Submechanophobia is definitely a thing and it’s been my entire life’s biggest fear, ever since I got too close to a paddle type wave pool mechanism and got slammed around a bit when I was younger. Scared the daylights out of me
Fact. I’m still not comfortable watching this as a grown adult. It’s like YT knew this would give me anxiety and suggested it. But I learned something. Thanks!
I used to be shit scared of going near those grates due to delta-p. Now I'm older I've rationalised it and this videos helps even further. Fascinating bit of engineering for sure
@@thepoolguy the ones I hate most are those large circular vgba drains in large deep pools. Most of the time there’s only one drain and they look to be around 4 ft in diameter.
Thank you for your explanation on how the drains work! I’ve always been scared of pool drains since I was a child because I thought they’d suck me in. I feel less scared now!
Just to clarify my comments, not all pools in the US are gravity feed systems. Many are still direct suction. However, all pools in the US are required to meet VGBA standards, which include drains and sumps.
Hey there, you may be interested in reading this article that describes testing conducted on gravity drain systems, and where the chances for entrapment were very unlikely. aquamagazine.com/builder/blog-the-gravity-drain-advantage.html
You think about it, the pool drains and pump system, is almost the same circulation principle as the forced air heating and cooling system in a home, expect it's handling water, air moves through cold air return registers, much like how water is moving through the drain grates and sumps, and they all connect to a plenum, which relate to the surge pit before getting pulled into the filter and furnace, relating to the pumps, filtration and chlorinating equipment, then it distributed back into the rooms through supply registers, relating to the jets in the pools bottom and sides, the reason VGBA standards was due to entrapment, but also entrapment involved in a child sitting on the grate, usually those small round hotel pool type grates, causing a vacuum lock that resulted in disembowelment and death, that why now those small round grates are now dome or concave shaped, so if a child happens to sit on one, a vacuum lock is less likely to occur.
@@thepoolguy “The force produced at the drain by a pool pump is staggering, as high as 1,800 pounds of hold-down force. Depending upon body position, this can even result in evisceration (disembowelment).” I looked it up thinking it won’t be that bad, I am now scarred from this😂
Wow!!! I had no idea how many people had the same fear of drains as me! I’m 53 and must see where a drain is and what it looks like before i go in! I really enjoyed this video and in depth explanations 👍😃
I've always been terrified of drains in pools and hot tubs, and especially of the wave making element of wave pools. For some reason, it just inspires incredible anxiety and dread. But your video is very helpful in explaining what is going on, and hopefully someday I can at least get over my anxiety of drains in pools.
Anything capable of moving a large enough amount of water that it makes waves involves an ENORMOUS amount of energy transfer. Any time you have flowing water, or waves moving through water, there is a frightening amount of energy moving that can sweep you away, pull you under, or trap you in a circular flow, all of which can result in drowning. Pools are designed to be as safe as possible, of course, but the parts of our brains that have been molded by evolution to recognize danger are acutely aware of the hidden dangers that water can pose.
I've been looking for a video that actually went into these grates and showed how it was moving the water. This video makes a lot of sense mechanically and fundamentally! Thanks!
Thanks for posting this. I've been trying to find a good video for the past hour that would show in depth how this works and this is by far the best video. The engineering aspect behind this is very cool to me. I can't wait to see more content!
Man, my heartrate spiked when you went into that chamber behind the grates. Now I wonder if my local wavepool works the same way! Maybe one day I will find the courage to dive near enough to figure it out. Glad I'm not the only one who was/is super scared of the end of a wavepool!
Here from the Technology Connections recommendation, can’t believe I didn’t find this channel sooner! This is exactly my kind of interesting content. (Also like quite a few others here, these have always terrified me for some reason; it’s kind of nice to finally see how they function lol)
As a child i was always scared to get sucked into those chambers. Back then, many pools did not have any protection in front of the large holes. (Some pools were very deep so you couldn't really reach them anyways) It looks like there is a lot of empty space above the waterline in those chambers so if you got sucked in, you would be able to breath. Nice to know that there was at least a way to survive such an incident. Wonder what they would do if it would really happen to get someone out of it. But I still will not swim near them. With the protection it is probably even more dangerous because you can be sucked against it for a few moments. But, Thanks for the information👍 I really learned something today.
Going by the Duty Manager of my old Leisure centre who actually swum inside the wave machine chambers as a dare. Providing the machine is not operating, you are able to survive inside them. If the machine starts you will probley be a subject to pressure related conditions or be thrown about with the force of the water. If you was in front of an operating wave machine you can get away when waves are being formed, as this pool is using a mesh instead of bars, there is no way of getting your body parts pulled in to the chambers by returning water. Loads of kids used to enter the wave machine chambers at Letchworth by removing a bar or 2.
Next time the wave pool is closed I'll totally understand why. Lot's can go wrong here and I imagine most people don't understand what it looks like behind the scenes, I sure didn't. Still won't go in the wave pool though. Too many dirty feet. Awesome video brother thanks!!
surge pit is a great idea. I cant tell you how many leaking main drains or skimmers i delt with doing residential pool service when I was younger. I would sell everyone new jandy valves, new shaft seal, new leaf basket oring for the pumps. If that pump leaf basket wasnt 100% filled with clear H20, I would not stop looking for the culprit. My StaRite DuraGlas pump lasted 13 years on the oem motor and another 8 with a new AO smith and PS100 shaft seal + copper heat sync. I loved that pump that thing was a beast. Sold a ton of Great White cleaners to my customers as well because they held up to tons of neglect.
