June/July 2007

The voice of the Wet Industry

Success in
Melbourne
The record
breaking FINA pool
SPAS
Whats new
in Australasia
and the world
Inside:
SPLASH!
New Zealand
2007 Show Guide
and Directory
SPLASH! | 3
Cont ent s
74
43
77
34
contents
INDUSTRY NEWS . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . .7
Whats happening in the pool and spa industry
INDUSTRY MOVES . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . .13
Pool people changing places
INDUSTRY CALENDAR . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . .15
Key dates to keep in mind
INDUSTRY EDUCATION UPDATE . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . .16
Skilling up and gaining credit
WAR OVER WATER . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . .22
The tussle over our valuable resource
THE CASE FOR RECYCLING . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . .26
Water expert Greg Leslie explains why it make sense
INDUSTRY REVIEWS . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . .30
Products and books, including freebies
FALLING IN LOVE WITH SPAS . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . .34
Australasian trends and markets
SPLASH! NEW ZEALAND EXPO GUIDE . . . . . . . . . . .43
Everything you need to know about the big show
SOAKING UP THE SPA MARKET . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . .54
International developments in spa technology
PLAN TO SURVIVE . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . .64
Sue Hirst offers budgeting and planning tips
SPLASH! COMMERCIAL . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . .67
News and features from the commercial sector
INTO THE BIGGER POND . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . .74
AstralPool Australias commercial launch
GLASS TREES TOP A MAGIC SPA . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . .77
An amazing spa in the Swiss Alps
PRODUCT RELEASES . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . .78
The latest equipment, materials and technology
SUBSCRIPTION FORM . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . .90
ADVERTISERS INDEX . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . .90
SilentFlo
Pool owners will quickly see the benefits of the Onga
SilentFlo- lower electricity bills and happier neighbours.
The new generation Onga SilentFlo is quiet and efficient.
For further information phone Pentair Water Australia toll free on 1800 664 266,
View our full range of Onga products on our website www.pentairwater.com.au
The Quiet and Efficient
Premium Pool Pump
The new Onga
Lower electricity bills and happier neighbours
The leading edge in hydraulic design
Energy Efficient and low noise
Intelligent design
Available now
SPLASH! | 5
editorial
Wel come t o SPLASH!
Swi mmi ng Pool Li f est yl e And Spa Hi - t ech
Publ i shed by
The Intermedia Group Pty Ltd
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The views expressed in this magazine do not necessarily represent those
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magazine be seen to be endorsed by the above.
June/July 2007
The voice of the Wet Industry
Success in
Melbourne
The record
breaking FINA pool
S
P
A
S

Whats new
in Australasia
and the world
Inside:
SPLASH!
New Zealand
2007 Show Guide
and Directory
This mont hs cover
I
t was good to see Sydney Water stick up for the swimming pool industry last
month. A Greens spokesman had called the lling of new pools proigate mis-
use of water. (Now thats a word you dont use every day.)
A Sydney Water spokesman, Colin Judd, responded on ABC radio, saying that pools
are very small users in the scope of things in fact, they use only one per cent of
Sydneys total. He added that the requirements for lling pools such as water
efcient taps and toilets will save us much more water, and will continue to do so
long into the future.
It just highlights the point that the water shortage is a serious issue, but we
shouldnt just pull down the shutters because of it. Instead, we need to continue to
think of ways to improve water efciency and as usual, there are a few ideas along
those lines in this issue of SPLASH!
On an entirely different note, the preparations are gathering speed for the big expo
in New Zealand, and its sounding pretty exciting so far. As well as the seminars and
the trade show, there will be some extremely interesting announcements. Weve got
to stay quiet about them for the moment, but all will be revealed on the day.
Im looking forward to meeting members of the New Zealand industry face-to-face,
and enjoying the many networking opportunities such as the welcome reception on
the evening of Wednesday 25th, the Austrade breakfast on the morning of Thursday
26th and the golf day at the fabulous Formosa Resort on Friday 27th.
If you see me there please say gday especially if you have something of interest for
SPLASH! or an opinion about the magazine or the show.
I look forward to seeing you there.
Chris Maher
Editor
The pool at the Auckland Hilton provides one of the best
underwater views in New Zealand right across Auckland
Harbour. The SPLASH! New Zealand Expo will be held at
this world class hotel on July 25-26, 2007.
Photography courtesy of the Auckland Hilton.
Eco-Friendly Glass Filtration Media
for your Pool
Did you know that Diamond Kleen has anti-bio lm properties
that discourage bacteria and algae from breeding in your
swimming pool lter tank.
Diamond Kleen is made from100% recycled glass that acts
as a healthier alternative to silica sand and zeolite. Diamond
Kleen attracts no residue, so bacteria is unable to attach
itself to the particles and breed within your lter tank; this is
something sand cannot do.
Diamond Kleen can save up to 25% of water through reduced
backwashing. Larger spaces between particles is what makes
backwashing more efcient. Reduced backwashing means
fewer chemicals are used, saving you money and reducing the
amount of chemicals washed away into our eco-system.
Diamond Kleen is available now and compatible with any Poolrite lter.
Manufactured by:
Poolrite Equipment
ABN 11 001 674 004
www.poolrite.com.au
info@poolrite.com.au
Queensland (HQ)
415 Creek Road
Mt Gravatt, 4122
P 07 3323 6555
F 07 3323 6500
North Queensland
36 Hugh Ryan Dr
Garbutt 4814
P 07 4779 4880
F 07 4779 6714
New South Wales
6 Forsyth Close
Wetherill Park 2164
P 02 9729 0166
F 02 9729 2759
Victoria
1 Endeavour Way
Braeside 3195
P 03 9588 1770
F 03 9588 1779
Western Australia
16 Ledgar Road
Balcatta 6021
P 08 9344 3871
F 08 9345 3923
SPLASH! | 7
industry news
THE Australian Pesticides and Vet-
erinary Medicines Authority (APVMA)
held a seminar in Canberra at the end of
March discussing, amongst other things,
revisions to the Efcacy Guideline.
One of the topics of interest was label-
ling, including the some comments
about the unnecessary technicality of
terms used on labels and the need for
simpler procedures for the approval
of minor label changes such as colour
changes. The APVMA agreed to take
these concerns on board and refer label
content issues to the labelling reform
working group.
There were also questionsabout the
extended period required for approving
marketed product labels(MPLs) com-
pared with the previously approved text
labels, with the APMVA saying that the
quality of labelshad improved markedly
since the implementation of MPLsand
that it expected the full implementation of
E-labelsshould improve turn-round time.
The APVMA invited nomination of
representatives from the pool industry to
join the labelling reform group.
The afternoon was taken up with dis-
cussion on the revisions to the Efcacy
Guideline. Dave Loschke began pro-
ceedings by explaining the background
to the Guideline, including the need for
efcacy standards and the use of chlo-
rine as the reference standard, as in the
US, Canada, the EU and the UK.
There followed a series of discussions
about a variety of areas to do with the
Efcacy Guideline, including testing
methods, equivalence, the inclusion
of various organisms and the exclu-
sion of others. While the need for peer
reviewed benchmark tests and meth-
ods was supported, the need for both
laboratory and eld testing was queried
by some, but defended by Loschke,
who said it would be irresponsible to
put humans in a pool without doing the
preliminary studies. There was also a
general discussion of submissions and
data generally, and the need for trials to
cover periods of high challenge.
Loschke said the issues will be taken on
board and an amended guideline version
will be available within 2 months.
The seminar seemed to be successful and
the APVMA agreed to have more of these
seminarswith usersaswell asregistrants.
APVMA meet s wi t h indust r y
The APVMA recent l y hel d a pool and spa i ndust r y semi nar
Barca beckons
Excel l ent prospect s f or exhi bi t ors i n t he next Pi sci na Barcel ona
PREPARATIONS for the bi g Euro-
pean show of the year are heati ng up.
Wi th four months to go, Pi sci na Barce-
l ona (the Internati onal Swi mmi ng Pool
Show) has al ready recei ved booki ngs
from more than 488 compani es from
29 countri es. More than hal f of these
exhi bi tors are from outsi de Spai n.
Piscina Barcelona will have ve inter-
national pavilions: Australia, France, the
United Kingdom and, for the rst time,
China and the USA.
The Australian Pavilion has the full
support of Austrade, who will assist
exhibitors in developing partnerships
helping to reduce the time, risk and
cost of nding European partners.
For the rst time the SPLASH! team
will be working alongside SPASA
Queensland to promote companies
exhibiting in the Australian Pavilion in
pre- and post- show event coverage.
The event will take place from 17-
20 October 2007 in Barcelona and is
expected to attract more than 19,000
buyers. The exhibitor package includes
freight and travel arrangements as well as
additional marketing support.
Interested companies should contact
Dave McLeod on (02) 8586 6135 as
space is limited.
Alongside France, Spain isEuropeslarg-
est market for swimming poolsand Pis-
cina Barcelona isthisyearsleading event
for the pool and spa sector in Europe.
The Expo i s renowned f or i t s ai r
as wel l as i t s busi ness opport uni t i es
Pi sci na Barcel ona i s expect ed t o
at t ract more t han 19,000 vi si t ors
8 | SPLASH!
industry news
RECENT media reports have questioned the importance of
rescue breathing in cardiopulmonary resuscitation (CPR) but
Royal Life Saving is alerting Australians that rescue breathing
is a vital part of CPR.
A Japanese study recently reported that heart massage alone
gave cardiac arrest patients a higher chance of survival. While
this may be the case in cardiac arrests, Royal Life Saving is
reminding Australians that in drowning cases it is important to
get oxygen to the vital organs as soon as possible. The best way
to ensure adequate breathing in a victim is to undertake CPR
including the initial rescue breaths.
Drowning victims have often been without oxygen to the
vital organs for some minutes and it is imperative that oxygen
ow is resumed as soon as possible to the victim to lessen the
chance of death or brain damage, says Rob Bradley, CEO,
Royal Life Saving Australia.
