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18 Jan 2022

Hold On There Drought! – Please Don’t Pick on the Pool Builder

By 2021SUNSET

In October we thought we were headed to a long spell of no water. We have now have had some really good rain and there is now snowpack in the mountains. California is doing a whole lot better with water. As a pool builder we always focus on water and making sure we have enough. But hey, don’t pick on the pool builder, remember, green lawns use 2x the water than loss due to evaporation from pool.

Please Don’t Pick on the Pool Builder

JAN11 – California is now out of the worst drought category; here’s where conditions stand

For the first time in more than a year, all of California is out of the worst drought category as the state’s overall outlook shows major improvement since the start of the water year.

As of Tuesday, when the U.S. Drought Monitor released its latest map, 0% of the Golden State was experiencing “exceptional” drought — something that hasn’t happened since Dec. 8, 2020.

Additionally, only approximately 1.4% is in the second-worst “extreme” drought category, data from the the federal monitor shows.

JAN4 – Here’s how much California’s drought has improved recently | KTLA

Back at the beginning of October, when California’s current water year started, the state was deep in drought following one of its driest years on record.

Nearly half of California was experiencing “exceptional” drought — the most severe category, according to the U.S. Drought Monitor, which keeps track of such figures. More than 87% of the state faced at least “extreme” drought.

Flash forward three months later, and a precipitation-filled October and December helped ameliorate the state’s water problem, at least to some degree.

“The latest U.S. Drought Monitor map shows quite a bit of improvement over the last few week thanks to the above normal precip in Dec.,” the National Weather Service’s Los Angeles office tweeted Thursday. “Short term drought has improved but long term impacts remain.”

22 Mar 2019

Oh Hail, CA Is Drought Free!

By Sunset

All right already the rain can now stop! The snow pack is more than I can ever remember and it still looks like more could hit this season.

It truly is a nice thought that we are drought free for now, but we can’t loose sight of water conservation. In the past I’ve written blogs such as ‘Please Don’t Pick on the Pool Builder’ that have pointed out that having a pool doesn’t mean your property as a whole can’t be water wise. I am personally continuing to tighten up the water saving belt and still have a pool. We recently installed artificial turf in the front yard to permanently stop unneeded water use on a lawn. I installed a drain system that reintroduced any run off water on my property into the native soil instead of the gutter. We removed a fountain that was a waste of water and a maintenance issue at times. Newer appliances and fixtures are mandated to be water savers and energy savers. I’m glad to help you consider ways to become more water wise.

Good news, I’m excited about the upcoming river rafting season that has struggled in past years. Lakes that have been low and ugly will be full and beautiful. This weekend is the peak of the Wildflower Super Bloom in many areas in SoCal with many flowers yet to bloom as it warms up for Spring. We experienced an amazing migration of Pink Lady butterflies from Mexico that was a first for this 54 year native. Parts of Los Alamitos, Long Beach and Lakewood saw intense hail storm that dropped large hail balls. Thank you Amy Mora for this entertaining video.

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Please share with us any extraordinary experiences you have witnessed due to this wet weather.

*Featured image from https://twitter.com/DigitalGlobe/status/1108441980567277573/photo/1

14 Feb 2019

Winter Storms Push Back CA Drought

By Sunset

In just a few recent weeks the wet winter has greatly reduced drought conditions here in California. The mountains are covered in snow, Mammoth mountain recently received 11+ feet in just 5 consecutive days.

“The U.S. Drought Monitor reported Thursday, February 7th, that a large portion of the state including the Sierra Nevada, much of the Central Valley and the San Francisco Bay Area is free of any significant dryness. Heavy rain has also ended most of the moderate drought that stretched from the Central Coast to the southern tier of the state, leaving a lesser condition designated as abnormally dry, according to the monitor.”*

Even before the recent stormy weather, the California Department of Water Resources found the Sierra snowpack above 100 percent of normal, an important reading because it holds about a third of the state’s water supply. It is now well over 125 percent of normal.**

Please Don’t Pick on the Pool Builder

Yes, on the surface it seems like a swimming pool uses a lot of water. Of course, we do not want to waste water, so be sure your pool doesn’t have a leak, a pretty obvious issue. Beyond a possible leak, when you think about the water consumption per square foot on a piece of property, you have many other culprits which waste much more water. The biggest culprit is your luscious green Marathon II sod lawn. This lawn uses much more water per square foot on your property than any other item except for maybe your toilet and shower. We believe the lawn and landscaping needs more attention than the swimming pool.