Thanks for the video. I always went to wavepools as a kid and went up close to the caissons always thought it was just a giant flap behind the grates. Your channel has really taught me a lot about how waterparks and wavepools operate. It's so cool
@@thepoolguy The Blue Thunder wave pool in Edmonton, Alberta, Canada uses hydraulic paddles. Check out the video on the channel “Best Edmonton Mall” for a really cool look at how it works here: ua-cam.com/video/Ocl9WS_qav8/v-deo.html
Excellent explanation on how the pool drains work. Not direct suction, but indirect. I also liked how the wave machine worked, that is very simple but fascinating. You think of wave machines as these big complicated machines with rudders, valves, pump, weirs. To see that it is all done with air pressure is amazing! thanks Again! Subscribed!
This is a great video! Everything is explained in great detail about the chambers, pumps and mechanics behind the scenes. The explaination of the VGB act and protocols regarding plumbing and safety features was simple and easy to understand. I'm really excited to see where this channel goes as there are very few people in the industry that have a passion for pool plumbing and design.
WOW! Thanks for sharing. Have always enjoyed the water and pools. Having owned a home with one has given me the opportunity to learn a lot about them. But man, what you are showing is on a different level! Thanks again and look forward to seeing more of your vids.
I did Solar Installation in the Caribbean for a while. For those grates try hammer-drilling out some 1/2" holes (at least 3" deep) and use some Simpson Strong Tie to epoxy 3/8" stainless all-thread into those holes. Drill corresponding holes in some fresh grates. Keeps solar panels down in 165mph hurricane force winds!!
Thank you for the advice. We have been considering doing something similar. Our issue is drilling into the 3/8 thick stainless steel. Don't have the correct drills for it. But were working on getting one.
I absolutely NEVER would've guessed a wave pool works this way. One imagines vast amounts of water being directly pumped with crazy force, but in reality a little air pressure does it in a relatively effortless way with gravity on the assist. Amazing!
learn something new everyday thank you. maybe an angle iron frame on those grates for some rigidity and one big anchor in each corner of each grate for ease of maintenance.
Being a mechanic my whole life I've always wondered why It sounded like Huge Blowers running when the waves started. Brilliant, simple and pretty reliable system....... Besides the whole "Water and Electricity" thing everyone crys about 🤣
Glad you enjoyed. I'm the same way with other equipment. In fact, I highly enjoy visiting other parks and seeing what they have under the hood. I enjoy "talking shop"
@@thepoolguy You could make a video to show every pumps and the 3 wave fans on theirs startup when the pool is full of water or how do you control the pumps etc... so the electrical system and the buttons ... Or if you have a water heater you could explain us and otherwise continue to show how do you maintain the pool, the technical aspects of the pool and yes what you actually do is really good !
Great video! Can you make a video talking about how these wave pools malfunction? Ive seen videos where waves are extremely tall and causes injuries and flooding out the park. How does this happen and what fails to cause it to do this?
Hi Taylor. I want you to know that I have not been ignoring you, rather I've been researching numerous other wave systems to give you a good answer. I'm assuming your referring to the Chinese wave pool incident from July 2019. I will have a video up soon to discuss my findings.
Pool drains were literally the scariest things. I used to think I’d get sucked down, then when I was just a tad older I thought something would come up through it (like a tentacle) and just pull me under.
I remember there used to be this UA-cam channel all about wave machines. He did videos like put a camera in a wave machine and listening to about-to-break wave machines. I’ve been looking for this content for quite a while! They closed their channel for education purposes. This is the closest thing to it! Hope to see more. :)
@@thepoolguy I mean, this is the closest channel to that and this is more interesting than any other watch suggestion when you search up “wave machine”! Also I don’t think anybody knows, it was a very interesting channel and so is this one!
Everyone came to the comments to share their intense fear of either pool drains or the caisson openings. This video perfectly shows how simple wave pools really are, and there's not much to fear about their operation.
Awesome video bud. This is the exact setup of the wave pool I grew up swimming in. Always curious about the giant concrete structure behind the pool. I’d love to see more about the wave patterns and how powerful the waves would get with all the blowers running at full power. This also brings back memories of swimming down to grab onto the metal grates while the waves were churning... looking back, probably not too safe. But it was fun as hell seeing who could hang on the longest!
Very interesting! I always wondered how these worked and it turns out it's all just air pressure. Brilliant! Very few moving parts, and (aside from the blowers) the moving parts are small too.
What does it look like when air just pushes out of all the ports at once and continues? Does it have enough force to eventually push the water out of the pool?
It would only be able to add as much water to the pool as there is space in the chamber above the lateral connection to the pool. After that point the physics would get interesting. Im not sure what would happen but there would be lots of bubbles.
I’ve alaways been terrified of pool drains, here in Brazil we don’t have VGB or any safety laws for entrapment or accidents , some old pools here even have rusty, large grated pool drains even 1mx1m size, alaways pretty dark and scary on these old ones, I don’t even come close , I’ll alaways be afraid of pool drains , but your channel helps me understanding these “beasts a little more ,even not helping with my phobia, I think it’s because I am an engineer and love learning new things , but even scared to death over drains and grates I was alaways curious about how they work and the safety implemented around it to prevent future accidents, some day I believe I can design something that can make they become safer and far less scary for people like me , so people who loves water can swim anywhere in the pool without being afraid of being near or over a drain ever again. Thank you so much for your explanations and videos, subscribed for sure, keep the videos coming, cheers from Brazil
Question if u go near the wave thing where the metal fence is under water can u get stuck to the grate due to the water pressure going back in the chamber
Ive been near them, the forces are not too terrible, but you really dont want to be on them. I was using scuba gear at the time so I had no issue with breathing.