Last year the Australian Resuscitation Council updated its
guidelines and now recommends 30 chest compressions fol-
lowed by two mouth-to-mouth rescue breaths as the most effec-
tive way to deliver CPR. This information is based on the best
evidence available and brings Australia in line with American
and European CPR standards.
Royal Life Saving encourages all adults to participate in a
CPR course and says the prompt application of resuscitation
to someone in danger can mean the difference between life
and death. Rescue breaths are an important part of CPR.
In most cases, a family member is the rst on the scene in an
emergency and having the skills to react is vital, says Bradley.
Last year, 265 people drowned in Australia and without the
numerous successful resuscitation actions by the public and
lifesavers, this number would have been far higher. Organisa-
tions such as Royal Life Saving regularly conduct resuscitation
and rst aid training courses across Australia and encourage all
Australians to ensure their CPR skills are up to date by partici-
pating in a course.
Royal Life Saving drowning statistics are primarily collected
from the National Coroners Information System (NCIS).
For further information please visit www.royallifesaving.com.au.
Breat hs save lives
Escape from double disaster
CPR, i ncl udi ng mout h- t o- mout h br eat hs, r ecent l y saved a pai r of t wi n boys who
near l y dr owned i n t hei r gr andmot her s back yar d pool i n Si ngl et on, NSW.
Brai t h and Set h Hedl ey were f ound bl ue and oat i ng unconsci ous i n t he pool by
t hei r mot her, Bel i nda and t hei r f at her Shaun. Toget her t he parent s perf or med CPR
i ncl udi ng mout h- t o- mout h and saved t he boys.
They had previ ousl y undert aken rst - ai d t rai ni ng courses.
The ambul ance of cer who at t ended t he scene was cl ear i n hi s opi ni on t hat t he
parent s had saved t he boys l i ves, and sai d t hat i f t heyd wai t ed f or an ambul ance
i t woul d have been t oo l at e.
Whi l e t he pool was f enced, t he near- f at al mi st ake was t hat t he gat e was unl at ched.
Royal Li f e Savi ng recommends resusci t at i ons ski l l s be updat ed ever y 12 mont hs t o
remai n current .
A di f f erent t ype of near- drowni ng i nci dent i n Mel bour ne bri ngs home t he f act t hat
parent s need t o be al ert around al l wat er, not j ust swi mmi ng pool s. An 11- mont h-
ol d gi rl f el l head- rst i nt o a l arge bucket of nappi es. The i nf ant was resusci t at ed,
but st i l l had t o be t reat ed i n i nt ensi ve care.
Promot ion makes big noise wi t h Pioneer
THROUGHOUT the summer season,
Kreepy Krauly operated a competition
for pool owners who purchase any of the
Kreepy Krauly range of automatic pool
cleaners. Up for grabs was a full Pio-
neer Home Theatre System including
a huge 51 Pioneer plasma screen and
full Pioneer surround sound acoustics,
including full installation by a group of
Pioneer technicians.
Royal Li f e Savi ng Aust ral i a says
t hat CPR rescue breat hs shoul d be
used, especi al l y i n drowni ng i nci dent s
Heather Ringland from Dubbo, NSW,
purchased her Kreepy Krauly from The
Poolside Dubbo Pool Store and was
over the moon when informed of her
win. I never win anything ! were the
only words she could manage.
Promotions of this kind are great for
the industry as well as the consumer, es-
pecially when they involve an association
with an industry leader such as Pioneer.
Pool si de Dubbo st af f wi t h
t he compet i t i on wi nner
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That's why poo| bu||ders |n every
reg|on are now |nsta|||ng so many
u||y automat|c, bu||t-|n cover
systems on the|r poo|s.
Automat|c covers are surpr|s|ng|y
easy to se|| because they have so
many benets. They not on|y
save water, they a|so save t|me,
eort, chem|ca|s and heat|ng b|||s.
They |ook good, and o course,
they can save ||ves.
And, when |t comes to automated,
env|ronmenta||y r|end|y, poo|
systems, Sunbather's mu|t| award-
w|nn|ng range o secur|ty covers
has a|| bases covered.
Automat|c Secur|ty B|ankets have
r|g|d s|ats to |ock |n poo| warmth
overn|ght and Automat|c Secur|ty
Covers have the 1ex|b|||ty to t any
shape or s|ze. Both work perect|y
on domest|c and commerc|a|
|nsta||at|ons w|th retrot mode|s
ava||ab|e.
And surpr|s|ng|y, they are now a|so
easy to |nsta||. Pre-packaged and
backed by Sunbather's years o
expert|se, your |nsta||at|ons w||| be
troub|e ree. And | you have any
doubt, |ust |et Sunbather prove how
s|mp|e and protab|e automat|c
poo| covers can be.
But |t doesn't end there. A un|que
COVER PROTECTION SYSTEM*
w|th saety cut-outs and automat|c
water |eve| ma|ntenance |s bu||t |n
to every Sunbather automat|c cover.
Des|gned to g|ve you and your
customer tota| condence, CPS |s
part o the poo| cover revo|ut|on.
l you'd ||ke to keep pace w|th that
revo|ut|on |ust r|ng 1800 COVERS
or v|s|t the Sunbather webs|te now.
Uncovered pooIs can Iose twice
their voIume of water through
evaporation every year. And in
the driest continent on earth,
that's becoming unacceptabIe.
|||u|||A!| Su|_S_11_O6
www.sunbather.com.au
Phone Sunbather on 03 5979 5777
Pespons|b|e water conservat|on?
Pe|ax, Sunbather has |t covered.
*Patent pend|ng
SPLASH! | 11
industry news
ANDY & Sons Pool Shop won the
Specialised Business category in Canter-
bury Local Business Awards, presented
in May.
Proprietors Karri Nadazdy and Ni-
cholas Virtue accepted the award from
Canterbury Mayor, Robert Furolo.
Karris father, Andy Nadazdy, founded
the business in 1972 in Campsie, and in
2005, Karri and her partner Nick took
over ownership, relocated the shop to
larger premises and increased the range
of products and services while continu-
ing to maintain competitive pricing.
Located on Canterbury Road, Andy &
Sons offer a large range of equipment,
chemicals and accessories as well as a
team of mobile technicians.
Canterbur y pool shop wins business award
THE Gold Coast City Council has
unveiled three new online initiatives to
make planning and development infor-
mation instantly available.
Development Application (DA) Track-
ing On-Line, Planning Scheme On-Line
and RiskSmart, all funded jointly by
Council and the Federal Government
through AusIndustry, are the newest
initiatives to be introduced on the Gold
Coast through the $50 million national
Regulation Reduction Incentive Fund
(RRIF).
Whi l e pl anni ng can be a compl ex i s-
sue for many resi dents and smal l busi -
ness operators, DA Tracki ng On-Li ne
wi l l di spel much of the mystery and
gi ve everyone easy access to a range of
property i nformati on, both current and
hi stori c.
Anyone with access to the Internet will
be able to source information on valu-
ations, property constraints, easements,
development applications and approvals,
simply by keying in a street address.
For further information, visit the councils
website: www.goldcoastcity.com.au/pdonline
Online DAs f or GC
THE SPASA/Action Tanks Seminar Pro-
gram is coming up on Thursday July 12,
8am 5:10pm. It will be held at Rosehill
Gardens, James Ruse Drive Rosehill.
Cost is $250 (including GST) per person
for SPASA members; and $285 (including
GST) for non-members.
The keynote speakers include:
Phil Lee, Sandler International: pre-
senting a sales and marketing workshop
with a difference. In an entertaining
90 minutes, attendees will be left with
some ideas that should improve con-
version rates.
Dr Peter Seebacher, consultant to the
Australian Greenhouse Ofce. He will
be talking about Energy Efciency
in Equipment Program in relation to
swimming pools and spa equipment,
and how electronic equipment will be
subjected to star ratings, just as house-
hold whitegoods currently are.
Laurie Lawrence will be the lunch-
time speaker: a motivational speech
from former Australian rugby union
representative and Olympic and world
champion swim coach.
Paul Laurence, Special Projects and
Technical Services from the Master
Builders Association of NSW: Paul
will talk about why training is the key
to the industrys future. He will give an
overview of the Certicate Level IV in
Pool Building, due to come online this
year through the TAFE network.
Panel session on water conservation: a
panel of industry members will discuss
one of the countrys hottest topics. The
panel will include David Lloyd from
International Quadratics, Paul Daw-
son from Sealed Air, Brendan Scotter
from Action Tanks, and Theo Haaima
from ABGAL Liners and Covers.
Following the seminars will be the
2007 SPASA NSW Trade Expo. The
expo will be open from 4pm 8pm on
Thursday July 12th, and from 10am
5pm on Friday July 13th.
It wi l l feature 75 di spl ay spaces,
wi th the most up-to-date products and
servi ces avai l abl e to the swi mmi ng
pool and spa i ndustry at the ti me of
wri ti ng the Expo had nearl y reached
exhi bi tor capaci ty.
On Thursday there will be a compli-
mentary Happy Hour from 6pm;
Complimentary BBQ lunch from
noon 4pm Friday;
A complimentary educational work-
shop will be held on Thursday evening
on retail insurance packaging;
Complimentary educational work-
shops on the hour from 10am Friday:
*Action Tanks (earns 1 CPD point)
* Riversands interior applications
(1 CPD point)
*Zodiac Group Australia (1 CPD point)
*Poolrite Equipment (1 CPD point)
Attendance at the seminars earns 14
CPD points, while expo attendance
earns 5 CPD points.
Fol l owi ng the Expo wi l l be the 2007
SPASA Annual Swi mmi ng Pool & Spa
Awards, hel d at a gal a presentati on di n-
ner on Saturday Jul y 14th at Rosehi l l
Gardens. Thi s i s a SPASA members-
onl y functi on. There wi l l be awards for
the four regi onal chapters; metropol i -
tan nomi nati ons; i ndustry awards; and
state awards. The eveni ng wi l l i ncl ude
a four-course di nner wi th beverages, i n
addi ti on to entertai nment.
