Swimming pool and domestic heating and heat pumps

We are very proud to announce that the Calyenty.com swimming pool heat pump and swimming pool equipment manufacture and supplier website is in the top 12% most visited sites on the internet. That’s the whole of the internet, i.e. for all of the sites covering everything that there is, not just in our rather narrow niche swimming pool heated pools and swimming pool furniture market.

Google announced on 7/25/2008 that it had indexed over 1 trillion unique URL’s. That is 1,000,000,000,000. So we are in the top 120 000 000 000, which doesn’t look so good, but when you consider that there are now 880 000 000 000 websites less used, it makes the warm feeling return.

We used the independent analyzer offered by Hubspot which is a great tool to see how your website stacks up, but also identifies areas where you can improve the structure and content of your site to get you up the search engine rankings and onto page one where you really need to be.

It can also be used to check out how well or badly your competitors are doing in the online arena. Please see our website to see for yourselves how we got such a great grade, you may even like to email us with your comments, good or bad!

To celebrate the fact that our website is doing rather well we are going to make the following unbeatable announcements, so if you have a swimming pool, and you live in either Spain, Portugal, France, any of the Costas or even the UK keep reading.

Swimming Pool Heat pumps: For heated pools in Spain, Portugal, France and the UK. Costa del Sol, Costa Brava, Murcia, Malaga, Marbella, Costa Brava, Costa De Luz, Majorca, Moraira, Costa Blanca, Canary islands etc.

Swimming pool heat pumps are inexpensive.
Swimming pool heat pumps are quiet.
Swimming pool heat pumps are small and unobtrusive.
Swimming pool heat pumps are inexpensive to run.
Swimming pool heat pumps are inexpensive to install.
Swimming pool heat pumps are environmentally acceptable.
Swimming pool heat pumps deliver lots of heat into your swimming pool.
Swimming pool heat pumps are flexible in how and when you use them, we even have sms control so you can control them from wherever you are
Swimming pool heat pumps are durable and will last for a long time if you buy the correct model and look after it. (Calyenty offer a full and comprehensive maintenance package with our excellent range of swimming pool heat pumps.

We also offer a massive range of swimming pool equipment. Contact us for: Fully automatic retractable laminated pool cover for both inside and above the swimming pool. Come in White, sand, blue and solar enhancing laminas.

Summer and winter covers with or without rollers.

LED lights, our LEDS are the most powerful, using a fraction of the energy you would use in a traditional halogen swimming pool PAR 56 bulb. Both flat mounted and niche replacement options are available from Calyenty. The colour changing functionality is fantastic and can be operated by remote controller if there are just a few bulbs in your pool, or synchronized controller if you have a very large or commercial pool. We can supply these LED PAR 56 swimming pool bulbs at an unbeatable price and we will beat any comparable price you may have.

Also: swimming pool filter pumps and filters, salt water systems, solar showers, pool robots, astralpool products, stainless steel ladders and much much more.

As part of our celebration we will beat any price given with a pool in Spain, Portugal, France or the UK with any swimming pool product, swimming pool heat pump heaters, and automatic covers.

Please contact us today for this unbeatable price offer, we carry massive levels of stock and can offer immediate delivery.

Call us on 0034972660467 email us info@calyenty.com or visit the website

A. SiegelEnergy, environmental blogger, getenergysmartnow.com
Posted: December 7, 2009 04:13 PM

This is part of a series of brief posts on ‘clean energy jobs’ opportunities for sparking meaningful employment, quickly, in the United States as discussed in Clean Energy Jobs: Stimulate Me.
Clean Energy Jobs Go Swimming: $300 million per year for 10,000 jobs

Legislation is, they say, analogous to making sausage. Sometimes, in the mixing and mashing, seemingly well-intentioned and sensible options can create counter-productive situations and leave many valued goods on the table. One small example of this could open the door to creating employment, lowering costs for state & local governments (including educational institutions, improving ‘customer’ satisfaction, and reducing greenhouse gas emissions.

When it came to the stimulus package earlier this year, as part of a politically popular move limiting programs eligible for funding, “swimming pools” were explicitly excluded from ARRA funding mechanisms. While, amid serious economic stress and government investment to keep the economic from continuing in freefall, it might have seemed morally appropriate to do this, this restriction simply flies in the face of reality and good sense.

