Category Archives: Environmentally Friendly Ideas

Let Us Help You Choose The Perfect Salt Chlorine Generator for You!

Salt Chlorine Generator
Salt water chlorinated pools offer many benefits over traditional chemicals. You will notice less irritation to hair, skin, eyes, and lungs with the gentle water of salt chlorine systems. BYCP currently offer two models. The guide below will help you determine which salt chlorine generator is right for you!

  • Aqua Rite Generator – The Aqua Rite system is fully automatic. It will work on plastic, vinyl, or fiberglass pools up to 40,000 gallons. It offers dual voltage. The LCD screen will track your chlorine output at the push of a button. You can increase or decrease your chlorine levels easily and there is even a button to automatically “shock” your pool with no added effort. The unit is easily installed on your pool’s return line, after the filter and heater. This generator offer a limited 3 year warranty.
  • Zodiac LM3 Generator – The Zodiac LM3 keeps your pool at a constant chlorine level. It offer self cleaning unit which frequently reverses polarity, practically eliminating calcium buildup on the cell. It has clear housing for super easy inspection. The touch panel controls have a memory feature that make setting it easy and a super chlorination feature for “shocking” the pool. The Zodiac is available for pools up to 40,000 gallons. It comes with a 3 year warranty on the cell and 1 year on parts and labor

Heat Your Pool Quickly and Efficiently With Solar Covers

Solar Pool Cover
Solar swimming pool covers are an inexpensive addition to your in or above ground pool that can make a large impact. Using a solar cover will warm your pool up to 15 degrees when used during the day and retain that heat (and stop chemical evaporation) when used at night. They float freely on the water’s surface with no tie downs, etc so they are easy to put on and take off. If you do need extra assistance to get the blanket on or off, solar cover reels are available. Swim earlier, swim longer, and swim more comfortably with a solar cover.

How to Make 2012 the Year of the Energy Efficient Pool — Part 4 of 4

Why should you care about making your swimming pool more energy-efficient in 2012 and beyond?  Saving energy is one excellent reason, but saving money is another good one, too.  Greening your pool means keeping more green in your wallet.

This series of posts on creating an energy-efficient pool has so far recommended Solar Pool Covers, Solar Pool Heaters, and the Pool Filter Timer as three sure-fire ways to cut energy consumption and costs.  The last and final recommendation in this series is the Pool Pump.

4. Swimming Pool Pump

The fourth way to increase energy-efficiency in your swimming pool is to install and operate a swimming pool pump. You can conserve energy and sustain a comfortable swimming pool temperature by using a smaller, higher efficiency pump and by operating it less frequently.  In a study of 120 pools by the Center for Energy Conservation at Florida Atlantic University, some pool owners saved as much as 75% of their original pumping bill when they used these energy conservation measures.

Hayward Swimming Pool Pumps

These aren’t the only four ways to increase energy-efficiency in your backyard swimming pool, but they do offer a variety of options for accomplishing the task.  Whether you decide to take on these four recommendations one at a time, or choose to adopt them all at once, any steps you take toward greater energy-efficiency will make a positive difference for the environment and for your wallet.

How to Make 2012 the Year of the Energy Efficient Pool — Part 3 of 4

Sometimes, the most simple of devices can increase energy-efficiency.  Replace your incandescent light bulbs with CFL bulbs, for example, and the energy savings happen automatically.  When it comes to swimming pools, one simple and inexpensive device that can decrease the amount of energy used and dollars wasted is the pool filter timer, the 3rd recommendation in my series of four on how to make your swimming pool more energy-efficient in 2012.

3. Pool Filter Timer

A third way to save energy is to use a Pool Filter Timer. Automating a pool’s filter operation pays for itself in energy savings within the first couple of months. Except during times of heavy use, most swimming pools only need to filter 12 hours per day. Pool filter timers can save you money on electricity and chemicals. Look for a pool filter timer that is weather proof, durable, and has multiple settings to give you ultimate control.

It’s the simple solutions, like this one, that can be the easiest ones to adopt first.  On your journey to greater energy-efficiency and money savings, the pool filter timer is a good place to start.  Once you start seeing your energy bills decrease, you can take on one or more of the other three recommendations in this series — Solar Pool Covers, Solar Pool Heaters, or the subject of my next post…coming soon.

Pool Filter Timers

How to Make 2012 the Year of the Energy Efficient Pool — Part 2 of 4

Solar Pool Heaters

Making your backyard swimming pool more energy-efficient isn’t just about being more environmentally friendly — although, that’s a pretty good reason in itself.  Energy-efficiency is also about saving money.  I don’t know many people who wouldn’t like to keep a little more green in their pockets, especially considering our current economic challenges. 

The first post in this series of 4 posts recommended Solar Pool Covers as one way to increase your pool’s efficiency.  In this second post, the subject is Solar Pool Heaters.

2. Solar Pool Heater

A second way to create an energy-efficient pool is to use a Solar Pool Heater. Solar heaters provide another way of taking advantage of the sun’s free energy. Solar Heaters are tremendously efficient, cheap to operate, and are the ultimate in environmental friendliness. When combined with a solar pool cover, a Solar Pool Heater will maintain a comfortable water temperature well into the cooler months.

Most solar pool heating systems include the following elements:

  • A solar collector — Pool water is circulated through this device so that it can be heated by the sun;
  • A filter — Debris is removed in the filter before water is pumped through the collector;
  • A pump — Pool water is circulated through the filter and collector and back to the pool thanks to the pump;
  • A flow control valve — Pool water is diverted through the solar collector through this automatic or manual device.

Solar Pool Heaters are much more affordable than you might expect, too.  Of course, whatever money is spent on purchasing new equipment initially is quickly returned in energy savings. 

Solar Pool Heater