Issue # 3
24
PROPERTY360DIGEST
PROPERTY360DIGEST
Issue # 3
25
COLUMNIST
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The arrival of LED lighting created a number of possibilities
for swimming pools. There was an opportunity to reduce
electrical running costs whilst giving options for more colours
and even colour changing lights
Bruce Hope
The end of the year is always special. Whether you are celebrating
Christmas or New Year or just enjoying a few days off with family
and friends, it is an opportune time to reflect on all the good things
that happened, and what the New Year may bring.
Many of us choose to book a getaway at a hotel or resort, while
others prefer to stay at home. Wherever it is, I am sure you will
agree that lighting helps set the mood for a magical retreat.
For many years with the use of
incandescent bulbs, standard pool lighting
and the surrounding gardens were
generally warm white. Warm white was a
phrase created to describe how the light
felt. Another way to describe the exact
colour is colour temperature. This is a scale
that defines how ‘warm’ (yellow) or ‘cool’
(blue) the light from a particular source is.
It is measured in Kelvins (abbreviated to
K). The higher the number, the ‘cooler’ the
light. The lower the ‘K’ number, the ‘warmer’
the light. Warm white on the colour
temperature scale is 2700K to 3000K.
One of the terms that may be
mentioned for swimming pool light bulbs
is PAR38. This is not a golfing term :) PAR is
an abbreviation of “Parabolic Aluminized
Reflector”, which refers to the shape and
design of the bulb. Generally, the bulb is
a sealed beam with a parabolic reflector,
with a tungsten filament and a glass lens
sealed permanently together as a complete
unit. PAR bulb diameters are measured
in units of one-eighth (1⁄8) of an inch, so a
PAR38 is 38 x 1⁄8 = 4.75 inches in diameter.
Frequently the bulb had an E27 thread.
The E stands for Edison and 27 indicates
the diameter in millimetres measured
across the peaks of the thread. i.e. E27
has a thread diameter of 27mm. Not to
be outdone, another term used is R40. R
means there is a reflective coating on the
inside of the bulb that directs light forward
and 40 is 40 x 1⁄8” = 5 inches in diameter.
To avoid the risk of electrical shock, low
electrical AC voltage is used for underwater
pool lights. In Malaysia, most of the pool
lighting installation uses 12V AC however
24V is not uncommon. To achieve this,
a step-down transformer is installed,
generally at the swimming pool electrical
control panel, which reduces the
voltage from 230V to 12V.
The arrival of LED lighting created a
number of possibilities for swimming
pools. There was an opportunity to
reduce electrical running costs whilst
giving options for more colours and
even colour changing lights. However
early installations were not without their
challenges. LED lights are particularly
susceptible to water intrusion and if there
were any problems with cable joints the
new LED lights could quickly fail. This was
solved by manufacturers such as Waterco
using sealed connections into the lights
so even if the cable joint was bad the light
would not be damaged. Another problem
was that to have LED the entire fitting had
to be changed. This was expensive and
time-consuming. Now there are more
options to re-use the existing fitting and
simply replace with an LED bulb. Another
item that caused challenges was the 12V
vs 24V. If not checked prior to installation
the LED lights could fail quickly. This has
been overcome by some lights such as the
Waterco Britestream that can work with
12V or 24V input.
So if you are relaxing in or beside a pool
during your year-end retreat, take a look at
the lighting and give thanks to the people
who worked hard to make it happen.
Tips for pool owners
l
Ask your pool contractor help you
calculate the cost of running your existing
lights vs LED.
l
Do you need to change the fitting
or can you re-use the existing?
l
Can the new lights be fitted using
the existing mounting screw locations?
l
Normally it is not required to
drain any water to install replacement pool
lights.
Who knew?
Thomas Edison is credited with inventing
the light bulb. More correctly he invented a
commercially viable light bulb. The original
electric arc lamp was invented almost 80
years earlier by Humphry Davy.
Monthly Special
For all readers of this article,
we are offering for the month
of 2019 a 15% discount on
Waterco Britestream lights (terms and
conditions apply). Please contact Beribu
Jaya at [email protected]
and use the code MOSPWBS as a reference.
n Bruce Hope is owner and CEO of
Beribu Jaya, the leading swimming pool
services company in Kuala Lumpur.
Beribu Jaya is a panel supplier to many
of the leading hotel and property
management companies. Bruce, a New
Zealander, mostly resident in Malaysia
since 2003, is passionate about all things
outdoors and when he is not around
a swimming pool, in his spare time
does marine conservation and related
activities.