Around the country, whether in schools (K-12 and universities/colleges) or public parks/rec facilities, state and local governments (and independent public recreation authorities) own and operate swimming pools. Many of these, especially as one moves away from the sun belt, are indoor pools heated for good portions of the year. For example, Fairfax, Virginia, has nine recreation centers with indoor swimming pools. Dependent on many factors, the annual heating bill for one of these (large) pools can run $10,000s to even $100,000s.

Such utility bills typically continue, often under the radar, even amid reduced local tax revenues as a ‘fixed expense’ with seemingly no good choice: continue to operate the pool (perhaps saving some $s by lowering the temperature a few degrees and angering swimmers; perhaps raise entry fees significantly and cut into usage) or close it down for months at a time. Few localities choose the shutdown option, unless near bankruptcy, thereby almost guaranteeing above-inflation rate increases in the utility bills even as local revenues fall. Another option, however, exists — one that was precluded by the ARRA restrictions and that should be opened with a jobs package: solar hot water.

Solar hot water for pools represents one of the fastest payback options for renewable energy systems. Without even accounting for any outside assistance, according to the Department of Energy:”Between 1.5 and 7 years” to payback? That is, roughly, stating that there is an ROI of between 10 and 60+ percent per year of energy savings versus the cost of installation. This, as well, doesn’t account for reduced maintenance costs and lower future system replacement costs.
This Energy Smart choice, however, falls through the cracks in many local government planning systems. Solar isn’t well understood and, often, viewed as some form of ‘enviro-liberal luxury’ item. Utilities come out of a different budget than infrastructure investments. Utility costs are often undifferentiated, thus the $100,000 to heat a pool is simply wrapped up in the $300,000 (example) of utilities to run a rec center. And, amid economic constraints, investment budgets for ‘enviro-liberal luxury’ items are often the first to go to the wayside.

Here, however, is a straightforward way for the Federal government to spark local business activity throughout most of the nation, help local governments reduce operating costs (SAVE MONEY!) while providing better public services (warmer pools at lower cost), foster improved infrastructure for renewable energy projects throughout the nation, reduce greenhouse gas emissions, and create jobs.

At a rough estimate, putting in solar hot water heating in an enclosed public pool might run roughly $100,000 on average. A Federal program could combine direct payments along with additional assistance: a direct payment of 50 percent along with, as necessary, a ten-year loan program for the remaining portion. In essence, this would provide local governments a path toward $10,000s a year in savings on every heated pool’s operating costs, money that could be used to keep teachers and policemen on payroll or pay for other threatened local government expenditures (and/or reducing the burden on taxpayers).

Such a program would be a highly effective leveraging tool as part of Federal assistance to state and local governments. The Federal assistance would pay back, a high rate of return, in terms of local and state governance costs. And, it would foster jobs.

Due to the leveraging amount, assuming that the Federal costs would end up (at the high end) at about 66% of installation costs, every million invested should support about 30 direct and indirect jobs (which, of course, includes the teachers not fired due to local government savings).Let’s take that Fairfax County recreation department case: nine large indoor pools. Assuming (almost certainly low) that each pool costs $50,000 to heat each year, this totals some $450,000 in annual heating costs. Pool heating percentage of total costs varies, but a 50 percent figure is a reasonable working number: thus, annual savings would be $225,000 (or roughly 3 teachers with benefits). Let us assume that it would take $1 million to put in solar hot water heating for all of these large pools. The upfront costs for the solar heating would be paid back in just under 4.5 years (at a 22.5% per year savings), assuming that energy costs don’t rise. If the Federal government paid half the costs, the County would see its investment paid back in just over two years. A two-year, 40% per year, payback seems quite sensible for funding via a bond program that might cost the County’s citizens about 5 percent per year in interest. And, by the way, this does not count the various tax and other economic benefits that would accrue back to the County of Fairfax, the Commonwealth of Virginia, and the Federal government due to business activity, employment taxes, and other financial implications of such a program.

