CALIFORNIA/DROUGHT-POOL REPAIR Underwater pool repair saves water during California drought

Record ID: 145476

  • Title: CALIFORNIA/DROUGHT-POOL REPAIR Underwater pool repair saves water during California drought
  • Date: 1st August 2015
  • Summary: OCEANSIDE, CALIFORNIA, UNITED STATES (JULY 31, 2015) (REUTERS) POOL REPAIRMAN KEVIN WALLACE AND HIS UNIDENTIFIED CO-WORKER WALKING INTO HOME COWORKER SETTING UP KEVIN WALLACE UNDER WATER, REPAIRING POOL (SOUNDBITE) (English) KEVIN WALLACE, UNDERWATER UNLIMITED INC., SAYING: "Most pools run around 12 to 15 thousand gallons of water, and depending where they are, the costs v
  • Embargoed: 16th August 2015 13:00
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  • Topics: General
  • Reuters ID: LVABDH7U8L357H1OMLFS6CZWZJDB
  • Aspect Ratio: 16:9
  • Story Text: They say necessity is the mother of all inventions. In California, where residents are experiencing their fourth year of an excruciating drought, one swimming pool repair company with an eco-friendly idea is helping pool owners save time, money, and water.
    Using special unique epoxies that can be applied underwater, pool repairman Kevin Wallace dons a wet suit and dives into swimming pools all over southern California to undertake repair jobs which used to require draining the swimming pool of precious water.
    "Most pools run around 12 to 15 thousand gallons of water, and depending where they are, the costs vary. So you're losing that money," says Wallace. "Whereas, when you do it underwater, you're not removing the water. There's no real downtime. These owners can swim three hours after we leave," says Wallace.
    Wallace says this under water repair system not only cuts down what is a usually a three to four day process to just several hours, but it also helps avoid the inadvertent damage caused by draining and refilling swimming pools.
    "You take that water weight out, your pool is going to shift. And when that shifting occurs, you have movement in the pool. And when you're putting water back in it, and prior to putting water back in it, the plaster or whatever finish that you have is going to dry out. It's like a skin. So it lessens the life of the pool plaster," says Wallace.
    Oceanside resident and pool owner Al Nieman says the process is worth it.
    "I would say we've probably saved ourselves 15 (hundred) to 2000 dollars easily," says Nieman.
    Wallace says the drought, coupled with Californian's water conversation efforts is keeping the company extremely busy.
    "Business has just exploded. Just exploded," says Wallace.
    Given that California has been engulfed in its worst drought in decades, chances are Wallace, and his subaqueous co-workers, will be busy for some time to come.
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