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Swimming Pool Acts as Thermal Storage in 17th Century Eco-Retrofit

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What a relief it would be, in Britain’s chilly winters, to immerse yourself in this cozy sunlit pool. But that’s not its only benefit. This warm pool is itself a part of an eco retrofit of a 400 year old dwelling.

The bones of the ancient structure are preserved. But a 21st century life is possible inside this 17th century structure. The builder really stressed making the ancient building completely air-tight, because making any building totally air tight reduces energy consumption, far more so even than bulking up insulation.

The radiant heating system, using circulating hot water, normally used only in flooring, is also even incorporated into some of these exterior walls.

The builder installed an air system that completely changes the air in the property once every two hours – replacing the stale damp air with fresh, warmed, dry, filtered air. A heat exchange system uses the hot air going out to help pre-warm the fresh air that is brought in.

Heat recovery ventilators change and filter the air every two hours. On some of the the roofs, solar tiles provide the electricity, and a rainwater harvesting system reduces water use.

Twenty solar hot water panels feed hot water into an in-ground heat storage system for year-round energy supply and help the sun warm the pool through these huge South-facing windows.

Water itself behaves like a thermal sink. By putting the indoor pool inside huge windows that soak up the sun, the pool itself becomes a part of the warming system for the entire 21st century eco-castle. Mmmmm… I love it!

Source: Barnsley Hill Farm
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