@@thepoolguysun9-15.userapi.com/impg/DP5ZIj7KLFxhQ6v9jD3R5qhTfj-FAo-O6L4P4Q/Fk5WqYbEDM4.jpg?size=915x795&quality=96&proxy=1&sign=589c3c40cbf8c9b763be397896a4a5d7&type=album yes, a weird link, but I don't know how else to show it
Bj Penn, former two-division UFC champion shared a story on Instagram in which he recounted nearly dying after being sucked into the engine room of a wave pool at a water park (Penn refrained from specifying the location). Penn also shared images of the injuries that he suffered during the incident, which can be seen on his instagram. one of the waves returned (Penn calls it a “dud wave”) it swept Penn up and dragged him under a wall where he ended up in the engine room of the wave pool. That room fills up with water that becomes the next wave and in this case, submerged Penn in it. “The room would fill up with water to the top and I would hold my breath and then it would push the water out to make the wave and it was really rough inside there,”
I do industrial electrical, wiring control panels a such. The wave chamber looks something very familiar. Get that wired up so you don't have to manually open and close that crap anymore. Everything at work operates through a programmable logic control. It's all automatic lol.
This makes me miss the old Wet N Wild that was in Las Vegas until 2005. The wave pool was 20 feet deep at its deepest point and I swear it could have 15 foot waves! They used to have jetski shows in the wave pool that would jump the waves and fly through the air!
Really nice videos! I also like how you explain everything technically. Could you please show the pool itself so we have an idea how deep and big it actually is? Must be quite exciting to walk around in an empty pool.
Great question. So the wave pool is at 5.5 ft stagnant. The blue over flow preventer in each chamber is at 8.5 ft. The wave pool crests at approximately 7.5 ft. It has some wiggle room, but even at the largest wave, I havnr had any problems.
@@thepoolguy ah yes makes sense. So if you were in the pool near the vertical chamber grills when it’s running, would it suck you against the grills the push you into the pool? I love wave pools but always made sure I am a well away from the back wall, scares me.
@@MrPantss I've been in the area during wave operations, and it has a strong under toe. This is why most If not all wave pools have a safety time 10 to 15 feet from back wall.
Wow first video I've seen of yours and I instantly subscribed as someone who's grown up going to my local big water park I've always been curious about this sort of stuff
I still get anxiety around the next-door pool over the floor drain. And I know fully well that it's not even really a drain, just a siphon meant to save the motor if the water level gets too low.
I have always wondered why in most wavenpools they put some floating things to indicate not to swim like a meter within the wall the chambers are in and yourself, why is that? Is it because you can get sucked into the chambers?
Most codes have a requirement for safety ropes to keep guests from being to close to back wall. Not really get sucked in, but more of hitting the back wall.
Thanks for showing this kind of stuff. A few things you might consider. One is just because it’s not “direct suction” Does not mean it safer or will not cause an entrapment. They definitely move water into the pipe. Hence the reason water flows from the pool into surge pit. It’s called Delta P. And is a very dangerous situation. Depending on the difference between the two water levels, it will increase or decrease the amount of vacuum that’s created. The plumbing being hydraulically split helps keep it from happening. But it’s still dangerous and I would never trust that. If a few pipes got plugged up it would render that safety feature useless. Please be safe if you ever work on your drains while Pool has water in it. Looks like someone has Been using carbon steel anchors to bolt the grates to the wall. Should be using 316 grade stainless steel. Also need to use antiseze on the threads. So you can remove in the future. Also them grates should all be bonded to the shell reinforcement and any other metal parts of that pool. Lights, handrails, pumps. Bonding any metal in the water is a must. Should probably put a Acorn nuts over the tops of the threads sticking out to. Again not hating on you. Just trying to help out. Been in the industry for 20 years. Have plumbed Olympic size pools using up to 12” schedule 80 plumbing down to hundreds of residential pool. So I’ve been around it like yourself. Just never took the time to shear it like you have. So thanks man.
“One is just because it’s not “direct suction” Does not mean it safer” @ Brandon Iron. Umm hello..yes it is DEFINITELY SAFER than direct suction lol. Smh
Thank you for showing us the wave maker chambers and drains. I've seen these at disney world. Since you have to replace the grates do you find uses for them other than being in the wave pool. I can think of a few.
wave pools with the huge flexible, bendable "tarp" for lack of better description, were the absolute fuel of nightmares for me. seeing that thing flap back and forth under 15 feet of water kept me from going into the wave pool more than twice. as soon as i saw what was making the waves, i nope'd right on out of there.
I have a pretty bad case of submechanophobia and I would not be able to do this job. I get sweaty just thinking about this stuff... I have no idea why...
When I was younger, I too had somewhat the same issue. Mine was with the main drains in pools. However, while working in an indoor Olympic sized pool, I would swim to the four corners of the diving well to get my bearings, then I would work my way to the main drains. Since then. I've been able to work in and around underwater equipment with no issues. Well, I say no issues, there is still plenty I have yet to experience.
@@thepoolguy I am similar with heights. I am terrible with heights, so much so that going up 3 floors in a staircase makes me jittery and feel like I'm losing balance. For some reason I am still like that on stairs, but when I am standing at the top edge of a 15m tall caisson looking into a drydock... I don't feel it and can lug heavy cables around with the tripping hazards found on those structures no problem. Phobias are weird... Also I always thought they were pronounced kuh-soon and not kay-song?
