Page 27 - Landscape130

WATER WISE

SWIMMING SUSTAINABLY

As summer looms, water forms an essential part of our lives. How then do we save
water during a season of high demand? The answer to this lies in how we view our
swimming pools.

he climate in South Africa, specifically its long summers that
are characterised by high temperatures, are what make having
Ta swimming pool so appealing. However, these are the same
conditions that lead to excessive water evaporation. The average
home with a swimming pool uses more than double the amount of
water outdoors than a home with no 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 enjoy our
pools in a water wise way.

Here are some tips to ensure a water wise pool:
• Invest in a pool cover: It is an effective method to minimise
evaporation whilst maintaining the pool’s cleanliness by keeping
debris out. The use of a pool cover can reduce water lost to
evaporation by 70 - 95%, depending on the material used. Of the
14 400 litres we could potentially use without a cover, we could
now save between 10 080 - 13 680 litres.
• Consider harvested rainwater: Be mindful when filling your pool
with water. Instead of using a hose without control, use a timer to
avoid wasting water in case you forget to turn it off. An eco-friendly
option is to use rainwater collected from your gutter system to top
up your pool, reducing the need for additional water from other
sources.
• Minimise the use of water features in the pool: Inadequately
designed water features can result in substantial water wastage. To
limit water loss through such features, place them in shaded areas
and choose designs that deliver maximum impact with minimal
size.
• Create an artificial wetland for backwashed water: Backwashing
can consume more than 30% of your pool’s water. Since this water
contains chemicals, it’s not suitable for direct garden disposal.
Instead, consider channelling your pool’s backwash through large
pebbles and hydrophytes to create a “bubbling rapids” effect,
which effectively neutralises the chlorine and makes it safe for
plants.

Always be #WaterWise

Landscape SA • Issue 130 2023 25