4 season pool options in snow zone.

[Guest]

What options does one have for year round usage of a pool in a cold region that gets snow?

I have seen indoor pools with full structures around them in Pennsylvania.

Unfortunately then you lose the full sun exposre of the pool during the summer because of the structure. Skylights are not practical since snow loads of 135 lbs per square foot in the area where I want to do this.

So does anyone have creative ideas on what to do? Thanks!

 

[derekm]

This one looks interesting - enclosure folds up for the summer:

http://www.aquashield.com

 

[JohnT]

There are inflatable domes that aren't insanely high priced. Google it and you'll get plenty of hits. My efforts found mostly vendors in Europe, but I'd think there would be some in North America as well.

 

[Kinguni]

http://www.northwestwholesale.com/dome-aquaflex.asp

There are American vendors as well. I'm not sure the cost though. I'd love to keep my pool open year round.

 

[pool4me]

I was just looking at the aquashield link,. Pretty neat idea. I'd love to see one in person. Cool.

 

[Rob]

Does anyone actually have any of these?

It would seem to me that the actual heating costs associated with one would be tremendous.

 

[pool4me]

It would seem to me that the actual heating costs associated with one would be tremendous.

I agree with you. I've never thought about anything like that but after seeing one, I really like the way they look. I really don't have a desire for All Year Round Swimming or heating it etc (The Summer is just fine with me..), but the model that looks like a "Sunroom Shape" would be pretty neat looking for the location of the pool I'll be installing. I love the way they retract. I would love to see one in person.

 

[divepool]

I was looking at doing the same for year round use. Make sure you are able to install a blowup bubble or the aquashield. The aquashield was not cheep, 15-25K, what is the size of your pool? are you looking to enclose a portion of your deck also?

Before I poured my interior walls and floor I installed 2" R10 value Foam to help insulate and before the floor was poured I installed hydronic radiant heat tubing in the floor for more efficent heating. I am also going to install radiant tuding in the pool deck for future use in cold months. Before backfilling I will also insulate the upper walls to keep heat in.

good luck keep us posted

 

[Guest]

This one looks interesting - enclosure folds up for the summer:

http://www.aquashield.com

Thanks! I checked them out. They look nice. Just what I would want. Something to keep it warmer in the off season and something that can be opened to enjoy the full summer.

They are confident that the snow loads will not be an issue and that they can engineer for it.

I just wonder how much more than the $20/square foot estimated cost this "upgrade" will add to the price.

 

[derekm]

This one looks interesting - enclosure folds up for the summer:

http://www.aquashield.com

Thanks! I checked them out. They look nice. Just what I would want. Something to keep it warmer in the off season and something that can be opened to enjoy the full summer.

They are confident that the snow loads will not be an issue and that they can engineer for it.

I just wonder how much more than the $20/square foot estimated cost this "upgrade" will add to the price.

I'll check back sometime to see if you went for it. If it can handle the west coast snow loads, we would have no problems here on the east side, hopefully without an upgrade. It's still pricey, especially when you add in heat, but it would be nice to put that big hole in the ground to use for more than the four months or so we get here (and that's using the heater in June and Sept.)

 

[Guest]

This one looks interesting - enclosure folds up for the summer:

http://www.aquashield.com

Thanks! I checked them out. They look nice. Just what I would want. Something to keep it warmer in the off season and something that can be opened to enjoy the full summer.

They are confident that the snow loads will not be an issue and that they can engineer for it.

I just wonder how much more than the $20/square foot estimated cost this "upgrade" will add to the price.

I'll check back sometime to see if you went for it. If it can handle the west coast snow loads, we would have no problems here on the east side, hopefully without an upgrade. It's still pricey, especially when you add in heat, but it would be nice to put that big hole in the ground to use for more than the four months or so we get here (and that's using the heater in June and Sept.)

I agree it is nice. And of course dreams usually cost a lot.

Remember though 6 feet down is a continous 55 degrees F, so really should only require heating the pool about 25 degrees and the air in the dome would be heated most of the time from the pool radiating to the air. The heat loss through the poly carbonate is the big question, so supplemental air heating during the coldest of times (as low as -10 F) is probably in order. This is only about 2 months of the winter that it gets this cold. Usually around 25F during most of the winter.

I still need to research though.