Main drains and grates, pool lights, pipes. But also big air return ducts in parking garages and large storm drain outlet pipes make me sweat a little too. Its not just submerged mechanical parts. When i was little i also wouldn't walk in front of a big semi truck even if it was parked and off.
@@thepoolguy I had to look him up as I never heard of him. Apparantly he is a guy who came out with an incident of being entrapped in a wave machine's tank. He was saying it took him in to the engine room. There are many articles and videos about his story.
@@thepoolguy I hope I don't end up dreaming about it as it would be similar to the dreams I had when I was 8 about some kid getting killed by the wave machine. As I do have OCD dreams which can be pretty graphic. It is in the news he was describing it like Final Destination. The wave machine described sounds like a vacuum style.
I made a video showing BJ Penn's Article of his wave machine accident. At least he didn't get "Mangled up" by the wave machine as I would put it as a child.
Those drains always were a nighmare for me, it was just they were huge and whenever i swam I started panicking if I was overtop of them. One time I actually got stuck to the side of one of these they were on the wall and near the top where you exit.
Those drains were literally my childhood nightmare for some odd reason. I greatly appreciate the interesting video!
You and me both!
Lol same
I thought I would get sucked in
Submechanophobia is definitely a thing and it’s been my entire life’s biggest fear, ever since I got too close to a paddle type wave pool mechanism and got slammed around a bit when I was younger. Scared the daylights out of me
Fact. I’m still not comfortable watching this as a grown adult. It’s like YT knew this would give me anxiety and suggested it. But I learned something. Thanks!
I used to be shit scared of going near those grates due to delta-p. Now I'm older I've rationalised it and this videos helps even further. Fascinating bit of engineering for sure
Same
Anti-vortec grates so your hair don't get caught 💀
you should still just stay away from them anyway
I'm 35 and I still get anxiety near the grates
there are badly maintained ones, like in hotels and resorts. and sometimes a tourists gets trapped and drowns.
I am legit terrified of pool drains. This video is top notch horror for me. I couldn’t even go near those in a DRAINED pool.
I get it, I was terrified as well as a young operator.
@@thepoolguy the ones I hate most are those large circular vgba drains in large deep pools. Most of the time there’s only one drain and they look to be around 4 ft in diameter.
I'm pretty sure The Final Destination movie doesn't help with those fears. Or which ever FD featured the pool death.
Literally me too it’s okay
i am too! and bathtub drains i could never sit in a tub and take a bath with my feet on the drain 😟
Thank you for your explanation on how the drains work! I’ve always been scared of pool drains since I was a child because I thought they’d suck me in. I feel less scared now!
Gravity feed doesn't suck you in. Instead the entire weight of all the pool water pushes you in.
Just to clarify my comments, not all pools in the US are gravity feed systems. Many are still direct suction. However, all pools in the US are required to meet VGBA standards, which include drains and sumps.
Hey there, you may be interested in reading this article that describes testing conducted on gravity drain systems, and where the chances for entrapment were very unlikely. aquamagazine.com/builder/blog-the-gravity-drain-advantage.html
You think about it, the pool drains and pump system, is almost the same circulation principle as the forced air heating and cooling system in a home, expect it's handling water, air moves through cold air return registers, much like how water is moving through the drain grates and sumps, and they all connect to a plenum, which relate to the surge pit before getting pulled into the filter and furnace, relating to the pumps, filtration and chlorinating equipment, then it distributed back into the rooms through supply registers, relating to the jets in the pools bottom and sides, the reason VGBA standards was due to entrapment, but also entrapment involved in a child sitting on the grate, usually those small round hotel pool type grates, causing a vacuum lock that resulted in disembowelment and death, that why now those small round grates are now dome or concave shaped, so if a child happens to sit on one, a vacuum lock is less likely to occur.
@@thepoolguy “The force produced at the drain by a pool pump is staggering, as high as 1,800 pounds of hold-down force. Depending upon body position, this can even result in evisceration (disembowelment).” I looked it up thinking it won’t be that bad, I am now scarred from this😂
Wow!!! I had no idea how many people had the same fear of drains as me! I’m 53 and must see where a drain is and what it looks like before i go in! I really enjoyed this video and in depth explanations 👍😃
I've always been terrified of drains in pools and hot tubs, and especially of the wave making element of wave pools. For some reason, it just inspires incredible anxiety and dread. But your video is very helpful in explaining what is going on, and hopefully someday I can at least get over my anxiety of drains in pools.
Glad you enjoyed, More to come. Don't forget to subscribe if you haven't already.
Anything capable of moving a large enough amount of water that it makes waves involves an ENORMOUS amount of energy transfer. Any time you have flowing water, or waves moving through water, there is a frightening amount of energy moving that can sweep you away, pull you under, or trap you in a circular flow, all of which can result in drowning. Pools are designed to be as safe as possible, of course, but the parts of our brains that have been molded by evolution to recognize danger are acutely aware of the hidden dangers that water can pose.
Wow, I had no idea how engineered these things are. If you keep making content like this your channel will blow up. Keep up the good work!
Thank you very much!
I've been looking for a video that actually went into these grates and showed how it was moving the water. This video makes a lot of sense mechanically and fundamentally! Thanks!
Thanks for posting this. I've been trying to find a good video for the past hour that would show in depth how this works and this is by far the best video. The engineering aspect behind this is very cool to me. I can't wait to see more content!
You're very welcome!
What in the name of God made you look up how a wave pool works lmao
Man, my heartrate spiked when you went into that chamber behind the grates. Now I wonder if my local wavepool works the same way! Maybe one day I will find the courage to dive near enough to figure it out. Glad I'm not the only one who was/is super scared of the end of a wavepool!
