ARTICLES Archives - Page 175 of 312

Ozone: Understanding Its Green Side

If you use the words “ozone” and “environment” in the same sentence, most people are going to think of the ozone layer and emissions that may be harming it. Most do not think of manmade ozone and how this remarkable compound yields

Test Your Knowledge #1

Where was the recent discovery of an ancient swimming pool made and when was the pool built?

Water’s Flip Side

For a dozen years, this magazine has celebrated the beauty, majesty and positive potential of water in the landscape. We’ve seen it flowing down waterfalls, over vanishing edges, across slopes and through the air. We’ve seen what happens to colors immersed in it, how it creates shimmering light patterns, how it works its way over stone and, perhaps most important, the joy it can bring. Its potential to entertain and sustain us is indeed vast, but for all of its glories, water can also be inglorious as well – as when rivers overflow their banks, rainfall collapses roofs or tsunamis inundate coastlines. So while we in the watershaping world are justified in revering water, we also

A Time for Leadership

In the 40-plus years I’ve been involved in the pool and spa industry, I’ve had the opportunity to work with a variety of organizations on the local, state and national levels. Every step along the way, I worked closely with people who displayed a variety of leadership styles and have done my best to perform well when I’ve been called on to take those leading roles myself. These experiences leave me convinced that

Greener Grass, Higher Tides

Last year in our May issue, I put a deliberately upbeat spin on market conditions that had prompted us at WaterShapes to switch temporarily to a bimonthly publishing schedule. The tack I took did not go unnoticed. In the aftermath of our announcement, of course, many of you let us know that you were four-square behind the magazine and offered to pitch in to do whatever you could to help – all of which was and remains most appreciated. But there were others who, in various ways, essentially told me that

A Daily Dose

As I’ve mentioned before in this space, my education in landscape architecture pulled up lame when it came to instruction in art and art history. That shortfall has bothered me greatly as my career has progressed, but the silver lining is that I’ve been motivated to seek out sources I can use to teach myself what I think I need to know. My latest find in this campaign is a wonderful book designed specifically to prompt personal voyages of exploration: It’s called The Daily Book of Art: 365 Readings That Teach, Inspire and Entertain (Walter Foster Publishing, 2009) and delivers on its title’s promise by

Plants and swimming pools go together beautifully, says watershaper James Robyn, particularly when a pool is flanked by a gorgeous stream and pond. And as he observes in discussing a recent project that included participation of master watergardener Anthony Archer Wills, it gets even more interesting when you set things up in such a way that the all of the systems can be combined into one fully functional ‘natural pool’ in the future.

Planting a Pool

When these clients decided that they wanted to have a swimming pool, they knew above all else that they did not want another box of blue water. By contrast, as avid patrons of Disney World, the Princeton, N.J., homeowners had decided that their pool should be what they called “Disney natural” – not as completely naturalistic as a real pond, but natural enough so that they and their children could suspend disbelief and pretend that they were swimming in a pond. Before we came on the scene, the clients had

Animal Applications

Marine and zoological exhibits have always presented watershapers with a variety of specific technical challenges, not the least of which is devising a waterproofing system that will keep these vessels watertight, the viewing areas dry and the animal life safe. Here, Michael Mudrick and Elena Danke of Aquafin discuss a variety of lessons to be learned in pursuing these projects – and how they apply to other watershapes as well. Designing, engineering and installing watershapes for zoological and aquarium applications is never a casual exercise, especially when it comes to waterproofing. Not only do you have to find a product or combination of products that can accommodate various structural penetrations, adhere to all of the materials being used and, quite often, conform to irregularly shaped surfaces: Whatever material or system you select must also

In an effort to broaden interest in use of sensible water-management systems, Aquascape’s Ed Beaulieu set out early in 2009 to persuade his hometown to submit to a thorough ‘green makeover.’ Working with homeowners and city officials, he brought in a flock of pond/stream professionals to install – in just one day – a host of rainwater-capturing systems, ponds and streams. In the process, they created what suddenly became a more sustainable community.

A Green Harvest

Oddly enough, this story takes place in a down economy and shows how, despite perceived financial limitations, something surprising and wonderful can happen when people put their minds to it. For years now, my work at Aquascape (St. Charles, Ill.) has largely focused on developing, designing and installing systems that in one or more ways are environmentally sound and beneficial. In early 2009, I began working on a plan for a prototype community designed around optimal use of its resources, especially water. I imagined a town filled with rainwater-capturing systems, permeable surfaces and efficient irrigation. It included nothing but indigenous plants, was organized with minimal turf areas and set aside space for composting and cooperative organic farming. As for the homes, all of them boasted various resource- and energy-efficient features. The overall concept was so

Seeking Perfection

Through the past two years, a handful of voices in this magazine and elsewhere have called for building pools without drains as a means of virtually eliminating suction-entrapment incidents. The response to this suggestion has been strong, both for and against. In sifting through some of these discussions – including a key interview with Dr. William N. Rowley that appeared online last fall on the WaterShapes Web site – one item caught my eye: It came from a watershaper who clearly didn’t have