A $200 million per year program, assuming the Federal government’s costs total 66% on average, would mean some $300 million per year invested in solar heating for public swimming pools (local & state rec centers and parks; K-12 schools; public universities). In just a few years, the majority of the nation’s public heated pools could be converted to solar heating. A $400 million program ($600 or so total investment) would support the conversion of roughly 6000 public swimming pools around the nation. This program could, as well, easily be extended to Federal pools (such on military bases), assistance to non-profit pools (notably private educational institutions), and assistance to backfitting solar heating to commercial pools (such as water parks). (The program could, as well, be expanded to energy efficiency in these facilities from pool covers to more efficient pumps or otherwise.) Let us say, with that additional effort, a $300 million / year program would leverage to $500 million / year and rapidly transform the heating of America’s large pools from fossil fuels to renewable energy and increase energy efficiency in America’s recreational swimming.

text-lock padlock

We have been at it again – and text-lock is the latest big idea.

We have already invested heavily in the text-lock, and CE mark testing starts this month, but we would like to know what you think by helping us with your answers to eight simple questions on our on line survey which will take you less than a minute to complete.

What is it?

Text-lock is a remote controlled padlock which can be opened by a mobile phone, mobile device or pc from anywhere in the world, while logging an electronic signature of everybody who uses the text-lock for access.

We are utilizing the latest in GSM and power storage technology which is now not only very powerful in what it can deliver but is small enough to engineer into a product such as this.

Why?

In 2008 in the UK alone 80 million deliveries failed on their first attempt and 20 million collections were also failed at the first attempt. This alone results in massive financial losses, frustration and inconveniences to both customers and parcel service companies. The impact on the environment is also staggering, when you consider the huge waste of human, equipment and fuel resources doing everything twice or inefficiently.

Today’s online community provides us all with more and more opportunities to make purchases and sales without visiting the shops. This is because it fits our current lifestyle to do such activity from our pc screen as we like to maximise our time either working, socialising or involved in leisure activity.  However this online convenience generates its own new challenges such as: how do we take delivery or organize collections of such online trade ?

Text-lock makes all this possible.  It is very simple, economical, secure and convenient.

All you need is a safe box, store, room or enclosure which is secured shut with a text-lock. Set up the delivery/collection with the parcel service, and that’s it, you never need to make a special journey or hang around all day or pay somebody or inconvenience somebody else to meet a driver – its all done automatically and remotely.

Also:

Grocery deliveries from the supermarket.

Remote access for: tradesmen such as painters and decorators, meter readers, estate agents, cleaners etc.

Allowing children access after school.

Allow neighbors to borrow tools, feed your pets while you are away etc.

Securing stores, enclosures, gates etc.

Portaloos and stores on large sites such as golf courses.

Military applications.

Field medical operations.

Home based businesses and home workers.

Small business flexibility.

Large business targeting.

Farms.

Large industrial sites.

24 x 7 x 365 deliveries – early morning restaurant deliveries.

And there are many more very interesting applications the text-lock can be used for.

We would like your opinion.

How flexible is it?
The text-lock comes in two forms:
1. Firstly the text-lock padlock is perfect for securing boxes for deliveries and collections, gates, enclosures, containers, sheds , storage facilities, garages etc.

2. Secondly the text-lock controller is supplied as an auxiliary device which can be connected to electric edge locks or existing electrical locking mechanisms such as electric doors found in hotels, electrically operated gates and garage doors etc.

Electronic signature:
Each text-lock comes with a unique electronic serial number ID. The text-lock can only be opened by an authorised command linked to its unique serial number. The text-lock works hand in hand with our signature server which logs every access event to the individual text-lock owners account which is based around the unique text-lock serial number.

You can even set up an access event on the signature server with an access code, for example a tracking number. The server will only allow access to the authorized requester (such as a parcel service driver) with the correct code. This leaves you free to work late, go for drinks with colleagues, or indulge in a leisure activity like the gym a swim or squash etc.

Anyone trying to open the lock without the correct code will be traceable as he will have left his phone ID on your signature server log. This feature makes the system almost impossible to abuse.

How secure is it?

The text-lock comes with an integral secondary link which enables you to secure the padlock itself so that it cannot be taken away. This also prevents such as a drop box from being removed.