I have no idea what he is on about, but I'm still intrigued and watching.
Stick around, I promise you won't be disappointed.
Here from the Technology Connections recommendation, can’t believe I didn’t find this channel sooner! This is exactly my kind of interesting content.
(Also like quite a few others here, these have always terrified me for some reason; it’s kind of nice to finally see how they function lol)
Same here, and wow, Alec was grate for suggesting it; i'm enjoying this channel so much
As a child i was always scared to get sucked into those chambers. Back then, many pools did not have any protection in front of the large holes. (Some pools were very deep so you couldn't really reach them anyways)
It looks like there is a lot of empty space above the waterline in those chambers so if you got sucked in, you would be able to breath.
Nice to know that there was at least a way to survive such an incident.
Wonder what they would do if it would really happen to get someone out of it.
But I still will not swim near them. With the protection it is probably even more dangerous because you can be sucked against it for a few moments.
But, Thanks for the information👍
I really learned something today.
Yes, in theory you could easily survive inside one of these.
Going by the Duty Manager of my old Leisure centre who actually swum inside the wave machine chambers as a dare. Providing the machine is not operating, you are able to survive inside them. If the machine starts you will probley be a subject to pressure related conditions or be thrown about with the force of the water. If you was in front of an operating wave machine you can get away when waves are being formed, as this pool is using a mesh instead of bars, there is no way of getting your body parts pulled in to the chambers by returning water. Loads of kids used to enter the wave machine chambers at Letchworth by removing a bar or 2.
I am so happy to see others had a fear of pool drains! Even now at 39 yrs old watching this makes me nervous lol 😂
I was deathly scared of the drains to these pools when I was a kid. Actually, I still am 🙃
Don't worry, I am to.
@@thepoolguy what scared me was the starting of repelling down. It's always unerving for me.
Next time the wave pool is closed I'll totally understand why. Lot's can go wrong here and I imagine most people don't understand what it looks like behind the scenes, I sure didn't. Still won't go in the wave pool though. Too many dirty feet. Awesome video brother thanks!!
Glad you enjoyed, More to come. Don't forget to subscribe if you haven't already.
surge pit is a great idea. I cant tell you how many leaking main drains or skimmers i delt with doing residential pool service when I was younger. I would sell everyone new jandy valves, new shaft seal, new leaf basket oring for the pumps. If that pump leaf basket wasnt 100% filled with clear H20, I would not stop looking for the culprit. My StaRite DuraGlas pump lasted 13 years on the oem motor and another 8 with a new AO smith and PS100 shaft seal + copper heat sync. I loved that pump that thing was a beast. Sold a ton of Great White cleaners to my customers as well because they held up to tons of neglect.
I would say that I have fallen in love with surge pit pools. They do have their own issues however.
Thanks for the video.
I always went to wavepools as a kid and went up close to the caissons always thought it was just a giant flap behind the grates. Your channel has really taught me a lot about how waterparks and wavepools operate. It's so cool
Glad you enjoyed!
Never thought they worked like this. Assumed it was a large rudder.
Some wave pools do work like you described. But very rare.
Just wait until tractor beam technology is integrated into the system, much safer and can be adapted instantaneously to the individual swimmer
@@thepoolguy The Blue Thunder wave pool in Edmonton, Alberta, Canada uses hydraulic paddles. Check out the video on the channel “Best Edmonton Mall” for a really cool look at how it works here: ua-cam.com/video/Ocl9WS_qav8/v-deo.html
I had no idea how simple the waves was created. Thanks for the inside look 😊
You got my sub . Maintenance tech at a water park in New York . This brings back a lot of great memories . Awesome content
Awesome! Thank you!
Excellent explanation on how the pool drains work. Not direct suction, but indirect. I also liked how the wave machine worked, that is very simple but fascinating. You think of wave machines as these big complicated machines with rudders, valves, pump, weirs. To see that it is all done with air pressure is amazing! thanks Again! Subscribed!
This is a great video! Everything is explained in great detail about the chambers, pumps and mechanics behind the scenes. The explaination of the VGB act and protocols regarding plumbing and safety features was simple and easy to understand. I'm really excited to see where this channel goes as there are very few people in the industry that have a passion for pool plumbing and design.
Glad you enjoyed it!
Random video search on wave pools. Saw this clicked and DID NOT DISAPPOINT! Thanks for explaining. 💯
Thanks, dont forget to subscribe!, more to come
I've always been curious how exactly these things worked.. great video!!
Glad you enjoyed, More to come. Don't forget to subscribe if you haven't already.
WOW! Thanks for sharing. Have always enjoyed the water and pools. Having owned a home with one has given me the opportunity to learn a lot about them. But man, what you are showing is on a different level! Thanks again and look forward to seeing more of your vids.
LOL, yeah the backyard pools are a different realm even for a commercial guy like me. Thanks for sticking around!
Awe man, the birth of a channel! Here before 1k
Thanks bud! Hoping it does blow up
These videos are great! It shows how articulable the system is for simple water entertainment parks.
I always wondered how the mechanics worked. Thanks for answering a life long question.
You bet!
I did Solar Installation in the Caribbean for a while. For those grates try hammer-drilling out some 1/2" holes (at least 3" deep) and use some Simpson Strong Tie to epoxy 3/8" stainless all-thread into those holes. Drill corresponding holes in some fresh grates. Keeps solar panels down in 165mph hurricane force winds!!
Thank you for the advice. We have been considering doing something similar. Our issue is drilling into the 3/8 thick stainless steel. Don't have the correct drills for it. But were working on getting one.
