, these panels pull heat from the ground and pool into the home, while in the cool mode, they transfer heat from the home to the ground and pool. Those who choose to do this without a pool must drill for water to use as a facilitator of the heat transfer. Using the pool reduces the cost of traditional geothermal technology. “It makes the pool a useful part of the home,” says Geremia, “rather than just a big, fancy puddle in your backyard.”
Even though GeoSmart Technology is costlier for homeowners up front, it brings down energy bills down the road. “We promote greener products,” says Geremia. “People are coming around to the fact that these green products have long-term cost benefits.”