Seattle's municipal pools (including Southwest Pool, pictured here) are getting innovative upgrades that reduce energy use while maintaining comfortable swimming conditions for thousands of community members. Photo by Seattle Parks and Recreation Perfect for the summer, and a fun indoor activity in the winter: we’re upgrading Seattle’s pools! Our team at OSE is collaborating with Seattle Parks & Recreation (SPR) to dive deep into energy efficiency at municipal pools across the city. The upgrades are improving energy efficiency at aquatic facilities and creating healthier, more comfortable environments for swimmers and staff.
Pools are among the most energy-intensive buildings owned by the City. They require significant heating, ventilation, and humidity control to maintain safe swimming conditions year-round, and nearly every pool burns gas to warm the water, which contributes to climate pollution.
Smart Pool Covers Lead the Way
At the heart of these improvements is a simple but effective solution you’ve seen before: pool covers. Pool covers help retain heat in pool water and, for indoor pools, reduce the energy needed to air out humidity from the building. However, outdated pool covers are difficult to operate, often left unused.
To address this, SPR installed electric motors and cables to make them easier to use. Additionally, new integrated HVAC controls will run ventilation systems at reduced levels when covers are in place, saving energy.
This approach was first tested at Southwest Pool and delivered a 14% reduction in energy use. The system was further enhanced with a large fan to maintain proper air movement. These upgrades are a key part of the City’s effort to reduce emissions at Southwest Pool under Seattle’s Building Emissions Performance Standard (BEPS), which requires large buildings to reach net zero emissions by 2050.
Meeting the pool’s BEPS targets will take some work, but the complex project presents an opportunity to use innovative clean energy solutions, helping the City lead by example and show that reducing emissions is possible for difficult or unique buildings.
Energy Conservation Technology Transforms Pool Operations
Building on the successes at Southwest Pool, OSE and SPR launched pilot projects to test more advanced energy-saving technologies. An early test at Meadowbrook Pool focused on improved fans and evacuators, a piece of equipment that helps conserve energy. Our teams will be installing advanced evacuator systems at Madison Pool, Queen Anne Pool, and the Rainier Beach Community Center.
The evacuator systems provide multiple benefits:
- Humidity Control: Advanced exhaust functions manage pool humidity more efficiently than traditional systems.
- Building Protection: Creates negative pressure to prevent humid pool air from entering other building areas.
- Energy Recovery: Utilizes heat pump technology to extract energy from warm, moist exhaust air and redirect it to pool heating, reducing reliance on gas boilers.
- Future Flexibility: Provides operational benefits that will continue even after gas systems are replaced with electric alternatives.
At Madison and Queen Anne pools, new circulation fans complement the evacuator systems. The Rainier Beach Community Center is receiving evacuators for both the leisure pool and lap pool areas. All three installations are nearly complete, with controls optimization and functional testing finishing later this year.
Electric Heat Pump Technology Heats Things Up
Pop Mounger Pool achieved a significant milestone this year. When the smaller teaching pool’s gas heating system failed, it was replaced with an electric heat pump system — the first of its kind in Seattle. The new technology performed flawlessly, bringing the pool up to temperature in time for opening on Mother’s Day weekend.
This heat pump works just like a residential heat pump you would see in a home — it gathers warm air from outside and uses it to heat the water. By gathering hot air rather than creating it, the new system efficiently provides reliable heating while reducing the facility’s climate pollution.
Building Towards a Clean Energy Future
These pool upgrades are part of Seattle’s Municipal Buildings Decarbonization Plan, the City’s guide to eliminating fossil fuels from 176 city-owned buildings by 2042. We’re grateful for our partners at SPR, supporting them with technical assistance, energy efficiency analysis, and implementation support for these specialized facilities.
To see the pool upgrades in action, check out SPR’s pool hours. Learn about our work to eliminate fossil fuels from other municipal buildings, such as libraries, fire stations, and community centers.