To book for the awards dinner or semi-
nars, contact SPASA on (02) 9747 6644.
NSW happenings
There are a number of SPASA NSW event s comi ng up
Karri Nadazdy and Ni chol as Vi rt ue accept i ng
t he award f rom Cant erbur y Mayor, Robert Furol o
SPLASH! | 13
NEW FOCUS WAREHOUSE AND
MANAGER FOR NSW
Focus Products has continue its growth
with the opening of a new company-
owned warehouse in Sydney. The move
offers the New South Wales market
access to the same quality products,
delivery service, marketing and techni-
cal support as Focus customers around
the country.
The range includes everything to ensure
customers swimming pools are safe and
crystal clear, including sodium hypochlo-
rite, hydrochloric acid, accessories and
even PVC pipe and ttings.
The sales operation in NSW will be
overseen by Ms Michelle Norris, a spa
specialist with a proven track record in
the pool and spa industry, who takes the
reins as NSW State Sales Manager.
Norris has been brought up in the
pool and spa industry. Her initial train-
ing was in South Australia, where her
parents owned a pool and spa shop for
30 years. She has worked in the indus-
try for more than 16 years in a variety
of roles including business develop-
ment, sales and management. For the
past two years she has been working in
the Queensland industry as sales and
business development manager for a
national company.
She i s exci ted about the opportuni ty
to bri ng Focus Products i nto NSW
from the Sydney warehouse and says:
I cant wai t to conti nue our com-
mi tment to the pool and spa i ndustry
by taki ng the l ead i n NSW. Wi th the
ful l techni cal support and servi ce that
Focus provi des i t creates fantasti c busi -
ness opportuni ti es.
Michelle Norris can be contacted on
mobile number 0406 040 379 or through
the head ofce at 1300 1 FOCUS.
SAD LOSS OF WATER EXPERT
Aspi Bari a, Techni cal Speci al i st at
ACTEW, the ACT water corporati on,
has di ed i n a boati ng acci dent. Bari a
ori gi nal l y came from Kenya before
bei ng educated i n Engl and and movi ng
to Austral i a.
He became wel l know i n recent
years, as he was heavi l y i nvol ved i n
managi ng the water restri cti ons i n
the ACT and pl anni ng the terri torys
future water suppl y.
PERKINS BUYS HALF OF AVP
Perkins, a WA commercial building,
engineering and property group, has
bought a 50 per cent stake in com-
mercial swimming pool contractor AVP
Constructions. AVP is the largest com-
mercial pool builder in the west.
The building division of Perkins, Per-
kins Builders, is WAs leading construc-
tion company in the area of sporting,
leisure and aquatic facilities.
ZODIAC COMBINES WITH
WATER PIK
The Zodiac Group has entered into
exclusive discussions with Carlyle to
combine Zodiac Marine with Water Pik,
already jointly owned by Carlyle and the
Zodiac Group.
Carl yl e woul d own 72 per cent of the
combi ned enti ty and Zodi ac woul d
retai n a 28 per cent stake. Jean-Marc
Dai l l ance, CEO of Zodi ac Mari ne, wi l l
be CEO of the combi ned company.
Zodi ac Mari ne, the Mari ne Segment
of Zodi ac, i s a worl dwi de suppl i er
i n mari ne and pool products, and
above-ground pool s. It i s a l eader i n
i natabl e boats, l i fesavi ng equi pment,
commerci al mari ne sani tati on systems,
and certai n pool cl eaners, pool heaters
and other pool care products, wi th
wel l -known brands Zodi ac and Pol ari s,
as wel l as Avon, Bombard and Evac.
It i ncl udes si x busi ness sectors: Pool
Care, Pool s, Mari ne Recreati onal
Boats, Mari ne Mi l i tary/Professi onal
boats and two commerci al mari ne
equi pment sectors: Sol as and Envi ron-
mental Sol uti ons.
Zodiac Marine has strong international
presence built on continuous internal
growth as well as a regular acquisition
process in key regions in the pool and
marine industries: North America, Eu-
rope and Australia.
The major opportunity for Zodiac Ma-
rine is to ensure that each sector would
continue to have the resources necessary
for their individual growth, to reinforce
their market presence through acquisi-
tions, and to participate with Carlyle in
the global development of the Marine
Segment businesses.
Water Pik is a leading developer,
manufacturer and marketer of innova-
tive pool products sold under the Jandy
brand name. A highly innovative and
expanding range of products, along
with the strong equity of the Jandy
brand, and superior sales, marketing
and customer support, has generated
signicant momentum with both pool
builders and consumers, mainly in
North America.
It i s contempl ated that Jandy, Water
Pi ks pool equi pment operati ons, al -
ready j oi ntl y owned by Carl yl e (80%)
and Zodi ac (20%), be combi ned wi th
the new group, thereby creati ng a
l eadi ng suppl i er of pool equi pment
wi th gl obal operati ons. Water Pi ks
Pool Products busi ness i s compl e-
mentary to the exi sti ng acti vi ti es of
Zodi acs Pool Care Sector, whi ch i s
al ready represented i n Austral i a by
Zodi ac Group Austral i a.
PERSONNEL SHUFFLE
John Harding has moved into a position
at PQ, while Trevor Coakley has moved
from PQ back to Niagara. Natasha Bald-
cock has moved from Niagara to Pentair.
PENTAIR VICE CHAIRMAN
RETIRES
Ri chard J Cathcart wi l l reti re as Vi ce
Chai rman and di rector of Pentai r i n
September. He j oi ned Pentai r i n 1995
and recentl y l ed the companys gl obal
growth efforts i n the Water Group.
Indust r y moves
industry news
14 | SPLASH!
OFFICIALS UNAWARE OF POOLS
IN CHILD CARE CENTRES
State ofcials in Maine, USA, have started an investigation into
swimming pools in child care centres, following the drowning
of a three-year-old boy in March. Previously, the ofcials had
not been aware there were any swimming pools in child care
centres even though they are supposed to be registered with
the state. The boy was one of ve swimming in a 10m long,
one-metre deep pool. The drowning is still being investigated.
TRAINING HELPS ELIMINATE
PREVENTABLE DROWNING
The International Swimming Hall of Fame of Fort Lauderdale,
FL (ISHOF) and the Transpersonal Swimming Institute of Sara-
sota, FL (TSI) have teamed up to promote water safety in the US.
ISHOF and TSI believe that the learn-to-swim program for
adults, expanded to include children, is essential to improve
aquatic safety for all. According to a 1998 Gallup poll, 46 per
cent of American adults are afraid in deep water in pools. 64 per
cent are afraid in open water. Afraid swimmers are at the great-
est risk in water accidents. TSI created a signicant, effective
method to teach scared swimmers and since 1983 has helped
thousands of adults overcome their fear and be safer in water.
Whereas the ability to do strokes and tread water has always
been thought to equate to safety in water, it is actually the
knowledge of how the water works and how to remain in
control which makes learning strokes the next step, and which
gives the greatest level of safety possible, says TSI.
Most drowning is caused by panic and a lack of knowledge
about how the water works, says M. Ellen Dash of TSI. A
person must feel safe in water before learning to swim. A large
percentage of adults and children dont feel safe in deep water;
therefore they havent been able to learn.
SPA ALARM LAW TO CHANGE
The state of New York, USA, is considering a change to its
recently introduced pool alarm legislation, which in its current
form requires an audible pool alarm on all bodies of water
over 600mm deep including swimming pools and spas. The
problem is that spas cannot function properly with current
technology alarms, according to the Northeast Spa and Pool
Association (NESPA). While NESPA was happy for the inclu-
sion of alarms in pools, it wants the reference to spas removed
when they have locking covers.
AQUA DOES DEAL WITH GENESIS 3
Aqua 2007 hasannounced a partnership agreement with the
Genesis3 Design Group the international resource for higher
expectationsin waterscape design. The 2007 Aqua Show Confer-
ence will be held November 12-16, 2007 at the Mandalay Bay
Convention Center, LasVegas, Nevada. Asa key element to the
overall educational line-up, Genesis3 will offer seven 20-hour
coursesaspart of their Design School a full-day Basic Perspec-
tive Drawing Seminar, along with on-oor presence featuring
their Design/Build Pavilion and Educational Studio. Additionally,
Genesis3 will again host the popular Family Reunion & Win-
emaker Dinner and the annual Pig Run Motorcycle Ride.
Around t he Globe
SPLASH! | 15
REMCOs
award winning
water saving
headache cure
with a healthy
return
Complying with the new water saving
requirements should not create a
headache for pool builders.
With Remcos award winning range of automated pool
cover systems, covering up is not only simple, but makes
good nancial sense for pool builders and retailers.
All Remco Pool Covers come fully installed by qualied
Remco technicians and come with free onsite builder
design / construction assistance.
With an automatic pool cover to suit almost any pool
under the Australian sun it is easy to cover with Remco.
For trade pricing and information packs contact Remco
on 1800 652 962.