Most standard locks are actually quite insecure in that they rely on a barrel and tumblers which are quite simple to crack or pick with a little knowledge.

With the text-lock there is no external route from the lock catch to enable this lock to be cracked or picked in any way. The only way it can be opened is with the right command which even in its simplest form is millions to one against being guessed.

If anybody tries to tamper with the text-lock it will text you to alert you to the situation.

If anyone leaves it open it will text you and him to remind him to secure the lock again.

Other features include: email alerts, low battery warning text, audio and text-alert tamper alarm and i-phone app.

We are now at a very advanced stage with our development of this product and most of the technology has already been tested with 100% success. The text-lock padlock will be CE mark tested this month (December 2009) and we hope that it will be available for general distribution sometime in the first Q of the new year 2010.

There just remain some outstanding issues for us to address and this is where you can help us with your valuable feedback.

In recognition of your help we are giving five of these fantastic and exciting new products away and every completed online form that we receive back will enter a prize draw. The first five out of the hat will receive a brand new text-lock. The draw will be made on December 22nd 2009, so please take a minute and send your feedback to us today.

The online form can be found by clicking here.

Rest assured we will not share your email address or any other personal information with any other party.

For more information about text-lock please visit the website.
Thanks for your help.

The text-lock team

This week the Intercontinental Hotel in Beirut is bathed in a beautiful mauve light, and it had nothing to do with exploding phosphorus bombs.

The lighting comes from the complex of new swimming pools surrounding the hotel which have just had state of the art LED lights installed, all supplied by Calyenty – the pool products manufacturer and supplier based in Girona Spain.

Some weeks ago Calyenty were approached by a UK based lighting consultant to provide a bulb which would project a specific purple shade of light which could not be sourced anywhere else in the world. We contacted our factory in China with the request and within less than six weeks the lights were installed and wowing guests staying at the Hotel.

LED lighting has several benefits over traditional bulbs, but are particularly attractive as they can project a variety of colours in addition to the standard white. This is perfect for hotels or other such commercial enterprises as they can create themes tailored for promotions and special events.

Calyenty LEDs come complete with a mini computer which can be phased to create several fixed colours such as green, blue, white, red and our now famous purple. They can also be phased to create bleed effects or even disco beats – great for parties.

LED lights are far more environmentally acceptable too, as each bulb only consumes just 15watts per hour compared to traditional bulbs which consume between 300 and 500 watts to generate a similar light output.

Our bulbs are PAR 56 which means that they are interchangeable with most standard swimming pool bulbs.  A common misconception is that it is necessary to drain the pool to change the bulb.  This is not true and any competent person can change a bulb in less than half an hour.

LED means light emitting diode.

Pool Covers.

Why is a pool cover such an important addition to my pool?

Pool covers are essential to a keeping an efficient and more useable pool for many reasons, but firstly it is important to understand the different types of cover that are available.

Summer covers. Summer covers are temporary in that they must be able to be removed simply and quickly when it is time to swim, usually by having the cover attached by straps to a roller positioned at one end of the pool. Summer covers are made from materials that have good insulation properties the most common being bubble or foam.

The main benefit from having a summer cover is that it keeps heat in the water, especially where a heater is used. Most climates experience a drop in temperature at night, frequently climates where daytime temperatures are high the converse drop when the sun goes down is greatest, making the use of a cover at night essential to retaining a high water temperature. This cover will also significantly reduce the amount of evaporation from the surface of your pool. This is often overlooked by pool owners, but during hot summers you can lose the equivalent of the whole volume of your pool through evaporation, which is hitting you in the pocket and is terrible for the environment. By cutting down on evaporation, you are also reducing the amount of chemicals that are needed.

Summer covers also reduce the occurrence of algae attacks and reduce the amount of debris entering the water.

Winter covers. Winter covers are employed where a pool owner closes the pool down during the winter. These covers are frequently referred to as debris covers or safety covers. These covers are usually made from a tough woven fabric and are fixed down overlapping the edging stones of the pool basin securely by straps to anchors in the hard ground around the pool. The main purpose for using these covers is safety, where if the pool is not being used and supervised it prevents anything falling into the water. They also prevent the build up of leaves and other debris while the pool isn’t being maintained on a regular basis.