I always wondered how wave pools worked. Thanks for the awesome explanation!
I absolutely NEVER would've guessed a wave pool works this way. One imagines vast amounts of water being directly pumped with crazy force, but in reality a little air pressure does it in a relatively effortless way with gravity on the assist. Amazing!
Consistent as Gravity! :)
@@thepoolguy I don't know why, but it just never occurred to me that it could be that simple! :)
learn something new everyday thank you. maybe an angle iron frame on those grates for some rigidity and one big anchor in each corner of each grate for ease of maintenance.
This is something we have been considering, but with utilizing sch 80 90's.
I'm glad I'm not the only one who was scared of pool drains. Honestly it bothered me looking down those sumps with the pool empty!
Being a mechanic my whole life I've always wondered why It sounded like Huge Blowers running when the waves started. Brilliant, simple and pretty reliable system....... Besides the whole "Water and Electricity" thing everyone crys about 🤣
Glad you enjoyed. I'm the same way with other equipment. In fact, I highly enjoy visiting other parks and seeing what they have under the hood. I enjoy "talking shop"
definitely starting to think you may own this company from your word choice
if so, very cool how hands on you are with everything
Great, the first video that really explains how this stuff works!
Glad it was helpful!
this guy is a better teacher than some of my professors
Thanks for that!
This is the video I never knew I really, REALLY wanted.
Glad you enjoyed, stick around.
Thanks! Very interesting. I love mechanical technology and this is what most of us never see.
Glad you enjoyed it!
7:41
the game changer moment, to put all the nightmares to rest.
Thank you for your videos, they are really interresting, i hope you will continue to make some ! Thank you from France
Glad you're enjoying them. If you have any other ideas for future content, please feel free to comment.
@@thepoolguy You could make a video to show every pumps and the 3 wave fans on theirs startup when the pool is full of water or how do you control the pumps etc... so the electrical system and the buttons ... Or if you have a water heater you could explain us and otherwise continue to show how do you maintain the pool, the technical aspects of the pool and yes what you actually do is really good !
this make me get over fear
of pool drains
Glad you enjoyed, More to come. Don't forget to subscribe if you haven't already.
I would love to see an in depth tour of the controller for that wave pool. Is it bespoke or is this an off-the-shelf system you can buy?
This is on my list for future content.Thanks so much!
That would be sweet!
Great video! Can you make a video talking about how these wave pools malfunction? Ive seen videos where waves are extremely tall and causes injuries and flooding out the park. How does this happen and what fails to cause it to do this?
Hi Taylor. I want you to know that I have not been ignoring you, rather I've been researching numerous other wave systems to give you a good answer. I'm assuming your referring to the Chinese wave pool incident from July 2019. I will have a video up soon to discuss my findings.
Pool drains were literally the scariest things. I used to think I’d get sucked down, then when I was just a tad older I thought something would come up through it (like a tentacle) and just pull me under.
don't worry, so did i.
Loved this one with the explanation and different sides of the pool and tech used, really interesting!
Love learning how these work! I've always been curious. It's much simpler than I imagined.
How high is the pressure inside of each caissian when the machine is on?
I actually don't know. I may try and do an experiment.
I remember there used to be this UA-cam channel all about wave machines. He did videos like put a camera in a wave machine and listening to about-to-break wave machines. I’ve been looking for this content for quite a while! They closed their channel for education purposes. This is the closest thing to it! Hope to see more. :)
So are you trying to give me a hint....? 😁
@@thepoolguy I mean, this is the closest channel to that and this is more interesting than any other watch suggestion when you search up “wave machine”!
Also I don’t think anybody knows, it was a very interesting channel and so is this one!
@@infernoo428 Well thank you, I hope I can meet your expectations.
Everyone came to the comments to share their intense fear of either pool drains or the caisson openings. This video perfectly shows how simple wave pools really are, and there's not much to fear about their operation.
Awesome video bud. This is the exact setup of the wave pool I grew up swimming in. Always curious about the giant concrete structure behind the pool. I’d love to see more about the wave patterns and how powerful the waves would get with all the blowers running at full power.
This also brings back memories of swimming down to grab onto the metal grates while the waves were churning... looking back, probably not too safe. But it was fun as hell seeing who could hang on the longest!
I've been considered getting all three back on line. I need some parts from Italy for #2 unfortunately.
Very interesting! I always wondered how these worked and it turns out it's all just air pressure. Brilliant! Very few moving parts, and (aside from the blowers) the moving parts are small too.
Many thanks!
I always thought it was a hydraulic system that moved up and down large wing of sorts that caused the waves. Thanks for the vid!
Some places still do it that way. However, anything built since 2000 would most likely be an air system.
Did not know this! Very cool to see that it is actually such a simple principle...
Glad you enjoyed, More to come. Don't forget to subscribe if you haven't already.
Cool! Thanks for the share!! I’ve always wanted to see the infrastructure in a wave pool.
Any time!
youtube alrogethm be like, "yo nerd here's some'n cool" nice watch.
LOL< love it, hope you subscribed.
@Xtra Spice Mikey loll ok
i was ceurious how wave pools worked very interesting and way simpler then i expected
Great video!! do you know how many presure are in the chamber to push the water ?
That I do not know
Thank you so much! Always wanted to see that!!
You're welcome!
Simple method to make great pool waves .... good info
Technology connections send me. This is so cool to see the plumbing that goes on behind the scenes Of a swimming pool. Thanks man.
not sure how the hell i came across this, but i subscribed :D cant wait for more.... :o
Lol, well thanks for the sub. Hope I can meet your expectations
Absolutely awesome, I have always been very curious how these wave pools work. Thanks for sharing.