1800 652 962
www.remco.com.au
info@remco.com.au
2007
June 3- 6 Poolscape, Designbuild trade expo, Darling Harbour
June 13- 15 ARI Conf erence, Terri gal , NSW
June 14- 16 SPASA Ql d General Meet i ng, Cai rns
June 15- 17 SPASA Victoria Spa and Pool Winter Consumer Show
June 19- 20 Wat er Indust r y Fundament al s, Bri sbane
June 20 SPASA NSW General Meet i ng Di nner, Rydges
Parramat t a
Jul y 6 SPASA Ql d Trade Day, Vi ct ori a Park Gol f Compl ex
Jul y 7 SPASA Ql d Awards Di nner, So t el Bri sbane
Jul y 12- 13 SPASA NSW Trade Day and Bui l ders Semi nar,
Rosehi l l Gardens
Jul y 14 SPASA NSW Awards Ni ght , Rosehi l l Gardens
Jul y 16- 20 IWES 2007 wat er management courses, Legends
Hot el , Gol d Coast
Jul y 18- 19 Wat er Indust r y Fundament al s, Sydney
July 25- 26 SPLASH! NZ Expo, Auckland Hilton
Jul y 28 SPASA WA Awards Ni ght , Burswood Bal l room
Jul y 30- 31 Wat er Indust r y Fundament al s, Pert h
Aug 8- 10 Pool and Landscape Chi na 2007, Shanghai
Aug 22 SPASA Ql d Gol f Cl assi c, Gai nsborough Greens
Aug 23 SPASA Vi c Trade Day, Frecci a Azzura Cl ub,
Keysborough
Aug 25 SPASA Vi c Gal a Di nner and Awards Ni ght ,
Mel bourne
Aug 29- 31 Landscape Expo, Mel bourne Showgrounds
Aug 29- 30 Wat er Indust r y Fundament al s, Mel bourne
Sep 5 SPASA Ql d General Meet i ng, Sunshi ne Coast
Sep 19 SPASA Ql d Gol f Day, Gai nsborough Greens
Sep 25- 27 Lei sure Indust r y Week, Bi rmi ngham, UK
Oct 2- 4 Worl d Aquat i c Heal t h Conf erence, Ci nci nnat i , Ohi o,
USA
Oct 12- 14 Pool scape, Desi gnbui l d t rade expo, Pert h
Oct 16- 17 Ci t y & Urban Devel opment Summi t , Bri sbane Con-
vent i on Cent re
Oct 17- 21 Sal on de l a Pi sci na, Barcel ona, Spai n
Oct 31- Nov 3 Aquanal e 2007 conf erence and convent i on,
Col ogne, Germany
Nov 23 SPASA Ql d Meet i ng and Xmas Funct i on, So t el
Gol d Coast
Nov 12- 16 IAAPA Amusement Parks and At t ract i ons Expo,
Fl ori da
Nov 12- 16 Aqua Show and Conf erence, Mandal ay Bay, Las
Vegas
Nov 27- 30 Int ernat i onal Pool & Spa Expo & Conf erence,
Orl ando, Fl ori da
Nov 27- 29 Int erbat h Chi na, Shanghai
2008
Feb 3- 5 Spat ex 08, Bri ght on, UK
July 30- 31 SPLASH! Expo, Conrad Jupiters Gold Coast
These dat es are subj ect t o change and shoul d be checked wi t h
t he rel evant organi sat i on. Pl ease send cal endar submi ssi ons t o
chrismaher@intermedia.com.au
Fut ure indust r y dat es
t o keep in mind
16 | SPLASH!
SPASA NSW is in consultation with the MBA and
the Federal Government, developing a Certicate
Level IV Course in Pool Construction.
In 2001, the Ofce of Fair Trading granted
money to SPASA NSW to undertake a review of
the industry to try to reduce the number of con-
sumer complaints by encouraging builders to lift
their standards.
The information drawn from this review has been
shared with the MBA, who have a deed of agree-
ment with SPASA, with the aim of delivering the
Certicate IV course through TAFE. SPASA hopes to have a comprehensive teach-
ing guide completed by July this year.
New development s in indust r y t raining
A reference group has been set up by the NSW Ofce of Fair Trading (OFT) to
discuss the concept and management of the Compulsory Professional Development
(CPD) program. At the moment, the requirement is for NSW builders to accumulate
100 CPD points over a 3-year period, in an attempt to encourage them to participate
in an educational experience.
There are a number of ways to accumulate points, such as attending the SPLASH!
Expo on the Gold Coast (2 points per seminar plus 5 points for attending the expo),
SPASA trade days (the upcoming SPASA NSW seminars attract 2 points per hour of
educational presentation, plus 5 points for attending the expo), or even by reading
SPLASH! magazine (subscribers accumulate 5 points per year).
At the rst meeting, terms of reference were discussed. Attendees came from a fairly
broad range of interests including the MBA, WorkCover, the CFMEU, CITAB,
TAFE, Back to Basics, HOBAAS, the Insurance Council of Australia and a number
of people from the OFT.
The next meeting will be in early June where theyll look closely at the progress of
the existing program.
Analysing the success of the CPD program
FOCUS Products has established an online training scheme to
ensure businesses can gain the benets of training, without having
the worry of covering staff, deciding who should attend and work-
ing out which sessions they can afford to miss. Thats because all
staff can attend the courses in-store.
Each session will be relevant to pool businesses, covering topics
from product application through to legislative changes. To ensure
that participants know whats coming up, a schedule will be sent to
all Focus customers advising the topic and broadcast times. Focus
Products do not want this, however, to be a one way event and
realise that many of their customers have valuable and accurate in-
formation to share. With this is mind a real time message system
will be in place to the Technical and Training team allowing them
to answer questions or impart information for the benet of the entire Focus network.
To register your interest in this revolutionary training scheme, contact Focus on 1800
425 566 or email info@focusproducts.com.au.
Focussing on online t raining
SPLASH! | 17
IF youre considering purchasing the worlds fastest growing
landscape design program, this will be the ideal time to get
some formal training.
There are two-day introductory training courses for LAND-
WorksCAD v5 around Australia for the rest of the year. This
course is for people who are new to LANDWorksCAD or who
have been using LANDWorksCAD for a while, but want some
formal training to make sure they havent missed anything.
Day One assumes no knowledge of LANDWorksCAD. All
the basics are explained with plenty of time to practice and ask
questions while utilising a series of fun and informative, discrete
exercises leading on to a domestic project in landscape design.
Day Two reinforces Day One, and widely extends the attend-
ees knowledge of LANDWorksCAD. The emphasis for this day
is on making sure attendees really understand how LAND-
WorksCAD functions. Plenty of time is devoted to drawing, but
time is also spent behind the scenes working with the plant
database, creating customised plants, working with scanned
images and other CAD formats.
Although both days are designed to be held together, attend-
ees may elect to only attend Day One of the course and attend
Day Two of a future course. Attendees who already have a
reasonable working knowledge of LANDWorksCAD may elect
to only attend Day Two.
Please contact Bill Murch on (02) 4322 2919 if you think this
might apply to you. To reserve a place call Celine Ross on
(02) 9973 4499.
The cost per person for training is $495+ GST per day.
The workshops will be held in Sydney on August 1 and 2,
and November 21 and 22; Adelaide on November 14 and 15;
Melbourne on July 18 and 19, and November 7 and 8; Perth
on June 27 and 28, and November 28 and 29; and Brisbane on
June 20 and 21, and December 5 and 6.
Learning t o landscape digi t ally
SPASA Vi ctori a has opened regi strati ons for i ts 2007 trai n-
i ng program.
SPASA offersa range of electivesto the development, implemen-
tation and improvement of skillsand serviceswithin the pool and
spa industry, and saysthat participation in one of their training pro-
gramscan produce an immediate positive impact on a business.
New this year is the Accredited Safety Course. This course
includes:
Counter Terrorism Awareness and the Role for Pool Shops;
Dangerous Goods, Risk Assessment; and
Occupational Health & Safety.
The venue is at Holmesglen Conference Centre, at the
Chadstone Campus of Holmesglen Institute of TAFE, corner
of Warrigal and Batesford Roads, Holmesglen.
The safety course is on Friday July 20, 2007. For full details
of electives, course dates, catering, parking and nearby accom-
modation call SPASA Victoria on (03) 9872 4502 or email
info@spasavic.com.au.
Registration forms are available for download at
www.spasavic.com.au.
Vict orians t rain f or saf et y
industry education
SPLASH! | 19
industry news
MARK Spilsbury was skiing down a
mountain in north Japan in terrible
weather, when he came across a shock-
ing sight.
The weather had built into a white-
out and 24 people had been caught in
an avalanche.
We came across the skiers within
5 minutes of the avalanche, says
Spilsbury, the owner of Swimart North
Stratheld. We found people buried in
the snow with just a hand or leg sticking
out. Using our rescue equipment, we
dug them out and commenced a search
for one missing person who was found
alive an hour later.
It took two hoursfor the rst help to
arrive and while we were waiting, we did
what we could to manage the injured ski-
ers. Unfortunately we were unable to help
two of them who died from their injuries.
Spilsbury had worked in the ski indus-
try since the early 1980s, was on his third
ski trip to Northern Japan with a group
of seven skiers, ve of whom are highly
qualied ski patrollers at Thredbo and
one of whom is an American with fteen
years experience in the Japanese moun-
tains. He has jointly owned the Swimart
franchise since 2001.
The rescue attracted a lot of media atten-
tion in Japan, and the group waspresent-
ed with an award by the Japanese consul.
Drama in t he snow
An aval anche i n Japan, and an Aust ral i an pool shop owner comes t o t he rescue
THOSE cunning Czechs may have
an answer to the water crisis use beer
instead. They have been marketing Real
Beer Baths, an original curative spa
therapy connecting a soothing hot bath
and the unique dark bathing beer mixed
with rejuvenating yeast and a mixture of
seven curative herbs.
They claim the baths harmonise the
metabolism, provide relaxation, soothe
muscles, warm joints, heal complexion
and cure hair problems.
The real beer baths are taken i n a
rehabi l i tati on tub at a temperature
of 34 degrees. The maj or bath i ngre-
di ent i s dark bathi ng beer whi ch i s
produced i n a tradi ti onal way based on
a propri etary method by the Chodo-
var brewery. The bath i s covered by
characteri sti c beer foam of caramel
col our and the area i s scented by the
fragrance of freshl y brewed dark beer.
The agreeabl e temperature of the wa-
ter causes mi l d and gradual i ncrease i n
heart acti vi ty and sti mul ati on of bl ood
ci rcul ati on.