Automatic covers address the issues for both summer and winter situations and have the convenience of touch button automation. These are more expensive, but look fantastic and really help to keep the health of the pool water throughout the year, keep the heat in and provide peace of mind safety.

see

http://www.calyenty.com

For more etails.

The Lib Dems are today up in arms and the attorney general, baroness Scotland (yep the same that passed the legislation outlawing Samoan cleaners without passports from being cleaners, then promptly employed one because she only cost 10p a day) is bringing action against Bae for unethical sales techniques – (A curry and a night at Spearmint Rhinos for a couple of Czech arms dealers) when securing massive arms deals abroad, citing that such practices brings into question the equity and fair-mindedness of the British when conducting business on the international stage – and that this will look bad and nobody will want to buy sausages or Scotch Whiskey off us any more.

Bae generates more revenue than any other UK company, and they build fighter bombers, fighter bombers that kill people, kill lots of people. Either we stop making killing machines per se, or we sell as many as we can and to hell with the ethics or how many pole dancers it takes to do it, if our politicians think they can have it both ways they are delusional.

Oh, I think one of the Czech arms dealers was offered a years worth of Chlorine for his 6m above ground swimming pool.

Why Heat Pumps for Heating Pools?

Heating the water is essential if you want to make the most of the investment you have made in your swimming pool. Extending your season and more comfortable swimming are just two of the good reasons for doing this. The challenge for any heating system is that an average pool contains about 50 tonnes of water and has a large surface area to lose temperature when the temperature drops at night.

The options you have are: direct electric induction heaters, gas, solar or heat pumps. Induction heaters are cheap to buy but incredibly expensive to run. Gas is both expensive to install and run. Solar is expensive to buy and maintain, challenging to install without major visual impact to your property and fails to warm the water when really needed.

It is now widely accepted that the only feasible option to economically heat a pool is to use a heat pump.

Why are heat pumps so efficient? They use a technology which has been around for several years, similar to that used in your fridge only in reverse. Recently this technology has been improved to make them even more efficient.

How can they produce up to seven times the calorific output compared to the energy they consume? Power consumption is only used to power a compressor and a fan. The fan draws surrounding air across a condenser coil. The energy from the air passes into the condenser coil which is then passed to the pool water via a heat exchanger.

Because a heat pump utilizes the energy that is already present in the atmosphere it is by far the most effective and economic way of providing warm water for you pool. We always recommend that a cover is used at night when the pool is not being used to keep all that valuable heat in the water.

By Asjylyn Loder, Times Staff Writer
In Print: Sunday, March 29, 2009

A solution to Florida’s sky-high electric bills could be right under our feet.

Dig down a couple of yards below the surface, and you’ll find Florida’s earth stays at a steady 72 degrees, a perfect heater in winter and a cool respite in summer.

“I think there is an enormous untapped potential in the country,” said Jeff Tester, an expert in geothermal energy at Cornell University in New York.

Florida lacks the scorching heat and steam that makes geothermal electricity, but its balmy earth can help Florida save power. By some estimates, home­owners can cut their heating and cooling bills by 50 percent or more. The technology has been around for decades but has only recently begun to gain traction.

“People really don’t know about it yet,” said Fred Mayes, a senior technology analyst at the Energy Information Administration, the statistical arm of the Department of Energy. “People have seen solar panels before, but may not think of geothermal heat pumps.”

Now, with generous new federal subsidies, could geothermal become Florida’s next big thing?

• • •

To sell a geothermal system, you’ve got to start with education, said Todd Boudreau, who has installed dozens of geothermal heat pumps. Few homeowners know how they work.

“It hasn’t been widely publicized the way it should have been, but with things changing in our economy, and rising utility costs the way they are, people are very interested in how to save money,” Boudreau said.

In most ways, geothermal systems in Florida work the same as a regular air-conditioning system, Boudreau said. Both systems use a combination of refrigerant and compression to transfer heat in or out until the house reaches the desired temperature. For the customer, the thermostat is almost exactly the same.

