While most people in Northern States have heard of Pool Heaters that allow you to use your pool early in the spring and later into the fall months there is an opposite problem for people that live in warmer climates and thats hot pool water.
Water will naturally hold heat and it is often used in home heating systems to store hot water from solar panels to warm homes.. This is a big problem for people who live in warmer climates because during the center part of the summer when temperatures can get to 100F degrees or more it makes their swimming pool uncomfortable and maybe even dangerous to use for extended periods.
Think about it when your body temperature gets over 98.6F its normally when you have some type of infection from a virus or other problem.. if you are already hot and swim in a hot pool you are not going to bring your core body temperature down you will most likely maintain or increase it.
It will get to the point where you just can not use your pool and because they are a large investment it is difficult to sit inside and watch it go idle.
Reducing Summer Pool Temperatures
There are a few things that you can do to reduce the temperature of your pool’s water.
If you live in a warm climate the most important thing you can do is paint the pool bottom white or a very light color.
I have seen pools in Key West and Arizona with black tile and black painted bottoms because the owner thought it was attractive. Well in the middle of winter it may mean that their pool is comfortable but in the hot summer it means that they can not use their pool.
Think about it every window blind or quality curtain is white on the exterior side and that is to reflect sunlight and heat out of your home. The same is true for your pool.
The next thing you can do is cover your pool with a awning or tent covering. If you can reflect the light before it enters the pool then you will reduce the temperature of the pool.
This is why many people build a three season room in hot climates and place the in ground pool inside. It reduces bugs but it also reduces the heat stored in the water.
Using a Pool Cooler to Reduce Summer Water Temperatures
There are a variety of different Pool Coolers on the market but they are based on two different methods of cooling.
The first and most expensive is a commercial cooling system that runs off of refrigerant. Basically you are running the water in your pool through a refrigerator to reduce the temperature.
Because refrigerant cooling systems require a contractor to install and they are both expensive and complex we suggest you contact a supplier if you need one and they can size your system and install it.
The second method of cooling your pool is through evaporation cooling systems.
Evaporative Cooling can be done cheaply and it does not require a contractor if you are able to use basic tools.
There are two methods of evaporative cooling and you might want to use both for different reasons.
The first type is a sprinkler system that sprays streams of water through a elevated post across your pool. As the water travels though the air it cools down. The second benefit of this system is that by breaking the water surface with the spray you reduce the possibility of misquotes breeding and you will probably repel other pests.
The second type is an enclosed unit that sprays water through a filter that is used to disperse the water and cause the cooling effect. These systems are more expensive but they do work well. They use the same method as cooling chillers that are on sky scrapers but without the refrigerant or ammonia.
Type two does not give you that added benefit of reducing pests and it will require both a pump and fan to operate so it will be more expensive to run.
What kind of performance can you expect from a Swimming Pool Cooler?
Your performance will vary but normally you can expect to reduce the temperature of the pool by about 10 degrees over what it normally would be…
So, if your pool is normally 100 degrees you can get it down to 90 if it is normally 95 degrees you can get it down to 85 degrees which would be a comfortable heat to swim in.
The more cooling you need the larger the system you need to use. This is why I suggested you might find use to install two types of evaporative coolers to get the job done.