To increase the effects, guests are of-
fered a glass of unique non-pasteurised
Rock Lager, including active yeast cul-
ture which work positively on the diges-
tive system. After 20 minutes in the bath,
the guest rests on a bed in the relaxation
area under a eece quilt.
An answer t o t he wat er shor t age?
Feel l i ke a beer? You re soaki ng i n i t
The group, whi ch i ncl uded ve Thredbo i nst ruct ors, an
experi enced Ameri can and an Aussi e pool shop owner
The group worked f or t wo hours
hel pi ng t he 24 st ri cken ski ers
20 | SPLASH!
industry news
MINISTER for Small Business Joe
Tripodi has urged NSW exporters to seek
recognition for their international busi-
ness success through the 2007 Premiers
NSW Export Awards.
Mr Tripodi, who recently launched the
awards in Sydney, said exporters contrib-
uted a great deal to the economy of NSW.
NSW exportswere valued at $44 billion
last year, an increase of 3.5 per cent over
the previous12 months, saysTripodi.
Exporters create jobs, they add to the
diversity of our business sectors and they
are very innovative. The Export Awards
underline the signicance of exporting
to the economic development of our
State, while winning an award turns the
spotlight on a companys achievements
as an exporter and highlights its business
excellence, he says.
There are 12 national categories this
year including: Agribusiness; Arts, En-
tertainment and Design; Small Business
and Services, and four State categories.
The NSW Government is the principal
sponsor of these awards, which promote
exporting as a business development
strategy. The Government sponsors
two award categories the overall NSW
Exporter of the Year Award and the Re-
gional Exporter of the Year Award.
The awards, now in their 39th year,
are organised by the Australian Insti-
tute of Export. Entries for the Awards
close on August 24, with winners to be
announced at Star City in Sydney on
October 18.
For information on how to enter, contact
the Institute of Export on (02) 9350 8170.
NSW Expor t Awards
AS we go to press, Poolscape, the new
concept integrating pools and spas into
backyard living is being launched at
Designbuild, Australias largest design and
building exhibition.
Pool scape has to date attracted three
cl i ents, Aquati c Pool s, Cerami c Sol u-
ti ons and Sunbather i nto the Pavi l i on.
Accordi ng to Si mon Cooper, managi ng
di rector of Interpoi nt Events, Pool scape
i s an uni que opportuni ty for SPLASH!
cl i ents to reach bui l ders, desi gners,
archi tects and l andscape contractors.
Pool scape showcases the pool s and
spas i n the context of backyard l i vi ng,
he says. Thi s concept i s a new one for
Desi gnbui l d and we hope to rol l i t out
l ater i n the year at Desi gnbui l d Perth
on the 12th to 14th of October, 2007.
For more information contact Simon
Cooper on (02) 8586 6105.
Poolscape launches in Sydney
WHILE southeast Queensland is having
its own problems with lack of water,
there is one thing it certainly isnt lack-
ing people.
Bri sbane and the Gol d Coast are
sti l l Austral i as number one and
number two fastest growi ng ci ti es,
though the rapi d i ncrease has eased
sl i ghtl y thi s year.
The latest Queensland Population
Update shows that while population
growth in the southeast corner dropped
from 64,000 people in 2005 to 52,000
last year, Brisbane and the Gold Coast
still grew faster than any other cities in
the country.
Overal l , Queensl and recei ved a
net gai n of 25,800 peopl e from other
states: an average of about 500 each
week; there were 53,455 bi rths reg-
i stered i n the peri od the hi ghest
number ever recorded and an i ncrease
of 2.6 per cent on the previ ous year;
Queensl and recorded a net i ncrease
of more than 400 new resi dents each
week from overseas (total i ncrease
of 21,380 new arri val s), and overal l ,
Queensl ands annual growth of 1.9 per
cent from 3,977,000 peopl e i n June
2005 to 4,053,000 peopl e i n June 2006
was wel l above the nati onal average
of 1.3 per cent.
SEQ surges ahead
Bri sbane, f ast est growi ng ci t y i n Aust ral i a
Phone: (08) 9344 7044 Fax: (08) 9345 1816.
251 Balcatta Road, Balcatta, Western Australia 6021.
Web site: www.pool-controls.com.au
For automatic pool protection
without the slightest risk of
infection..all the time, its got to
be Chemigem.
Chemigem monitors and adjusts both Chlorine
and pH levels to ensure your pool is totally safe
for swimming, every day of the year.
Best of all, having Chemigem monitor your pool
could mean big savings for your hip pocket, with
its more efficient use of chlorine and the hours
you will save in filter running time.
Thats why hotels, resorts and Councils insist on
Chemigem for their pools to ensure their
patrons total satisfaction.
For more information on how Chemigem is
your best choice, ask your pool builder or
your local pool store.
*2 year full warranty on controller, 5 year pro-rata
warranty on probe.
Distributed by: Pool Controls Queensland: (Brisbane North) Mobile 0411 078 124 (Brisbane South) Mobile 0411 078 126
Pool Controls Victoria: Mobile 0411 078 127 Pool Controls New South Wales: Mobile 0437 078 115
Swimline Products NSW: Phone (02) 9971 2306 Fax (02) 9971 7592
Flowcontrol Pty Ltd SA: Phone (08) 8346 9100 Fax (08) 8358 6015 AICG POC279 SEP 2005
22 | SPLASH!
industry feature
War over water
While military leaders discuss the effects of global warming
on international security, there are a few civic leaders preparing
for a stoush of their own
W
ater is on everyones lips guratively speaking.
The most prolonged drought in living memory has
some people looking for answers, some for control and
others for ways to maximise our evaporating resource.
In Queensland, Premier Beatty is looking at seizing control of
water from local authorities but is baulking at the $20bn price
tag. Meanwhile, councils squabble amongst themselves about who
should and who shouldnt have restrictions. Some Gold Coast resi-
dents have formed into water vigilantes, outing restrictions they
say have been placed by a slow-acting government in Brisbane.
South of the border, the new Water Minister, former bushre
hero Phil Koperberg, is looking at imposing restrictions along
the whole length of the Murray-Darling river system, over-riding
council powers. Regional industries have suffered, with one mine
borrowing water from the local town of Orange while another
mine was forced to close down. In South Australia, BHP Billiton is
building its own desalination plants, but environmentalists are up
in arms at the prospect of the local coast turning into a dead sea
from hypersalination.
State relations are coming under strain as the Federal Govern-
ment looks to impose water-piping from NSW to Queensland;
and Tweed Shire is reportedly charging three times more to
Queensland water carters, than to carters who deliver in NSW.
Some companies have even reported water theft one Gold Coast
company has said a megalitre was stolen from them in the dark
of night.
Farmers in the Lachlan Valley are planning to sue the Iemma
government for taking away their water allocations, while in
Victoria, further water restrictions loom, with some lobby groups
complaining they should have come sooner. On the Apple Isle, east
coasters are complaining that west coasters are stealing their rain
by cloud seeding; at the same time west coast Tasmanians are
complaining the seeding carried out by the hydro electric scheme
is causing too much rain.
With a federal election due this year, we can be sure well hear
more of this storm of words. That is, unless theres actually a storm
of water instead, and the drought decisively breaks. Then, it could
be a return to the old form of letting everything coast along until the
next drought which would serve no-ones better interests, least of
all an industry that relies on a constant supply of good water.
SPLASH! | 23
industry feature
Industry included in Victorian review
SPASA Victoria has taken part in a State Government review of
water restrictions involving three other key stakeholders effected
by water restrictions: turf farmers, car wash businesses and sports
ground managers.
In Victoria they have a drought response plan catering for
restriction from 1 through to 4, but at the time of writing Level 3a
restrictions had been introduced. From August 1, restrictions are
likely to move to Level 4, or some amendments will be made to
Level 3a.
SPASA Victoria made a presentation at the review.
We asked for assistance in a few specic areas regarding our
members needs, says Brendan Watkins. At this stage were
hopeful of having those considered favourably.
Up till now there hasnt been a huge amount of collaboration
and weve been talking to government about the negative images
and the perception that new pools cant be lled, when if fact they
can be lled, just not with town water.
SPASA is in the process of drilling its second series of bores. It
will probably be late June or July before the bores are deep enough
to be satised theyve struck water.
Were very hopeful this time around, says Watkins. But theres
no guarantees. At the end of the day theres an industry and theres
water. You can ll a pool and you can top it up.
The Victorian Government will be looking at prices, infrastructure
and delivery of water in June. There are estimates that the price
of water may rise signicantly. Part of the reason to raise the cost
of the water is to ensure revenue to the authorities during restric-
tions when less water is consumed. There is concern among the
welfare lobby that this would have a much greater effect on people
with a low income.
Meanwhile, a Melbourne man became the rst Victorian to have
his water supply all but cut off for washing his car in breach of
Level 3 restrictions. His water supply was reduced to a dribble for
two days. He claims he was using water from his water tank, but
inspectors photos told a different story. The restricted ow was
enough for him to drink and cook, but not to shower.
New bores and pipes
for regional Victoria
Water Minister John Thwaites opened the upgraded Barwon Downs
bore eld in May. With increased capacity of transfer pipes and
pumps, the elds six groundwater bores can now all operate at
once, supplying about two thirds of the water used in the greater
Geelong region each day. Thwaites says the bores could supply up
to 55ML of the daily 71ML water consumption in the greater Gee-
long water supply system.
Thwaites said the Bracks Governments Central Region Sustain-
able Water Supply Strategy had identied the $1.4 million Barwon
Downs bore eld upgrade and a new bore eld at Anglesea as key
projects in securing the citys water supply.
Water pumped from Barwon Downs is transferred to Wurdee
Boluc Reservoir each day, where it mixes with surface water before
being treated and piped to customers in the greater Geelong water
supply region.
Further work to construct an additional two bores at Barwon
Downs is scheduled for next year. This will provide backup to
allow maintenance to the existing bores. Meanwhile, in Bendigo,
groundwater extracted from a disused mine network will be used
to pump life into Rosalind Park and Queen Elizabeth Oval .