To understand the big difference, think of the Earth as a giant battery heated by the sun. Geothermal taps that natural battery by snaking a pipe a thousand or so feet long under the surface. It is filled with water, or a mix of water and other fluid, like antifreeze. The loop can be laid in horizontal squiggles snaking under a property at a depth of six to 10 feet. If the lot is small, the ground loop can be drilled vertically to depths of several hundred feet.

In Florida’s colder months, the ground loop absorbs the ground’s 72 degree heat and transfers it to a heat exchanger, where it becomes hotter. A fan then draws the home’s air through the system, heating the air and circulating it back through the house.

In cooling mode, a fan sucks hot air from the house into the system, where the heat in the air is removed. Just like your fridge, the heat is removed from the inside and transferred outside, in this case to the cool ground.

Why is geothermal more efficient than conventional systems?

In winter, it uses the ground’s heat instead of burning fossil fuels or using electricity to make heat. In summer, the ground acts as a natural condenser, replacing the electric condenser.

The system is also more efficient because of the ground temperature. For instance, in the summer a conventional unit transfers hot air from the home to the hot air outside. Geothermal systems transfer the hot air to the cold ground. The cold ground is better at absorbing the heat than the hot outside air.

To think of it another way, when you jump into a cold lake on a hot day you lose body heat much faster than if you are standing on the shore.

As a bonus, the geothermal system transfers heat all year long to the home’s water pipes, giving customers free hot water.

The Energy Department estimates that it cuts electric bills by 25 to 50 percent. Boudreau said energy savings in Florida can reach 80 percent.

“The benefits of this are unbelievable,” Boudreau said.

• • •

If it works so well, why isn’t everybody doing it?

“That old four-letter word: cost,” Mayes answered.

Boudreau estimated that a geothermal system costs about two to three times a conventional heating and air-conditioning system. In these tough times, it’s hard to talk a homeowner into parting with that kind of cash.

Andy Bednarz, a pilot, recently installed a geothermal heat pump at his new lakeside property in Lutz. He got a $9,000 estimate for a conventional four-ton system but decided to spend $23,000 on a geothermal system.

His old 2,000-square-foot house had power bills from $265 to $350 a month. His new 2,359-square-foot-house has power bills of about $150 a month.

“It seems like a big bite, and I don’t like to give away money by any means, but I did some higher math, and this should pay for itself in six years,” Bednarz said.

Boudreau agreed, saying the typical payback time is four to six years. The systems are quieter and last 25 to 30 years, two to three times longer than conventional systems. Replacement costs are comparable because the drilling only need be done once.

It’s a logic that appeals to home­owners facing rising electric bills, Boudreau side. His company, Air Conditioning Solutions, has seen sales double in recent years as his handful of satisfied customers spread the word to neighbors, friends and family. Although it’s still just a fraction of his business, he’s seeing more interest than he has in the past.

“People are willing to spend money to save money,” he said.

• • •

Bednarz is part of an upward trend in geothermal.

Florida has been on the leading edge of the growth. The state is home to one of the best-known heat pump manufacturers, and it is among the top five states for installing geothermal heat pumps, and is also in the top five for exporting them to other states.

Shipments of geothermal heat pump capacity increased 53 percent in 2006 and 19 percent in 2007, according to a recent report from Mayes’ office. In 2007, the most recent year Mayes has numbers for, the United States shipped enough geothermal heat pumps to heat and cool 97,000 U.S. homes.

Despite the steep growth, geothermal heat pumps make up a tiny share of the market. In 2005, the pumps were installed in just one in every 1,000 U.S. homes, the Energy Information Administration estimates. Even with the annual growth predicted between now and 2030, it estimates that only slightly more than one in every 100 U.S. homes will have geothermal heat pumps.

The recently passed American Recovery and Reinvestment Act might kick-start interest in the heat pumps. The stimulus legislation gives homeowners a tax credit that covers 30 percent of the cost of the system.

“We don’t know that answer yet, but it should bump it up a little bit,” said John Symbalsky, a research analyst with the Energy Information Administration.

Boudreau thinks he knows what the response will be. Armed with information on the new tax credits, he’s already fielding calls from potential customers.

