ARTICLES Archives - Page 132 of 315

Safe and Secure

One of the requirements of pond ownership is a willingness to see to the safety of the pond's inhabitants - especially the fish, which can represent a substantial investment in any pond, no matter its size. That's why, in every project we install, we include an appropriately sized fish cave (or two or three): These give the pond's residents places to hide in the event a predator appears at the water's edge or lands on the water's surface. It doesn't take much to provide one: just a big piece of drainage pipe will do the trick. They key is thinking about these features from the planning stage forward: There are few miseries with pond installation that are as gruesome as

To a Healthier World

Through the years, one of my favorite advocacies at WaterShapes has had to do with building awareness among watershapers about the health benefits that result from what you all do for a living. We've worked with the National Swimming Pool Foundation on many occasions, for example, lining up articles that have either reported on research related to the specific benefits of swimming and/or water exercise, or told personal stories of what

To a Healthier World

Through the years, one of my favorite advocacies at WaterShapes has had to do with building awareness among watershapers about the health benefits that result from what you all do for a living. We've worked with the National Swimming Pool Foundation on many occasions, for example, lining up articles that have either reported on research related to the specific benefits of swimming and/or water exercise, or told personal stories of what

Facing Our Aqautic Future

I don’t want to come across like a grumpy old man, but I don’t think kids today are experiencing anything like the aquatic childhood I did. I grew up swimming and bathing and playing in commercial and private swimming pools; wooden, plastic and concrete hot tubs; streams, lakes, rivers, oceans, seas, bays, sounds and gulfs. I still swim and know I always will. I grew up taking

Ripples #76

Compiled and written by Lenny Giteck North Korean Dictator Kim Jung Un Visits Waterpark Construction Site

Test Your Knowledge #65

Has USA Swimming Banned Anti-LGBT Discrimination?

Wondrous Trouble

I’ve been a student of California history for many years – and particularly of its water history. I was hooked as far back as the sixth grade, when I wrote a big report on the California Water Project and how we were, in the 1960s, just beginning to move water from the Feather River in northern California and feed it by circuitous means to

Choosing a ‘Look’

As I suggest at the start of the video linked below, one of the most important decisions made by a soon-to-be poolowner has to do with the tile and coping: Among all project components, these are generally the ones that stand out most in visual and aesthetic terms, so we do all we can to persuade our clients to choose wisely among all available possibilities. While we do tend to set them a little loose with this part of the process, we’re also

Digging In

All too often, do-it-yourself pond installers will jump the gun, apparently unable to resist the urge to start digging right away. My guess is that they want to get the intense labor involved in excavation out of the way, not to mention all of the grunting that comes with using a plate compactor. As the pair of videos linked below indicate, there comes a time when there’s no avoiding shovel and spadework – but it shouldn’t happen first. Instead, the installation process should begin with the

Avoiding ‘Dead Spots’

Just the term “dead spot” sounds bad on its own – and that’s probably a good thing, because it’s definitely something every watershaper should try to avoid. That can be tough these days, given the complex shapes of modern swimming pools and their multiple curves, inlets, grottos, vanishing edges, beach entries, tanning shelves and various other features that complicate the interior contours of the shell. To get the job done, you need to