If you’re on the market for a new pool, you’ve almost certainly heard of smart pools by now. But what are smart pools? How is a smart pool different from a regular pool? And what should you know before purchasing a smart pool?
Recently, technology has evolved to bring us a “smart” version of almost everything. If you love your smart watch, smart televison, and smart phone, a smart pool will be no exception. Smart pools—also known as intelligent pools, clever pools, or future pools—use intelligent pool design to simplify your life, cut energy usage, and free up your time. They come with an array of automation technology already installed. Once the initial installation is complete, you’ll almost never have to do maintenance on your smart pool.
In this article, we talk about everything you should know before buying a smart pool for your family.
How do smart pools work?
While different companies approach automated intelligent pool technology slightly differently, Compass Pools strives to provide the best possible smart pool experience for homeowners in Sydney, Central Coast and Central West. Our self-cleaning pools come equipped with our secret weapon: the Vantage pool cleaning system.
Vantage works through a network of nozzles installed on the pool’s floor. The nozzles create water circulation that evenly distributes chemicals, prevents warm and cool spots, and discourages algae growth. The nozzles also allow the water to clean your pool from the bottom up, with no awkward and difficult side scrubbing or vacuums required. Jets of water steer debris into the pool drain, releasing you from having to do any pool cleaning or maintenance.
Self-cleaning pools with the Vantage system provide far fresher, more hygienic, and more chemically balanced water for your family to enjoy.
Are smart pools durable?
Specialising in high-quality fibreglass smart pools, Compass Pools supplies smart pools that are built to last for your family. Our strong ceramic core smart pools are the toughest fibreglass pools on the market. They don’t absorb water over time. They also provide increased impact resistance, production consistency, and the ability to hold up to seasonal ground movements or even earthquakes. We’re so confident in our pools’ toughness that we offer a variety of industry leading warranties so you can feel confident that you’re making a risk-free purchase.
How can I tell whether a pool management system is good?
While this is a matter of opinion on some level, most people agree that the best central pool management systems offer control from mobile devices. In many cases, you’ll be able to regulate almost every technological component of your pool via an app, website, or software download. Some of the central management systems are also compatible with home smart systems like Google Home and Amazon Echo. If you choose to sync all your smart devices, you could feasibly control everything about your pool with basic voice commands.
An important thing to consider when choosing pool management systems is whether the company providing your system also provides free upgrades. Most pool companies strive to stay up to date on the latest technologies and offer free upgrades to make sure that your pool is consistently functioning as well as it did when it was brand new. If a company does not provide free upgrades, we do not recommend using their pool management system. An established company with a good reputation will be eager to provide you with the necessary technology and support to ensure that you’re happy with your smart pool purchase for years to come.
What features of a smart pool can be automated?
Some smart pools are fully automated. Others are only self-cleaning, or only come with automated temperature control or lighting. Understanding what components of your pool can be automated is an important part of making sure you choose the right smart pool for you. Potentially automatic features include:
1. Automatic salt chlorination
One commonly sought after automation feature is automatic salt chlorination. Some smart pools possess the ability to test the chlorine levels of their water and adjust accordingly. As properly chlorinating pool water can be a tedious task, many people are extremely happy to check this task off their chore lists.
Proper salt chlorination is essential to keeping a healthy and hygienic pool. The wrong balance can allow fungal growth or cause irritation of the eyes and skin to people who swim in the pool. If you don’t feel confident in your ability to properly chlorinate the pool, or if you just don’t feel like taking time to do it, investing in a smart pool that offers automatic salt chlorination can be well worth the extra expense.
2. Smart pool pumps
Pool pumps are one of the most crucial parts of maintaining your pool, and yet, many pool owners do not use their manual pool pumps correctly. Regular pool pumps tend to consume large amounts of energy. This causes people to try to run them less often and for shorter time periods than they really should, which leads to pool water that isn’t actually as clean as it ought to be.
Smart pool pumps, on the other hand, use up to 85 percent less energy as compared to regular pool pumps. This means you can keep your pool pump running 24 hours a day and still save money on your energy bills. Keeping your pool pump running constantly will help the water circulate properly, encouraging even water temperature throughout.
3. Self-cleaning pools
Cleaning a pool is by the worst part of pool ownership. If you want your pool to stay in good shape for years to come, keeping it clean is absolutely essential, but nobody enjoys using long hoses to scrub vertical walls from awkward aerial angles.
For this reason, self-cleaning pools are one of the most desirable pool features available on the market. Clever pool technology like the aforementioned Vantage system makes it possible for a pool to keep itself spic and span, properly circulating, and fresh at all times.
An especially desirable self-cleaning pool will come with the ability to switch the cleaning system on or off from your phone. This means you could tell the pool to clean itself every night if you wanted and have a wonderfully fresh, clean pool to dive into first thing in the morning. If you have a busy schedule or have children who are prone to jumping into the pool without checking that pH levels and water hygiene have been addressed, this can be especially valuable for your family.
4. Intelligent temperature control and lighting
Have you ever climbed into bed and suddenly realised you forgot to turn off the pool lighting or heating? Having the ability to change the lighting or temperature of your pool from anywhere is a perk that many Australian pool owners enjoy. Not only can you warm or cool the pool easily depending on how the weather is on any given day, but you can also use the lighting adjustment feature to program interesting colours and lighting sequences when you’re entertaining. Guests and children will love watching colours change while they go for a swim. Some of the systems can even control your pool water features.
How much do smart pools cost?
Due to the amount of variety in pool sizes, shapes, colours, depths, designs, and automation features, it’s difficult to clearly gauge the price of a smart pool project. In general, a smart pool will cost more up front than a regular swimming pool because of all the additional technology included. However, it’s important to remember that thanks to the smart pool’s automation abilities, you’re likely to save a substantial amount of money on energy bills and chemicals each month. While a smart pool may be the bigger upfront investment, most pool owners feel that the time they get back from not having to keep up with maintenance makes that immediate price increase more than worth it over time.
We at Compass Pools are happy to work with individuals to determine what pool best fits your family’s desires, needs, and budget. Smart pools are more affordable today than they ever have been before. Whether you’re looking to install a new smart pool or add intelligent pool technology to an already existing pool, we’d love to help. Contact us at Compass Pools Sydney for more information today.