Solar Powered!

Ever wondered what the solar panels are doing up on the bathhouse in Paddy’s Creek? To serve the bathers at Paddy’s Creek a state-of-art bathhouse was designed to meet LEED standards (Leadership in Energy and Environmental Design). The Division adopted a directive several years ago that new construction over a certain size would need to be built to LEED standards, a policy that encourages high-performing and energy-saving buildings.

The state-of-the-art bathhouse at Paddy’s Creek includes a 12 collector solar thermal system which utilizes the sun’s clean energy to produce hot water for the showers and to heat the adjacent offices in the winter through radiant floor heating.

An impressive component of this solar energy system that the visiting public won’t see is the 500 gallon custom storage tank that has 120 feet of coiled copper through which the heat gained by the collectors is transferred. On a sunny day, up to 480,000 BTUs of energy can be produced by the system.

After cooling off in the lake, there will be a few bathers who will appreciate a nice warm shower, and knowing that it was heated by solar energy should make it even nicer.