Bore located for ACT builders
There has also been some good news on the bore front in the
nations capital. A SPASA member, Peter Boehm of Aurora Land-
scapes and Pools, has been snifng around and came across a bore
water supply just over the NSW border. This is believed to be suf-
cient to supply the anticipated 300 pools per year built in Canberra.
The water is of a suitable quality to be cleaned up for swim-
ming pool use, and will add between $600 and $700 to the cost of
a new pool.
The Department of Planning in Canberra is approving develop-
ment applications, but the ACT Government is not supplying pool
water, so pool builders have to nd their own water supply. SPASAs
Brian Hardiman believes this new source might be their saviour.
We put an ad in the paper for expressions of interest and
received a couple of replies but they were very expensive. One
was drawing water from the Goodradigbee River where he had an
allocation and could supply water for a service fee of about 10c per
litre. The other wanted exclusivity so they could get the cash ow
to buy a vehicle and start trucking it. But that didnt work out.
There are also a couple of pool builders sourcing water independ-
ently, and being cagey about where the supply is, as it may be limited.
Ironically, the ACT Government is looking at pumping water from
the Molonglo River for residential use. ACT Health had previously
stopped pool builders from using recycled water as it was deemed
unt even after the planned treatment by reverse osmosis. So
where is that recycled water ending up now? You guessed it, the
Molonglo River.
The ACT is likely to go to Level 4 restrictions during or before
July, and that may include a ban on topping up pools by bucket
but no nal word has been given on that as yet. The ban will pos-
sibly even force the swimming pool of parliament house to close,
according to Hilary Penfold, the secretary of the Department of
Parliamentary Services.
A proposal has also been presented to the Federal Government
by a consortium of ACT scientists, engineers and sustainability
experts, suggesting that consumers could use as much water as
they liked for outdoor purposes, as long as they pay a substantial
premium. That money would then be ltered back to low-use con-
sumers as a reward.
ACTs water utility, ACTEW, has given in-principle support, and
is prepared to trial the scheme if it receives Commonwealth seed
funding. Water Rewards, the group proposing the scheme, believes
the market forces would regulate water usage and help fund new
infrastructure.
NSW developments
In New South Wales there has been an increase in water restric-
tions on the Central Coast, but the good news for the industry is
that the council is still offering a permit system for pool builders
who can purchase an allocation. The Gosford-Wyong Council has
developed that system specically to protect local jobs.
The Council has also come up with a long term plan to secure
water for the region. It has recommended the construction of a
pipeline to pump 160ML per day from the lower Wyong River and
One proposal suggests consumers could
use as much water as they liked, as long
as they pay a substantial premium.
24 | SPLASH!
Ourimbah Creek into the Mangrove Creek Dam. The pipeline would
cost $80m and take seven years to build.
In Tamworth there is also talk of increased restrictions and the
possible introduction of mandatory swimming pool covers.
The rst water audit has been produced, showing that while
Sydney consumers are starting to save water, business and govern-
ment has fallen behind. Whats more, leaks have been taking away
much of the savings.
NSW Water Minister Phil Koperberg is planning to force towns
along the Murray-Darling to adopt Level 4 water restrictions from
July 1. This is likely to mean no lling of swimming pools. Koper-
berg says the restrictions will be brought in if irrigators end up with
no water allocations.
A strange spectacle has risen out the drying lake Eucumbene
the ghost-like town of Adaminaby. Fifty years ago, old Ad-
aminaby was submerged under 30m of water by the creation of
lake Eucumbene for the Snowy Hydro Electric Scheme. Now, the
old streets are rising from the depleted waters. Snowy Hydro has
called for an increase in cloud seeding, but without the support of
the Victorian Government.
Hydro Tasmania is seeding clouds to generate rain successfully
too successfully according to the residents of Zeon, who claim
they are now being inundated with rain. Hydro Tasmania has been
seeding clouds on the west coast since 1964, but some on the east
coast say the seeding is stealing their rain. Seeding doesnt actu-
ally create rainclouds, just encourages existing clouds to drop their
load potentially moving the rainfall from one location to another.
Drought-proong Queensland
SPASA Queensland has negotiated a workable compromise with
the water commission by drought-proong the industry in south-
east Queensland, according to David Close.
He says the authorities came to understand the public health risk
if pool water drops below the skimmer level, and there could also be
liability issues if empty pools start to pop out of the ground.
The pool industry will arrange supply of water for all new pools, with
the payback being that pool owners will be able to continue topping
up their pools using town water during Level 4 restrictions. At Level
5 (currently in force, though with a date of up to July 1 to comply) they
will need access to rainwater via a downpipe diverter or a water tank
committed to the pool. Town water can still be used once the rainwater
source has been exhausted, as long as they have three of the following
four measures in place: a swimming pool or spa cover; all shower-
heads, and kitchen and bathroom basin taps are water efcient; all toi-
lets are water efcient; only water efcient washing machines are used.
SPASA has arranged for up to 2ML of water per day from ve
springs around south-east Queensland to be available for new pool
constructions in the Gold Coast, Brisbane and Sunshine Coast areas.
The water will be available at a discounted rate equivalent to one cent
per litre, plus cartage costs.
What that means is the average $30,000 pool will now cost
$32,000, and that doesnt seem to be a problem with consumers,
says Close. Probably because were dealing in a lifestyle product.
Its not really a luxury item in southeast Queensland, where 34
percent of all homes have a pool.
We will drought-proof for the construction side of pools and on
that basis I would assume the consumer will always have access
to top them up. We will bring the spring water up to the required
standard for the new pool. It will all be part of the building contract
it virtually is now anyway in Queensland.
industry feature
Close says the combination of a mild summer and the need for
planning water supply for new pools may have the effect of spread-
ing pool demand over the whole year, instead of the normal build-
ing cycle. And while the industry is steady, he credits the $6000 per
month spent on radio advertising reminding consumers of the
benets of having a swimming pool with a promising outlook.
In other news, Close has been appointed as an advisor to the
Building Services Authoritys board a position likely to lead to fur-
ther roles advising Queensland Health and the Water Commission.
Its a good recognition factor for the members in Queensland
that weve been nominated to take that role, he says.
In other Queensland news, there had been some confusion
between the Gold Coast Council and water carters about lling up
new pools, with the carters continuing to ll new pools despite the
council saying they couldnt. The fact is, under current restrictions,
water carters can ll new pools just not with town water.
The Gold Coast City Council has also progressed with its plan for
the $1bn Tugun desalination plant, being built to supply southeast
Queensland with 125ML of drinking water per day by January 2009.
About 70 people attended a recent information forum on the plant.
West getting covered
The Western Australian State Government has announced an
extension of the Build Green scheme which from September 1 will
Feedback from a pool owner
HAVING j ust r ead t he ar t i cl e St or i ng wat er i n your pool
(page 23, Apr i l / May 2007, by Br yan Goh), I want ed t o l et
you know t hat we have i nst al l ed a si mi l ar syst em f or our
pool t hat wor ks ext r emel y wel l .
We live outside a reticulated water supply system and have
to rely on tank water for all our needs, and our above- ground
swimming pool was suffering. So my inventive hubby (IH) iso-
lated and diverted water from a particular section of the house
roof, and included a shutoff valve (the relatively cheap inline
pull/ push sort) which means when the pool is full we can close
the pipe and divert all water back to our tanks.
If we f orget , or t he house t ank i s f ul l enough, t he pool
over ow i s di vert ed t hrough a pi pe connect ed vi a an out l et
near t he t op of t he ski mmer box. Thi s used t o go t o t he dam
and j ust evaporat e, but now i t l l s a garden t ank f or pl ant
wat eri ng. Not ver y compl i cat ed when you t hi nk about i t , but
i t means we capt ure ever y drop and i t s al l t f or purpose.
Even t hough we have had ver y l i t t l e rai n, t he odd t hunder-
st or m has been enough t o mai nt ai n t he house and garden
t anks at a good l evel and keep t he pool f ul l and even t he odd
dewy ni ght i s enough t o add a f ew l i t res. Now I j ust have t o
get t he IH t o put i n a dri pper syst em f rom t he garden t ank so
I can j ust t ur n on t he t ap and si t back wi t h a chardy i nst ead
of haul i ng bucket s of wat er t o t he garden most ni ght s!
PS. The best t hi ng we have done, af t er t he wat er l evel
dropped by about 8cm on one hot wi ndy day a f ew years
back, was t o i nst al l a sol ar bl anket whi ch we onl y remove
when we are swi mmi ng. So we now l ose ver y l i t t l e wat er t o
evaporat i on and i t s war mer.
Kat hy van Oost veen
Creswi ck, Vi ct ori a
SPLASH! | 25
industry feature
include the mandatory inclusion of pool covers on all new pools.
The premier, Alan Carpenter, says his policy will save 30 gigali-
tres of water and provide a reduction in greenhouse gas emissions
of 129,000 tonnes, the equivalent of taking 30,000 cars off the road.
As well as the requirement for pool blankets, new houses in WA
will be required to have solar or ve-star gas hot water systems,
water-efcient shower heads and tap ttings in all sinks and ba-
sins, and water efcient dual-ush toilets.
From 2008, new home owners must install secondary plumbing
to toilets to allow for an alternative water supply at a later date, as
well as provision for grey water recycling.
SPASA WA believes the requirement for pool covers may mean
that further restrictions on pool owners will not be imposed.
Derek Prince of WA pool cover manufacturer Daisy, says that his
company is prepared for the additional demand these measures will
herald, and believes the water saving measures will be effective.
It will train people when they get a pool to think about water
saving. It will get them to think about pool blankets at the outset,
even before they start building the pool, so more people will be sav-
ing more water over a longer period of time, he says.
The WA Government has announced a doubling in the pool cover
rebate to $200.
Also in WA, the Water Corp is encouraging the WA Government
to tap the Yarragadee aquifer, or build a second desalination
plant twice the size of the $1bn Kwinana plant currently under
construction.