Glad you like them!
Nice to see am not alone with those draines 🥶🥶 sketchy af.
What does it look like when air just pushes out of all the ports at once and continues? Does it have enough force to eventually push the water out of the pool?
It would only be able to add as much water to the pool as there is space in the chamber above the lateral connection to the pool.
After that point the physics would get interesting. Im not sure what would happen but there would be lots of bubbles.
I build residential swimming pools. Nice to see the behind the scenes of a commercial pool
Glad you enjoyed. I absolutely enjoy talking shop with others in the industry.
I’ve alaways been terrified of pool drains, here in Brazil we don’t have VGB or any safety laws for entrapment or accidents , some old pools here even have rusty, large grated pool drains even 1mx1m size, alaways pretty dark and scary on these old ones, I don’t even come close , I’ll alaways be afraid of pool drains , but your channel helps me understanding these “beasts a little more ,even not helping with my phobia, I think it’s because I am an engineer and love learning new things , but even scared to death over drains and grates I was alaways curious about how they work and the safety implemented around it to prevent future accidents, some day I believe I can design something that can make they become safer and far less scary for people like me , so people who loves water can swim anywhere in the pool without being afraid of being near or over a drain ever again. Thank you so much for your explanations and videos, subscribed for sure, keep the videos coming, cheers from Brazil
Howdy, thanks for the comment. Glad this helps a little bit. More to come.
Question if u go near the wave thing where the metal fence is under water can u get stuck to the grate due to the water pressure going back in the chamber
Ive been near them, the forces are not too terrible, but you really dont want to be on them. I was using scuba gear at the time so I had no issue with breathing.
Why do we need small holes with a grating at the bottom like at 8:43 in the upper right corner?
I truly am sorry, I'm having trouble identifying what your referring too.
@@thepoolguysun9-15.userapi.com/impg/DP5ZIj7KLFxhQ6v9jD3R5qhTfj-FAo-O6L4P4Q/Fk5WqYbEDM4.jpg?size=915x795&quality=96&proxy=1&sign=589c3c40cbf8c9b763be397896a4a5d7&type=album
yes, a weird link, but I don't know how else to show it
Bj Penn, former two-division UFC champion shared a story on Instagram in which he recounted nearly dying after being sucked into the engine room of a wave pool at a water park (Penn refrained from specifying the location). Penn also shared images of the injuries that he suffered during the incident, which can be seen on his instagram. one of the waves returned (Penn calls it a “dud wave”) it swept Penn up and dragged him under a wall where he ended up in the engine room of the wave pool. That room fills up with water that becomes the next wave and in this case, submerged Penn in it. “The room would fill up with water to the top and I would hold my breath and then it would push the water out to make the wave and it was really rough inside there,”
4:48 The moisture levels in there must be incredible the rust on those enclosures for the controller.
Asif all this time, I thought I was going ta get sucked into some nightmare shit. that's cool man.
I do industrial electrical, wiring control panels a such. The wave chamber looks something very familiar. Get that wired up so you don't have to manually open and close that crap anymore. Everything at work operates through a programmable logic control. It's all automatic lol.
This makes me miss the old Wet N Wild that was in Las Vegas until 2005. The wave pool was 20 feet deep at its deepest point and I swear it could have 15 foot waves! They used to have jetski shows in the wave pool that would jump the waves and fly through the air!
Yes, I know this facility. I do believe they quit that as many complained that they just wanted to use the wave pool over watching the jet skis.
Technology Connections sent me... always wondered how the wave pool worked at Water World in Colorado
Really nice videos!
I also like how you explain everything technically.
Could you please show the pool itself so we have an idea how deep and big it actually is?
Must be quite exciting to walk around in an empty pool.
Thanks for the idea!
Interesting, what stops the water from surging up and through the air valve/flap that releases the air and flooding into the compressor room
Great question. So the wave pool is at 5.5 ft stagnant. The blue over flow preventer in each chamber is at 8.5 ft. The wave pool crests at approximately 7.5 ft. It has some wiggle room, but even at the largest wave, I havnr had any problems.
@@thepoolguy ah yes makes sense. So if you were in the pool near the vertical chamber grills when it’s running, would it suck you against the grills the push you into the pool? I love wave pools but always made sure I am a well away from the back wall, scares me.
@@MrPantss I've been in the area during wave operations, and it has a strong under toe. This is why most If not all wave pools have a safety time 10 to 15 feet from back wall.
@@thepoolguy ah yes that makes sense
I can't believe I'm watching this but after I did I wanna see more! What a cool video, I subscribed and can't wait to see what else you have! Thanks!!
Thanks for the sub!
Wow first video I've seen of yours and I instantly subscribed as someone who's grown up going to my local big water park I've always been curious about this sort of stuff
Awesome, I hope not to disappoint.
Is it dangerous to fall or be inside a surge pit when "active"?
I still get anxiety around the next-door pool over the floor drain. And I know fully well that it's not even really a drain, just a siphon meant to save the motor if the water level gets too low.
I have always wondered why in most wavenpools they put some floating things to indicate not to swim like a meter within the wall the chambers are in and yourself, why is that? Is it because you can get sucked into the chambers?
Most codes have a requirement for safety ropes to keep guests from being to close to back wall. Not really get sucked in, but more of hitting the back wall.
@@thepoolguy ohh okay
Very nicely put together video and very entertaining as well. Thanks for posting this.
Thanks for showing this kind of stuff. A few things you might consider.