Did you know? • The average U.S. homeowner uses a 3-ton system for heating and cooling. • Geothermal heat pumps can cut electricity use by 25 percent to 50 percent. • Geothermal heat pumps have been used in some cold states to melt snow on driveways and walkways. • The underground coils for geothermal heat pumps are expected to last 50 years or more. • Geothermal heat pumps are expected to last 25 years. • Source: Energy Information Administration, Department of Energy

Swimming pool heating specialists

A green future where you can borrow cars and drink rainwater

* Alok Jha
* The Guardian, Saturday 28 March 2009
* Article history

A low-carbon economy will be the culmination of thousands of decisions by governments, businesses and individuals about how we choose to balance environment and economy. There isn’t one correct future but many, with each detail in each country dependent on the will of its people.

One thing is certain, though. Anyone concerned about having to give up their modern lifestyle for an austere existence can rest easy. The big differences between now and the low-carbon future will not be the way the world looks or what we will be able to do in it, but how it is arranged.

The biggest hurdle is electricity. Three-quarters of our global electricity needs come from burning fossil fuels. The low-carbon future will demand that none of that electricity emits carbon dioxide. So every gas or coal-fired power plant, of which there will be many in China and India, will have carbon-capture technology to trap and store CO2 underground. Renewable sources including wind, tide, wave and sun will, through investment in basic research in the coming decades, be commercially viable. Far from being forbidding installations belching out carbon dioxide, renewable power stations will be smaller, emit no CO2 and tap into near-limitless supplies of free fuel.

Clean electricity will have a knock-on effect on the other modern carbon nasty – transport. When electricity is cheap and clean, there is no reason not to use its power as much as possible. Electric cars, buses, lorries and high-speed trains will move us and our goods, yet make no contribution to global warming. Though mass public transport will be the travel mode of choice, personal cars will remain. You might not own one yourself, instead borrowing from clubs when needed. By planning towns around pedestrians and investing in cycle lanes, local councils will encourage travel under two miles to be under your own steam or by hydrogen buses.

Flying will be a problem. Improved aerodynamics, lighter aircraft and mixing biofuels into jet fuel will bring down the carbon cost of air miles. Carbon reductions in energy production and road transport will mitigate some of the rise in emissions from the growth in flights in China and India, but environmental campaigners will not be satisfied. Expect punishing taxes on plane tickets, tied to their carbon cost, to discourage flying unless there really is no alternative. In these situations, a personal carbon-rationing system, linked to national CO2 emissions targets, will allow individuals to emit a certain amount of greenhouse gases into the atmosphere.

But the number of long journeys, particularly for work, will drop dramatically as high-speed internet connections enable high-quality video conferences and easy communications for people on different sides of the world. Many people will stop commuting to their offices or factories, preferring to work from home.

Homes might look the same, for nostalgic reasons, but will be fundamentally different. Bricks coated with solar paint will be held together with cement that soaks up CO2 from the air around it. Triple-glazed windows will reduce the need for heating in winter and cooling in summer.

Only the most energy-efficient fridges and washing machines will be available to buy while LEDs in lamps and displays will turn electricity into light efficiently instead of wasting most of it as heat. Automatic controls will warm rooms only when needed and switch appliances and lights off when they’re not needed.

Our throwaway culture will disappear. By encouraging people to re-use as much as possible, less waste will end up in landfill and the carbon in our possessions (the stuff emitted to make our clothes, toys or furniture) wil not be wasted. Products will be made to last and, when they come to the end of their useful life, be repaired rather than thrown away. Packaging will be virtually nonexistent and, where it exists, will be recyclable or compostable.

People will use water more carefully. Rain will be collected from home and office rooftops and filtered using carbon-free electricity so that it is drinkable. Any water drained away in a building will be recycled and treated locally to wash clothes or flush toilets. Bottled water will be banned.

Food will come from local farms or factories to reduce the carbon cost of transport. Meat lovers, because of their high-carbon diets, will have to use up their personal carbon rations whenever they bite into a steak or else make sure their food comes from local, sustainable farms that produce meat artificially.