South Australia is also gearing up for anticipated water restric-
tions from July 1. It is expected that swimming pools will only be
allowed to be topped up if the owner has a pool cover, and the toi-
let, washing machine and showerheads are water efcient. Rebates
are available for water efcient devices.
Queensland authorities have come to
understand the public health risk if pool
water drops below the skimmer level.
26 | SPLASH!
industry feature
W
here is our water going to come from in the future? The
sky seems a likely place but its not always reliable. The
sea is endless but has a few drawbacks, including the
expense of removing the salt. Recycling waste water has its detrac-
tors but mainly because of perception, not reality.
Greg Leslie is an associate professor in the School of Chemi-
cal Engineering and Industrial Chemistry at the University of New
South Wales(UNSW). Before he came to UNSW, he worked in the
public and private sectors on various water treatment, reuse and
desalination projects in Australia, New Zealand, Singapore, Hong
Kong and the United States. He was the lead process designer on
Singapores highly successful NEWater recycling project and was
deputy program manager for the largest indirect potable reuse
project in the United States providing 70 per cent of the drinking
water to 2.5 million people in Orange County, California.
He says that for future security, the answer is to develop a range
of options. But in his opinion, you would look at all the alternatives,
and once they are exhausted, then look at desalination. First off the
block would be recycling.
The bottom line is you diversify. You dont have all your superan-
nuation invested in the stock market. You have part of it in property,
part in bonds. So you develop other sources of water, says Leslie.
If youre by the coast, of course you look at desalination. Its got
its place. But my personal view is that desalination is the last thing
you do. Because its the most energy intensive, and does not lever-
age existing assets.
Everything associated with desalination, with the exception of
the distribution system that brings water into our house, does not
exist. There is no intake. There is no desalination plant. There is no
pipe connecting the plant to the water distribution system.
Think of the water distribution system like an artery. The biggest
The case
for recycling
Associate Professor Greg Leslie says that
recycled water makes good sense.
pipe is up in the hills, at the bottom of the dam. The closer you get
to the coast, the smaller the pipes get, like capillaries.
Desalination is the other way around. You need the biggest pipe
out in the ocean, to draw the water in. And every litre that you pull
in, you only get about 400mL of drinking water. 60 percent just gets
spat back out into the ocean. From there youve got to get the water
somehow back into this network of pipes, but youre trying to put
a lot of water into a part of the system thats sized for smaller vol-
umes of water. So you have to bring it back to the Sydney pressure
tunnel, and all that infrastructure doesnt exist, he says.
On the other hand, much of the infrastructure required for recy-
cling does exist.
With waste water, what we do know is that every day, someones
going to have a shower, someones going to run their kitchen sink,
someones going to ush their toilet, he says. Its going to run off
their property into a sewer that will ow down the hill to a trunk
sewer, and depending on where you are there might be a pumping
pit. Eventually its going to run to a sewage treatment plant which
we already own where that raw sewage will be treated to a point
where its safe to put back into the environment into the ocean or
into a river like the Hawkesbury-Nepean or the Georges River.
The EPA monitors those plants, Sydney Water operates them,
you and I pay for them. They exist. And all they do is move water
around. And the level of salt in that water is about 30 times lower
than the level of salt in the ocean.
The good news is we already have about 50 to 60 per cent of the in-
frastructure, including the intake which is the sewer network and the
sewage treatment plants. All that is required is to bolt on the reverse
osmosis membranes the same type used in a desalination plant.
On top of those benets is the fact that, instead of only using 40
per cent of the water, as with desalination, recycling nets 80 per
SPLASH! | 27
industry feature
cent to 85 per cent of the water passing through the system.
Why I am interested in recycling before de-salting, is because
the community already owns all those pipes; because you get
more water in terms of the effort that you put in. Its more efcient
to recycle.
Pathogens are less problematic than salt
And while the main fears in the community apart from the simple
yuk factor are worries about pathogens, Leslie says they are
nowhere near as difcult to remove as salt.
Youve mainly got to get the salt out, thats the issue, he says.
The pathogens are part of it, but the pathogens are big things. They
are virus, protozoa, bacteria. At the molecular scale, theyre complex
little critters. Salt is sodium. An atom. Tiny. If we can get those out, we
generally do a pretty good job getting the big critters out.
Water quality is not that simple, but it kind of is. Theres always
stuff that gets through, but the issue is, at what concentration
does it get through? And is it present in our existing drinking water
supplies? The stuff that comes out of your tap at home is not pure
H2O. Its got stuff in it. And in fact, a lot of the organics were wor-
ried about in recycled water, are actually much lower than in the
water that comes out of the tap.
And thats ne. There is no risk at the tap, and there is no risk
with this. Its just perception.
The type of recycling Leslie is recommending is commonly called
indirect recycling. This is because it goes through a time and environ-
mental barrier, such as a river or reservoir. A common perception is
that this is to further purify the water. In fact, the opposite is true.
Unlike desalination, we dont advocate putting the water directly
into the pipe network from recycling. Not from a water quality per-
spective once youve made water from these membrane plants,
whether its sea water or recycled water, when you throw it back
into the environment, youre in an uncontrolled setting. A birds
going to crap in it. Runoffs going to get into it and someone might
be using pesticides.
But when we put it back into the environment, it gives us this
lag time. So if something goes pear-shaped, no-ones drinking the
water straight away. There might be months between when you
make it and when it nds its way back to a plant.
That time lag is necessary because of the time it takes to test
the water. While the pathogens are easy to test for, stray chemicals
are harder, and they may be present in such small quantities that
the water needs to be concentrated before the equipment can pick
them up. And that all takes time.
After the time lag, the water is pulled out of the dam and treated
again at a regular drinking water plant.
Youre already drinking it
Those who feel squeamish at the thought of drinking recycled wa-
ter should consider the fact that many people are drinking recycled
water in Australia right now, including in Sydney only no-one
makes a fuss about it.
The Penrith sewage treatment plant that treats the sewage
from the city of Penrith, dumps the water just downstream of Pen-
rith weir, into the Nepean, he says. It ows 17.5km downstream
where the Richmond drinking water ltration plant pulls it out of
the Hawkesbury-Nepean, treats it and on-sells it.
In effect, the people of North Richmond are drinking recycled water.
Depending on the time of year and the release of water from the
dam, that river can run as high as 25-30 per cent recycled water.
The Penrith sewage treatment plant doesnt have any mem-
branes. Its just a regular sewage treatment plant. And theres just
sand at the ltration plant.
But even the water treated to this standard which is far inferior
to the treatment proposed by water recycling projects is safe.
From a safety issue, its not an issue, says Leslie. If its an issue,
then weve got problems with Richmond. Because A, we dont treat
the water to the same standard as a recycled water project. And B,
the time between when you discharge it and we drink it is only a day.
But the reality is, the waters safe in these schemes.
Another compelling point in favour of recycling is that, whether
or not we decide to do anything, we still have to pay to treat and
dispose of our waste water.
If we shut Warragamba dam down and built a massive desal
plant wed still be collecting, treating and disposing of sewage.
So it makes sense before you start looking at the expense of desal,
we should see how far we can take re-use.
The reality is, to protect the ocean outfalls, you need about 40
per cent going through so they dont clog up. So our target should
be to recycle 60 per cent.
We should put the recycled water into prospect reservoir, where
it will sit for a week or two, then it would pulled out and treated at
the Prospect drinking water treatment plant. No different at what
goes on at Penrith and North Richmond. The only difference is that
were going to be treating it a whole lot better. Whats left over can
go into the Hawkesbury-Nepean so we dont need to release dam
water to keep that river alive.
If we still have a shortfall, thats when you do desal.
All the facilities for recycling will be built at existing waste water
treatment plants, where the government already owns the land.
Better than drinking quality
Despite his avid support of recycling, Leslie sympathises with the
health authorities who stymied the plan to use recycled water to ll
pools in the ACT.
He says that portable reverse osmosis should be perfectly ne for
a swimming pool water, and its an issue that should be looked at.
That level of treatment is used to ll high pressure boilers that
need a lot higher quality water than a swimming pool needs. At the
BP renery, they use recycled water to be the boiler maker in their
high pressure boilers. Because of corrosion issues, it has to have
near-distilled water quality.
But health departments are being conservative and thats their job.
Im not going to knock them for doing their job. Its a matter of percep-
tion, risk management and a case of not having precedents for it.
However, he adds that pools being lled from the mains at North
Richmond could have water composed of 25 per cent to 30 per cent
recycled water. And thats recycled water that hasnt been treated
with reverse osmosis and advanced oxidation.
Leslie spent many years working on the successful NEWater
project in Singapore.
He says that there, the recycled water is of such a high quality
that business pays more for it than for normal tap water. Because
the electronics and computer industries need pristine water for
their manufacturing processes, they treat the water again on their
own premises. But they nd it is easier and cheaper to treat the
recycled water than the tap water.
Thats because its gone through the reverse osmosis and its
gone through the advanced oxidation and other processes. So its
cleaner than the stuff that comes out of the tap.
28 | SPLASH!
industry feature
Ken Collins, pre-qualied government
consultant, offers some history and
advice regarding potty skimmers.
Sometime during the 1960s or early 1970s, a breglass pool
manufacturer which was then based in the south western regions
of outer Sydney, started producing breglass pool shells which
incorporated a surface skimmer in its coping.
This appeared to be a good idea at the time. Pre-moulding a
purpose designed skimmer box into the pool shell obviated the
need to purchase a manufactured plastic skimmer, post-cut an
aperture in the pool wall to accommodate the box and then bolt it
on. Since the pool walls were almost always not vertical, the skim-
mer box would appear to hang off the side at a weird angle, and of
course there was always the possibility that the rubber seal used
in the mounting process would leak, at least in the long term when
they started to perish. So a moulded-in skimmer certainly seemed
to be a good idea.
