Pool Plant Room
The Plant Room contains the pool circulation and filtration equipment required to treat the pool water. In indoor pool installations additional space will be required for Air Handling Unit (AHU).
Space Requirements
The space required to house the various parts of equipment needed for a modern private domestic pool can be neglected in the pool planning process.
As soon as there is any public use element, then the space required will increase substantially because of the more stringent sanitation and filtration requirements.
An indoor domestic pool will normally require at least 8m²
It is preferable to keep the pool plant room less than 6 metres from the pool to keep down head loss in the various pipes. The plant room can be above or below the pool water level. If it is below the pool water level an isolation valve is needed to stop the pool from flooding the plant room when essential maintenance is being undertaken.
The pool plant always incorporates 240 volt electrics and so unless the electrical equipment is designed for external use, a waterproof cover must be provided.
Essential Elements
Sanitation:
Water sanitation is normally provided by automatic liquid chlorine injection or salt water chlorination control systems. The equipment for both includes the water treatment cells that need to be fixed to a vertical surface, a 25 litre acid container and a 25 litre chlorine container for liquid chlorine injection.
Filtration:
The filtration system elements consist of a floor mounted water circulation pump and a sand filter that is normally 600mm in diameter or more with a side mounted multiport valve. The pool pipework will normally emerge from the floor and be connected into a manifold, the pump, the filter and the water treatment cells.
Heating:
Pool heating does not affect the pool plant room requirements because heat pumps are installed on their own plinth outside the plant room and solar panels will be also installed somewhere outside of course.
Lights:
A programmable time switch and transformers for the pool submerged lights are also normally fixed to a vertical wall in one control unit installed in the pool plant room.