One is just because it’s not “direct suction” Does not mean it safer or will not cause an entrapment. They definitely move water into the pipe. Hence the reason water flows from the pool into surge pit. It’s called Delta P. And is a very dangerous situation. Depending on the difference between the two water levels, it will increase or decrease the amount of vacuum that’s created. The plumbing being hydraulically split helps keep it from happening. But it’s still dangerous and I would never trust that. If a few pipes got plugged up it would render that safety feature useless. Please be safe if you ever work on your drains while Pool has water in it.
Looks like someone has Been using carbon steel anchors to bolt the grates to the wall. Should be using 316 grade stainless steel. Also need to use antiseze on the threads. So you can remove in the future. Also them grates should all be bonded to the shell reinforcement and any other metal parts of that pool. Lights, handrails, pumps. Bonding any metal in the water is a must. Should probably put a Acorn nuts over the tops of the threads sticking out to.
Again not hating on you. Just trying to help out. Been in the industry for 20 years. Have plumbed Olympic size pools using up to 12” schedule 80 plumbing down to hundreds of residential pool. So I’ve been around it like yourself. Just never took the time to shear it like you have. So thanks man.
Thank you for your suggestions.
“One is just because it’s not “direct suction” Does not mean it safer” @ Brandon Iron. Umm hello..yes it is DEFINITELY SAFER than direct suction lol. Smh
great videos love how the pumps work dont get to see many videos of this
More to come!
So if your near the grates when the valve opens and those fill back up with water do you get trapped until it fills fully?
That's not something I have ever tried, nor would I.
Thank you for showing us the wave maker chambers and drains. I've seen these at disney world.
Since you have to replace the grates do you find uses for them other than being in the wave pool. I can think of a few.
By that time they are degraded and use less. However, for non pool use.... perhaps.
@@thepoolguy If they are made of metal could you perhaps take two of them and make a BBQ grill. Might have to run it to burn off the paint.
@@coondogtheman oh. Are you refering to the large grates on the wall? Hell, these are so expensive, I could never get rid of them
@@thepoolguy No, I mean the ones on the floor drains, Those look like they would make a great BBQ grill. If they are metal.
@@coondogtheman ahh, I see. Unfortunately no. These are made of a Glass fiber reinforced abs plastic I believe. For sure not plastic.
Great video! Is there a reason as to why alot of the pipes/pumps are painted blue or is it just for aesthetic reasons?
wave pools with the huge flexible, bendable "tarp" for lack of better description, were the absolute fuel of nightmares for me. seeing that thing flap back and forth under 15 feet of water kept me from going into the wave pool more than twice. as soon as i saw what was making the waves, i nope'd right on out of there.
So what were all of those little tiny drains dotted all over the bottom of the pool?
These are "returns" water coming back from the filters.
Even now those giant grills look terrifying underwater.
Well, they are scary even to me.
What does that small drain do?
I have a pretty bad case of submechanophobia and I would not be able to do this job. I get sweaty just thinking about this stuff... I have no idea why...
When I was younger, I too had somewhat the same issue. Mine was with the main drains in pools. However, while working in an indoor Olympic sized pool, I would swim to the four corners of the diving well to get my bearings, then I would work my way to the main drains. Since then. I've been able to work in and around underwater equipment with no issues. Well, I say no issues, there is still plenty I have yet to experience.
@@thepoolguy
I am similar with heights. I am terrible with heights, so much so that going up 3 floors in a staircase makes me jittery and feel like I'm losing balance. For some reason I am still like that on stairs, but when I am standing at the top edge of a 15m tall caisson looking into a drydock... I don't feel it and can lug heavy cables around with the tripping hazards found on those structures no problem.
Phobias are weird...
Also I always thought they were pronounced kuh-soon and not kay-song?
Main drains and grates, pool lights, pipes. But also big air return ducts in parking garages and large storm drain outlet pipes make me sweat a little too. Its not just submerged mechanical parts. When i was little i also wouldn't walk in front of a big semi truck even if it was parked and off.
BJ Penn brought me here
Thanks for the detail. it is very infomative..
Thanks for the video..i was searching this the whole time, great video 🔥 ..respect++
Did you hear about BJ Penn? Someone started to mention him on couple of my wave machine videos. Apparantly he got stuck inside the wave machine.
I don't know who that Is, can you shoot me in the right direction.
@@thepoolguy I had to look him up as I never heard of him. Apparantly he is a guy who came out with an incident of being entrapped in a wave machine's tank. He was saying it took him in to the engine room. There are many articles and videos about his story.
@@thepoolguy I hope I don't end up dreaming about it as it would be similar to the dreams I had when I was 8 about some kid getting killed by the wave machine. As I do have OCD dreams which can be pretty graphic. It is in the news he was describing it like Final Destination. The wave machine described sounds like a vacuum style.
I made a video showing BJ Penn's Article of his wave machine accident. At least he didn't get "Mangled up" by the wave machine as I would put it as a child.
@@mrunixman1579 finally someone mentioned that scenel.must have confused pool for surge tank.
Those drains always were a nighmare for me, it was just they were huge and whenever i swam I started panicking if I was overtop of them. One time I actually got stuck to the side of one of these they were on the wall and near the top where you exit.
Next, can you show us the wave blowers in operation? ;-)
Absolutely! I want to do this when we are fully operational. Much more interesting to watch when it has water in the pool.
@@thepoolguy Also, we would like to hear what it sounds like when underwater too. ;-)
Not the creator, but this is how it sounds from the motor room side: ua-cam.com/video/e_sk8t4XNV0/v-deo.html