Swimming pool lighting is a necessary part of making the modern swimming pool a fun and safe place to play. As a minimum lighting should illuminate your pool water to make sure swimmers can always be seen. It can also be used to create the mood of an inviting relaxation area.
Pool lighting can be divided into three main types. General lighting that illuminates the pool deck and paths so you can wander safely after dark. Then there is underwater lighting that is useful for swimming after dark as well as creating decorative night time lighting effects. Finally, there is accent lighting that is generally used to add atmosphere to the poolside setting.
In case of indoor pools, special consideration is required for not only lights, but other electrical fittings within the pool hall. Standard 240 volts switching is unsafe for these areas so 12 volts switching system should be used. This can be incorporated in the main swimming pool control panel itself.
This should be extended into the pool room to allow the lights to be operated without entering the plant space. Interaction with home automation systems such as Lutron and Crestron is a standard option.
Exotic Pool Lighting Options
New lighting technologies are now appearing regularly. From LED, fibre optic, light ropes and more. Fibre optic lighting is becoming a popular option for pools. This doesn’t carry any electrical current, rather fibers of glass (or acrylic) allow light to move through the “conduit”. The plant area will house a “projector” from which light is emited into the end of the fibres. The opposite end of the fibre strands are then placed in the pool or anywhere else you want light to appear. Fibre optics offer a wide range of both colours and styles of light – this variety can be used to create multi-colour special effects. Even if you have an older pool, it can probably be retrofitted to support fibre optic lighting.