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Aluminum Vs. Steel

Indoor waterparks generally rely on one or two stair towers to support their slide packages. After spending many millions of dollars on the slides, it is imperative that the towers support the activity and use of the slides. If the tower itself requires replacement, repair or extensive maintenance, operations and guest experience are poorly affected.

Below are photos of two stair towers, one aluminum one in steel. It is clear there are significant corrosion issues on the steel and wood tower. This is typical in waterparks as the humidity levels can be 3x (or more) higher than the humidity of a typical building.

A Steel and Wood Stair Tower

steel wood stair tower

An Aluminum Stair Tower

aluminum stair tower

Waterpark Building Envelope & Interior Key Issues/Concerns:

  1. Waterparks are moist, damp, warm environments, with poor air quality, large volumes of people and extensive splashing and spray.
  2. Air in a natatorium often contains nearly 3x the moisture per unit volume as a typical, non-humidified building. Waterparks are worse. This is due to large bodies of water, splashing and sprays, and the volume of people.
  3. Chlorine remains the primary disinfectant used to sanitize pools. Chloramines are gases that form as a disinfectant by-product of chlorination. Chloramines are toxic. They cause corrosion, irritate skin and eyes and are a known respiratory health hazard to swimmers, lifeguards and other pool occupants. 1
  4. Indoor pools are guided by the guidelines set out by ASHRAE 62.1. CDC Report says typical ASHRAE 6.1 standards are not enough in a large voluminous space where water is splashed and spread differently than in a more typical pool.2
  5. Natatorium investigation reports almost always cite “improper design/construction of the vapor retarder” as a primary cause of moisture problems3
  6. Environmental/Climate related corrosion is a factor, specifically in coastal locations.
  7. Several structural failures over pools have led to the sudden collapse of ceilings, along with deaths and injuries. The cause was chloride-induced stress corrosion cracking (SCC).4

Many indoor waterparks were forced to close in March and April 2020. By the end of May, approximately 80% of indoor waterparks in the United States remained closed. As travel restrictions started lifting , indoor waterparks (resorts and stand alone) opened with limited capacity.By the end of June, as restrictions eased further, approximately 36% of the indoor waterparks (resorts and stand alone) remained closed.  Our research indicates that as of mid-August 2020, 18% of the indoor waterparks in the United States remained closed.11

In 2020, 100% 0f OpenAire Waterparks aluminum, retractable roof opened to the public.

Footnotes:

  1. Ventilation Requirements For Indoor Pools, Gary Lochner , ASHRAE Journal ashrae.org JULY 2017, www.ashrae.org
  2. CDC Workplace Safety and Health; Investigation of Employee Symptoms at an Indoor Waterpark, Lilia Chen MS, Health Hazard Evaluation Report HETA 2007-0163-3062, Great Wolf Lodge, Mason, Ohio, June 2008
  3. Avoiding Problems in Aquatics Facilities: Atypical design for atypical buildings, Construction Specifier December 25, 2013, Jason S. Der Ananian, PE, and Sean M. O’Brien, PE, LEED AP, https://www.constructionspecifier.com/avoiding-problems-in-aquatics-facilities-atypical-design-for-atypical-buildings/
  4. A Corrosive Environment; Aquatics International Magazine, September 01,2011, Dave Schwartz, P.E, https://www.aquaticsintl.com/facilities/maintenance/a-corrosive-environment_o
  5. https://www.wenzelmetalspinning.com/steel-vs-aluminum.html
  6. https://www.aluminum.org/aluminum-advantage/aluminum-101
  7. https://www.wenzelmetalspinning.com/steel-vs-aluminum.html
  8. Closed environments facilitate secondary transmission of coronavirus disease 2019 (COVID-19) Hiroshi Nishiura, Hitoshi Oshitani, Tetsuro Kobayashi, Tomoya Saito, Tomimasa Sunagawa, Tamano Matsui, Takaji Wakita, MHLW COVID-19 Response Team, Motoi Suzuki, medRxiv 2020.02.28.20029272; doi: https://doi.org/10.1101/2020.02.28.20029272
  9. https://hladvisors.com/whats-next-for-waterparks/