However, manufacturing difculties dictated that a xed lid could
not be incorporated in the mould, so a separate lid was made to
form the top of the box and to reinstate the coping surface so that a
trip hazard wasnt formed.
Unfortunately the lid was simply dropped in place and not
fastened in any way. When the lid was removed as was often
done by curious and playful children, the resulting exposure of
the moulded box made it appear like a small seat, not unlike a
childs potty.
Naturally, young children decided this little seat was a good
place to sit and that was okay so long as the lter pump wasnt
running and their bottoms werent large enough to ll the entire
skimmer opening and seal it off.
It wasnt long before the inevitable happened. The pump was run-
ning and a childs bottom was large enough to ll the opening. The re-
sult was that before anyone could realise why the child was screaming
in agony, the pump had sucked some of the childs bowels out through
its anus. This is known medically as evisceration.
The headlines very soon spread the message: Child disembow-
elled by swimming pool pump. Not a good look for the industry.
This rst happened in about the mid-1970s. Unfortunately it hap-
pened more than once before the pool industry designed a means
by which the hazard could be overcome.
At that time I was the SPASA Education Director and a campaign
was implemented to inform the public of the dangers and to have
pool servicemen take the necessary action whenever one of these
skimmers was encountered.
The pool shell manufacturers immediately issued a modication
kit and written instructions on how to overcome the hazard, a copy
of which is printed here. These were initially provided to the install-
ers of new pool shells. Later, they were made available to the pool
service industry, and as I recall, at no cost.
The problem is that whilst many potty skimmer pools were
modied, many still remain as rst installed. Also many modica-
Unt angling ent rapment
Making pools and spas safer
tions were not done correctly and the lids became removable after a
year or so.
I exhort anyone in the industry who encounters one of these
skimmers to carefully check to see if it has been safely modied
and if not, take the necessary steps to see that it is done. Disem-
bowelment is not a pretty sight.
Anti-entanglement cover
coming to Australia
Austrol Industries has gained the Australasian rights to the
Triodyne anti-entrapment suction cover, the Anti-Hair Snare Plus,
billed as the safest cover in the world.
While the device is reportedly the safest drain cover on the
market internationally, the issue of whether it meets the Austral-
ian standard is still being debated causing concern in some
quarters of the industry that we may be restricted from using the
safest device.
The Anti-Hair Snare Plus outperforms the requirements for the
current American Standard, ASME/ANSI A112.19.8M. This stand-
POOL COPING
SUCTION OUTLET
LEAF BASKET
TOP VIEW OF A POTTY SKIMMER WITH LID REMOVED
NEW LID TO BE SECURELY
FIXED IN PLACE WITH
ADHESIVE OR SCREWS
SAFETY MODIFICATION
OF A POTTY SKIMMER
SPLASH! | 29
industry feature
The Daisy UltraDome advantages
A Daisy UltraDome Solar Pool Cover carries the
national SmartApproved WaterMark and qualifies for
all rebate schemes.
Unique Daisy UltraDome technology means
our pool covers are made stronger to last longer
with up to 8 years pro-rata warranty.
Swim in a warmer pool, and save water, time and money
A Daisy UltraDome Solar Pool Cover will:
Warm your pool by up to 8C using free solar energy
for months more swimming time
Reduce evaporation by up to 97%
Help keep out leaves and dirt
Reduce salt and chemical use by up to 50%
Roll on and off in 30 seconds with a quality
Daisy Roller System
State governments, local councils and water authorities all across
Australia are recommending you install a pool cover.
Some are providing up to $200 cash rebates if you do.
Why? Because an uncovered pool can lose from 8,000 to 10,000 litres
of water a month in summer due to evaporation and with much of
Australia in severe drought, thats water we just cant afford to waste.
Every pool needs
a Daisy Pool Cover.
But dont just take our word for it.
Contact your local Pool Shop for professional advice
and installation of a Daisy UltraDomeSolar Pool
Cover and Roller System.
For more information and Application Forms for all the available Rebate
Schemes, and our Fact Sheets on Evaporation, Heating Capabilities and
DaisyUltraDometechnology visit www.daisypoolcovers.com.au
Perth Sydney Brisbane Melbourne International
Australias largest supplier of pool covers and rollers
ard has been under
revision for more than
six years and a new
draft standard has just
been accepted. Trio-
dyne are condent their
cover will meet the
new standard theyve
actually been working
closely with the board
and it is currently in
the process of being
recertied.
By the time this
edition of SPLASH!
hits your desk, Austrol
will have launched the
product at the SPASA
consumer expo at Dar-
ling Harbour, Sydney.
While there seems to
be a general consensus
that the Anti-Hair Snare Plus is the safest drain cover available, es-
pecially with regard to hair entanglement, there is a question mark
regarding how it will comply with the current Australian standard in
its current form.
Due to a glitch in the standard, there may be an issue with these
safer types of suction covers including Gary Halls cover featured
in SPLASH! February/March because there is an opening in the
centre. At present, the standard (AS 1926.3 2003) seems to insist
that the cover must be solid in the centre, to a size of 1.2 times the
diameter of the outlet point.
In an earlier version of the Australian standard, there was a
provision that covers that complied with the US standard were
deemed to comply with the Australian standard, but when a revi-
sion was undertaken in 2003 the clause was omitted. Des Berry,
who helped draw up the original standards, commented in an ear-
lier edition of SPLASH! that he was very much of the belief that the
American standard is superior and that hair entrapment protection
was far superior with American style suction covers (such as the
Triodyne cover) and that they do not need the no holes in centre
limit to be safe.
In fact, he said that suction covers which comply with the Aus-
tralian standard, but not the US standard, are not necessarily safe
against entrapment.
According to Manfred Wiesemes, president of SPASA NSW,
there should be no problem regarding the standard and these
types of covers. He has recently been reviewing the standard with
Standards Australia and has said they decided to leave it as it is.
We decided to leave the standard alone, because there has been
not one proven case of entrapment in a spa that has met the stand-
ard. The spa in Noosa was illegally plumbed, the spa in Forster,
illegally plumbed, he says.
We dont care what the American standard is. We have an Australian
standard that states the ow rate of the pumps and says you have to
have two suctions apart from each other. The standard is very simple. It
says you cant have a suction you can cover with your hand.
For more information on the Anti-Hair Snare Plus, visit www.
triodyne.com or contact Michael van Dyke at Austrol on
(02) 4935 2210.
The r st st ep t o st oppi ng ent angl ement i s t o keep
your head out of t he spa wat er. These si gns are a
must f or spa owner s avai l abl e f r om SPASA NSW f or
$6.50 each, or $6 each f or order s of more t han 50
30 | SPLASH!
Resort Style Living is a pictorial homage to the work of Australian landscape
designer, Dean Herald.
Herald is the founder of the Rolling Stone Landscapes, a company that has
won many awards including a gold medal for Best Show Garden at the prestig-
ious Chelsea Flower Show in London. His gardens have also been featured on
television shows such as Better Homes and Gardens, The Block and Reno Rub-
ble, as well as in many major Australian garden and lifestyle magazines.
Thi s 160 page, hardcover coffee tabl e book captures the beauty, gl amour
and appeal of hi s award-wi nni ng garden
and l andscape desi gns. Wi th more than
150 i mages, Resort Style Living show-
cases i mpressi ve pool scapes, outdoor
di ni ng and entertai nment areas, expan-
si ve pool s, wet bars, ponds and water
features. The stunni ng photography i s
enough to i nspi re the creati ve j ui ces
i n any bui l der, homeowner or buddi ng
l andscape archi tect. Resort Style Living
i s avai l abl e from bookshops for $59.95
The SPLASH! Bookshelf
Win a copy
SPLASH! has a copy of Resort Style Living t o gi ve away.
For a chance t o wi n t hi s book, emai l :
spl ashcomp@i nt er medi a.com.au. In t he subj ect l i ne wri t e
t he name of Dean Heral ds l andscape company. In t he body
of t he message i ncl ude your name and address. The rst
correct ent r y wi l l be sent a copy of t he book.
Turni ng backyards i nt o resort s
A dance par t y under water
SPLASH! asked a f ourt een year ol d swi mmi ng f anat i c and musi c l over what
he t hought of t he new AquaSoundz underwat er MP3 pl ayer. He gave us a
t een- eye vi ew f rom under t he wat er. By Jack Maher
industry reviews
I think the AquaSoundz underwater MP3 player is really
cool. Its a great idea and it works a lot better than I expected.
Some of the best things about it are the clarity of the sound
even though its underwater you can still hear every word be-
ing sung. Also, the arm strap was very convenient and secured
it without getting in the way.
Its very easy to use. Most MP3 players have way too many
buttons but this only had the essential ones. Which is really
good, because when youre under the water, you cant see them
so you dont want to be searching through lots of different but-
tons and switches. Also, it doesnt need batteries, so that saves
your pocket money.
I thi nk i t woul d be real l y great when youre doi ng l aps,
because after a whi l e l aps can get a bi t bori ng. I thi nk the
musi c you l i sten to coul d determi ne the speed of your
swi mmi ng i f youre doi ng some rel axi ng l aps on a hot day,
put on some Oasi s or Bob Marl ey, but i f youre trai ni ng
for 50-metre or 100-metre spri nts, put on some AC/DC or
Metal l i ca.
It would also be great when youre oating on your back.
Kids could also record times tables or spelling bees onto it,
and listen to them while playing in the pool or while theyre
having a bath.
The FM radio would be great for listening to the Swans
SPLASH! | 31
game while playing around in the pool or doing laps. Espe-
cially for kids who are forced to have a bath in the middle of
the last quarter!
The only thing you have to be aware of is that the ear-piece
got stuck in my ear; I think I pushed it in too far, so you have to
be careful of that.
It is an awesome product and Id love to own one. My rating
is 4.5 out of 5.
The AquaSoundz waterproof MP3 player is available from
Austrol. For more information call (02) 4935 2210 or visit
www.austrol.com.au