Solar Pool Heater Installed at Viewpoint School in Calabasas; First Commercial Pool in Southern California to Qualify …

Calabasas, California (PRWEB) May 30, 2014

For the Swim Team at Viewpoint High School in Calabasas, California, being called a swim cult is considered a badge of honor. Allison Hoops, a junior at Viewpoint High School, told local newspaper The Acorn the football team, the soccer team, the cheer squadtheyre all jealous of us. Theres a family atmosphere. Everyone wants the best for you. They truly care. Were one big family. We all support each other.

That overwhelming sense of community may be the Viewpoint Patriots secret weapon, responsible for the teams winning history; the boys team just won its 10th straight league championship, and the girls took their 8th in a row. Clearly, the competition pool at Viewpoint High is a place where champions are made.

Take a walk across the Schools sprawling campus, past the fragrant rose gardens, there is another pool. This pool is used by students of Viewpoints Primary and Lower School, where swimming is a regular part of the physical education program, as well as a component of its summer programs. This is where many of the championship-winning Patriots first learned how to swim.

On top of an adjacent building, out of sight of the many swimmers, parents, and faculty below, solar panels 72 of them to be exact are now hard at work heating the pools water, thanks to an ambitious solar contractor and a new state-wide rebate program that paid for nearly all of the systems cost. The solar panels, manufactured by Aquatherm Industries of Lakewood, New Jersey, were installed by Catersolar of Woodland Hills. Installation was completed on April 21 and, having passed its final inspections on May 9, became the first commercial pool solar heating system in southern California to qualify for a rebate under the California Solar Initiative (CSI) Thermal Program.

Established through the Solar Water Heating & Efficiency Act in 2007, the CSI-Thermal Program was started with the purpose of promoting solar thermal (heating & cooling) technologies in the state of California. The program receives funding through the ratepayers of several major state utility providers, including PG&E, SCE, SoCal Gas and SDG&E, and is regulated by the California Public Utilities Commission (CPUC). By providing rebates based on displaced usage of natural gas, electricity, and propane, Program Administrators hoped to reach their goal of 200,000 systems installed by 2017.

Though the solar industry in the U.S. is no stranger to incentives, pool heating applications have traditionally been excluded from receiving such subsidies. Having a heated swimming pool in your backyard is generally viewed as a luxury, not a necessity says Molly Friar, Sales & Marketing Manager for Aquatherm. Such was initially the case for the CSI-Thermal Program, until Program Administrators, looking for a way to increase participation in the Program, found their answer in commercial pool heating.

There are over 40,000 commercial pools in the state of California at places like schools, hotels, gyms, and homeowners associations the majority of which are heated, says Dave Sizelove, President of Aquatherm Industries. Facilities often have no choice but to continuously heat these pools, which uses an incredible amount of energy.

According to EPA estimates, the combined heating load of all commercial pools in California produces annual CO2 emissions equivalent to 436,310 passenger vehicles driven a total of 4,934,224 miles. That makes commercial pools a great candidate for solar heating, says Sizelove.

Over the past 40 years, the residential market for solar pool heating in California has seen steady growth. However, high upfront costs have resulted in a less successful market penetration in the commercial sector. Once solar is installed, Friar says, a facility can cut up to 100% of its pool heating costs, paying for itself in just a few short years. By reducing upfront costs through a rebate or other incentive, it becomes much more economically feasible for a facility to add a solar pool heating system.

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Solar Pool Heater Installed at Viewpoint School in Calabasas; First Commercial Pool in Southern California to Qualify ...