The 10 Most Awesome Pools In the World

The 10 Most Awesome Pools In the World

 

 1. Ubud Hanging Gardens Resort, Bali

These are the Ubud Hanging Gardens, a luxury resort set in the middle of a land of volcanoes, forests, and rice terraces, in the heart of Bali. The resort and its hanging pool are perched on a gorge, gazing out at a temple on the opposite cliff.

 2. Nemo 33, Belgium

Formerly the world's deepest pool (until San Alfonso Del Mar stole that title in 2007), Nemo 33 remains the deepest indoor pool at 108 ft. Using highly filtered spring water at 96 degrees Fahrenheit, the pool is home to diving instruction, recreational use and film production. Divers can explore the system of underwater caves, and because Nemo 33 stays a constant warm temperature, they don't even need wetsuits. 

 3. Marina Bay Sands Skypark,Singapore 

The Sands SkyPark is an awe-inspiring engineering wonder. This unique structural masterpiece, designed by visionary architect Moshe Safdie, floats atop the three soaring Marina Bay Sands hotel towers 200m in the sky.

Stretching longer than the Eiffel tower laid down or four and a half A380 Jumbo Jets, with an impressive 12,400 square meters of space, the Sands SkyPark can host up to 3900 people. The gravity-defying cantilever is one of the largest of its kind in the world. From this privileged observation deck, hundreds of visitors at a time can feast their eyes on the unforgettable panorama view.

  4. Katikies Hotel, Santorini, Greece

The five star hotel in one of the most favorite European islands has a pool carved right into a caldera. The cave pool provides a shadow and a refreshing swim with a view. The hotel also has an infinity pool, situated 90 m (300 ft) above the Aegean Sea.

5. Hotel Caruso, Ravello, Italy

The infinity pool is situated at the highest point of picturesque Ravello – on the cliff, 350 m (1150 ft) above the sea. Moreover, a gorgeous view to Amalfi Coast opens. The five star hotel is also exquisite – it is established in a renovated 11th century building.

6. Joule Hotel, Dallas 

This used to be the Dallas National Bank Building, in Dallas, Texas, until someone bought it and turned it into the Joule Hotel. The people who did the conversion thought it would be cool to extrude a pool out of one of its balconies. I agree, providing a refreshing retreat on a sunny day and away from the city’s hustle and bustle.

7. San Alfonso del Mar Seawater Pool

This is the largest pool in the world, full of seawater. It's a monstrosity, and it's amazing that they ever completed it. It's 3,323 feet long—that's more than a kilometer! It covers 20 acres and, at its deepest point, it goes down 11.5 feet (3.5 meters). At this point, why don't you just get your butt into the sea?

8. Shaw House, Vancouver

Shaw House is a private 285-square-meter residence for a single person, with a bedroom, study, music room, and a lap pool located on the roof, along the west side of the house. In fact, the pool acts as the ceiling, filtering the sun light into the central area of the house. I want to live here. 

9. Aquarium Pool at the Golden Nugget, Las Vagas

 I would rather be diving than in Las Vegas, but if I had to go there, I would spend some time at the aquarium pool at the Golden Nugget hotel, in which you can swim side by side with fish and sharks

10. Tangga House, Singapore

 The Tangga House is built around a central courtyard, with the borderless pool surrounding two sides of the house and a garden growing on its roof. I don't know how expensive this is to maintain, but I wish I had the money to pay for it.

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Underfloor heating - The Truths

Underfloor heating is considered by most a luxhury good only avaliable to high earners with expendable income building new homes.  The reality of this is, whilst it can be rather costly upfront to install, the long-term costs could work out considerably cheaper than relying on traditional radiators in your home.  

Upfront Costs of Underfloor Heating

It is very important for accuracy when comparing prices for underfloor heating, the most effective way of doing this would be to consider all possible heating alternatives such as radiators and their intial cost and long-term benefits. It is crucial when comparing prices to consider the whole-life methodology. If you require any guidlines to this method, the basis can be found in the BRSIA guide BG 5/2008

Piping Costs

Underfloor heating eliminates the large cost of piping. In a traditional radiator sysyem, large sums of distribution pipes are needed to run the high tempeture water across from to from, from raditor to radiator.  Underfloor heating systems avoid this issue by strategicaly having the minifolds located within the building, which is in closer proximity to the main service runs. 

What Might an Underfloor Heating System Cost me?

Pricing of course will vary depending on suppliers & installers. however typically speaking a wet sysyem installed within a new build could fetch up to around £10,000-£12,000 including materials & instilaion. 

Cost Calculation Precautions

Be carefull, any costs that are quoted from underfloor heating companies should be closely reviewed and examined in order to determine what is exactly included. Some companies include certain costs such as the instillation layer, whilst others will leave that to the builder or installer.

Companies may include the heat source and/or it's instillation whether it be a poiler or pump within the cost. Alternatively the company may soley be connecting the manifolds to excisiting distribution piping or may use piping supplied by another party.

The room thermostats master control may not be included in the pricing or the products supplieed by them may need upgrading. Finally, the designer should be sure whether the system commissioning is included in the costs quoted or should be considered a seperate extra.

What should I expect the installation costs to be?

Including the floor instilation, instilation room & water controls, and the heating element, instilation costs could be expected to reach up to £15-£40/m². The lower end of the scale applies to larger, more commercial or industrial spaces, whilst domestic costs come in at the higher end of the scale.
 
These costs do not take into account the heat source or distribution pipes leading from the plant to the manifolds.

Underfloor Heating Running Costs

Underfloor heating running costs are lower than conventional heating systems such as radiators because of their efficiency.
Underfloor heating systems run at a much lower temperature than radiators.  Combine this with the fact that the heat is distributed from just beneath where it is most needed – foot level, means less energy is expelled on distribution heat to all areas of the room.
The air temperature of a room heated by underfloor heating is approximately 2˚C lower than that of a room heated by radiators, but feels just as comfortable. This means significantly less energy is lost and/or consumed, which reduces underfloor heating running costs.

What Should I Expect the Underfloor Heating Running Costs to be?

Because of the unique nature of each sysyem, it is difficult to produce a very accurate estimate of underfloor heating running costs. The savings you make will depend on installation details and the system’s operational factors.
However, you might make savings of up to 50%. You can expect to make the greatest savings in high-ceilinged rooms as the underfloor heating system heats only the occupied area. Lower-ceilinged rooms draw their savings of between 10% and 20% from the lower operating temperatures necessary to heating.

Choosing an efficient Heat Source

Using a more energy efficient heat source can further reduce the underfloor heating running costs of warming your home.  Heat pumps offer the best in efficient heat sources.

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