Locally-produced electricity will also play a big part in keeping homes carbon free. Solar thermal panels, community-based combined heat and power plants running on carbon-neutral wood chips, micro wind turbines and ground source heat pumps mean that local districts won’t need all their power from today’s centralised power stations. Local heat and power networks could even feed into the national grid during times of great demand.

This is one of many visions for a low-carbon world in 2050. It seems a long way off and whether we get there depends on decisions made over the next few years.

Swimming pool heating specialists

Swimming pool heating specialists

Some hotels, fitness centers turn to saltwater to ease the burn

By Julie Deardorff
February 05, 2009

Indoor swimmers know that chlorine is a necessary evil. We love the harsh, sanitizing chemical when we see how many unshowered people inhabit public pools. We hate its clinging smell and that it leaves us with red eyes, green hair and see-through swimming suits.

Some hotels and health clubs, however, say there’s a new alterative: saline pools. These saltwater pools that taste like the ocean are often touted as an “eco-friendly” and “healthy” answer to chlorine because fewer chemicals are needed.

“Saline has less of a smell, and it’s easier on your skin, eyes and swimsuits, ” said Randy Mau, asset manager for Xsport Fitness, which uses saltwater pool technology in 12 of its Illinois health clubs.

But don’t be fooled: Saltwater or saline pools use chlorine too. The difference is that the owner has purchased a salt generator to manufacture his or her own chlorine or bromine, according to the Association of Pool and Spa Professionals. “A salt pool equals chlorine [or bromine pool],” the group says.

The traditional way to add chlorine to a pool is to dissolve a tablet or pour liquid chlorine into the water. Saltwater chlorinating systems use electrolysis to release chlorine gas from the salt in the water. The chlorine gas mixes with the water to create liquid chlorine, which is then delivered back to the pool.

Though saltwater generators still use chlorine, proponents say they reduce many of the aggravating effects associated with chlorine, which are technically caused by chloramines.

When chlorine is added to the water, it mixes with organic matter—sweat, saliva, dandruff, urine—and turns into other chemicals, including chloramines. After chlorine kills contaminates in the water, more chlorine is needed to burn the chloramines out of the water. A pool’s chlorine smell means chloramines are airborne and the pool needs to be maintained, said pool designer Terrence LeBeau, the general manager of the commercial systems division for Halogen, a Chicago pool equipment and chemical supplier.

Saltwater generators deliver a constant stream of chlorine, making chloramines less of an issue, which is good news for a swimmer’s skin or eyes. The salinity is about 1/12th of the salinity of the ocean. Element and Elysian, two hotels that will be opening in the Chicago area this year, will have saline pools.

Still, there’s plenty of debate over the true benefits of these pools. “They’ve been in the marketplace several times and never stay long,” said LeBeau. “It’s just not a good way to put chlorine in the pool. It’s corrosive and creates other problems; even the electrical consumption to do the manufacturing in the equipment room is expensive.”

When I recently tried the saline lap pool—which had the familiar smell of chlorine—at Xsport’s State Street location, I was mildly annoyed by the salty taste of the water. The three other swimmers in the pool were either happy with the saltwater, or like me, noticed no significant difference. But Kevin Dutton, a 32-year-old Chicago chiropractor and budding triathlete, said that after his workouts, “I feel it on me the rest of the day.”

For a list of pools around the world that use alternatives to chlorine, go to the “Healthier Swimming” blog at piscinasana.blogspot.com. ]

A pool chemistry glossary

Chlorine: In the pool industry, the generic word “chlorine” normally refers to any sanitizer that releases free available chlorine—also known as hypochlorous acid—when dissolved in water, according to the Association of Pool and Spa Professionals. Chlorine sanitizers are the most commonly used pool sanitizer. Chlorine is also a strong oxidizer, which destroys contaminants, kills microorganisms and removes other impurities in the water.

Bromine: Any sanitizer that releases available bromine—also known as hypobromous acid—when dissolved in water. Also a strong oxidizer.

Ozone: A supplemental treatment used with a primary sanitizer such as chlorine or bromine. Ozone, a reactive gaseous oxidizer, is generated by a device called an ozonator, which disperses ozone into the pool water. Still, ozoneca harmful, so pool plumbing should be designed to minimize ozone exposure to swimmers.