We did some research and found out that the per square foot evaporation rate of a swimming pool at an average temperature of 75 degrees is almost half of what it takes to maintain a Marathon II sod lawn. This doesn’t take into account the area around a pool known as decking which is either a concrete or other hard surface which requires no water. If you take the square footage of your swimming pool and decking area into account, you will likely see about 50% or less consumption of water compared to a lawn with landscaping.

Bottomline

We desperately need the rain but still need to be #waterwise all year long!

*https://ktla.com/2019/02/07/wet-winter-greatly-reduces-drought-conditions-in-california/

**https://cdec.water.ca.gov/snowapp/sweq.action

20 Aug 2018

Water Features Transform the Swimming Pool

By Sunset

Back in the day, a pool was considered cool if it had a diving board. Nowadays, diving boards are nearly non-existent and have been replaced by new, awesome water features. Water features are a must in almost any pool and can totally transform your backyard and house value. In this article, we’ll look at some of the various water features we can install to transform your pool and ‘Outdoor Living’.

Spillway Waterfall

One of our most popular features is the spillway waterfall. They can be installed in a pool or a spa and is a simple, yet elegant touch to any project. Spillway waterfalls look good, can feel good if you are under them, and create a serene, relaxing noise of running water. We have added a copper spill edge to most waterfalls in order to direct the water off the tile face and make it more attractive with better water sounds.

Spitters

Spitters can be placed anywhere around the edge of the pool and catch the eye of anybody looking at your pool. We once installed crossing spitters which was a fun project to say the least and the end result was awesome.

So, if you currently own a pool and feel that it is missing something then give us a call! Some sort of water feature could surely help boost the functionality and elegance of your pool without having to completely tear up the existing pool. A few subtle additions can make an enormous impact and increase the beauty of your ‘Outdoor Living’.

24 Feb 2016

Please Don’t Pick on the Pool Builder

By Sunset

It appears that in the County of Orange and other far-off regions, some people are jumping to ridiculous conclusions about the drought and shortage of water.

Many of us are also concerned; however, I don’t feel it is fair to pick on the pool builder and the consumer who wants to enjoy a swimming pool. Yes, on the surface it seems like a swimming pool uses a lot of water. Of course we certainly do not want to waste water, so be sure your pool doesn’t have a leak, a pretty obvious issue. Beyond a possible leak, when you think about the water consumption per square foot on a piece of property, you have many other culprits which are much bigger wasters of water. The biggest culprit is your luscious green Marathon II sod lawn. This lawn uses much more water per square foot on your property than any other item except for maybe your toilet and shower. I believe the lawn and landscaping needs more attention than the swimming pool.

We did some research and found out that the per square foot evaporation rate of a swimming pool at an average temperature of 75 degrees is almost half of what it takes to maintain a Marathon II sod lawn. But, this doesn’t take into account the area around a pool known as decking which is either a concrete or other hard surface which requires no water. If you take the square footage of your swimming pool and decking area into account, you will likely see about 50% or less consumption of water compared to a lawn with landscaping.

I believe we all need to tighten up our water saving belt. As a pool builder, have done this by planting drought tolerant landscaping around my backyard pool. I have also removed my front lawn and replaced it with hard stone and drought tolerant succulents to greatly reduce my water consumption.

This is Southern California and I love being able to splish-splash in my swimming pool. I don’t want to feel guilty about enjoying my swimming pool and I don’t want others to feel guilty either.

To follow we will send out a series of emails to help you be more Water Wise. These emails will include water savings tips for:

Pools and Spas
Landscaping
Inside Your Home

Please contact us if you need help tightening your water belt. Give us a call at (562) 881-6000.

I enjoy helping Southern California residents to elevate their outdoor living. We have ideal weather–why not make the best of Southern California living?

Cheers, JZ

P.S. I’m still hopeful for El Niño to help refill our water reservoirs, but we all need to save water together.