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Swimming Pools |
Health and safety codes
Climate, weather and your swimming pool
Consider the wind
Sizing up the landscape
Slope, soil and drainage
Rules-of-thumb for choosing the site
Lots with a challenge
Consider the wind Wind is almost as important a factor in selecting a pool site as the sun. Too much wind blowing across a pool area on a temperate day can be unpleasant, as can no breeze at all on a hot summer day. Wind can draw heat from the pool and evaporate water and chemicals, adding to your operating expenses.Prevailing winds.In some parts of the world, like the trade wind belt, the prevailing wind blows constantly for weeks or even months without letup. In Thailand, prevailing winds are felt only in the Southern islands around Phuket.Diurnal or daily windsFortunately, these winds, very important in choosing a pool site, are most predictable. Some of them are most prevalent during he swimming season.In coastal areas and on the shores of large lakes, the still air of morning gradually gives way to increasingly strong breezes from the water during the afternoon. These onshore winds die down when the sun sets. By early evening, the airflow has reversed. In some areas, these afternoon sea breezes, approaching gale force, swoop down over the coastal mountains and make most pool activity impossible without adequate windscreens. Inland mountain areas also experience reversible daily winds. Generally, the airflow is upslope during the day and down-slope after sunset. Near the entrances to canyons and valleys, the evening breezes can be quite strong and cool. Irregular, High-velocity windsMeteorologists call these winds “foehns”, but residents know them under various local names. They flow down-slope or out of mountain basins. Though these winds are usually hot and dry, in some areas they feel cool relative to the local air; in some areas, the foehn can be moist.Many of these winds occur in the cool season, but some can blow for days during summer or autumn. |
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