Page 16 - Dainfern Precinct Living Issue 9_2023

Water Matters

SWIMMING

SUSTAINABLY

As summer looms, enjoy our pools in a water wise way. choose designs that deliver maximum
Here are some tips to ensure a water
impact with minimal size.
water forms an wise pool:
essential part of our • Invest in a pool cover: It is • Create an artificial wetland for
backwashed water: Backwashing
an effective method to minimise
lives. How then do evaporation whilst maintaining the can consume more than 30% of
your pool’s water. Since this water
pool’s cleanliness by keeping debris
we save water during out. The use of a pool cover can contains chemicals, it’s not suitable
a season of high reduce water lost to evaporation by for direct garden disposal. Instead,
70 - 95%, depending on the material
consider channelling your pool’s
demand? The Answer used. Of the 14 400 litres we could backwash through large pebbles and
hydrophytes to create a “bubbling
potentially use without a cover, we
to this lies in how we could now save between 10 080 - 13 rapids” effect, which effectively
neutralises the chlorine and makes it
680 litres.
view our swimming safe for plants.
pools. • Consider harvested rainwater: Be
mindful when filling your pool with
water. Instead of using a hose without
control, use a timer to avoid wasting
he climate in South water in case you forget to turn it
Africa, specifically its off. An eco-friendly option is to use
long summers that rainwater collected from your gutter
are characterised by system to top up your pool, reducing
high temperatures, the need for additional water from
are what make other sources.
Thaving a swimming
pool so appealing. However, these • Minimise the use of water
are the same conditions that lead features in the pool: Inadequately
to excessive water evaporation. The designed water features can result
average home with a swimming pool in substantial water wastage. To limit
uses more than double the amount of water loss through such features,
water outdoors than a home with no place them in shaded areas and
swimming pool – a cause for concern
for a semi-arid country like South
. Africa that receives less than half the
amount of average rainfall in relation
to the global average.
A typical swimming pool can hold
volumes ranging from 20 000 - 80
000 litres of water, depending on the
size, depth and design. In a semi-arid
country like South Africa, the national
average evaporation rate during
the summer season is between 6 -
10mm daily. For a 4 x 3m pool, this
translates to around 3600 litres of
water evaporated per month, which is
14 400 litres lost during the summer
season alone, if you consider a 50
litre limit per day, per individual. The
amount lost to evaporation during the
summer season could be sufficient
for a person’s usage for eight months.
Shouldn’t we perhaps consider
covering our pools to reduce the
amount of water lost to evaporation?
With a few considerations, we can still

16 DPL issue 9 2023