These days, the idea of reducing your carbon footprint seems to be at the top of many people’s list of things to do.

And, with summer nearly here, so is the hope of spending the day poolside.

Huronia Pools LeisureScapes in Midland is finding a way to let people do both, offering environmentally-friendly alternatives to the old school pool and hot tub products.

“Consumers have become more aware of how we are not just effecting the environment, but also ourselves health wise,” says Monique Moreau-Robillard, ecosystem management specialist and certified pool and spa operator.

“There’s a growing concern about how these products are affecting us, so because of that growing demand, we’ve been offering an alternative to their regular pool maintenance.”

Some “earth friendly” options, she says, includes methods, such as salt-water pools and hot tubs, as well an ever-growing variety of environmentally-friendly maintenance products.

Moreau-Robillard says she has seen a huge increase in the popularity of many of the “natural” products since they first started carrying them more than 20 years ago.

“We started carrying the Natural Chemistry products in 1985, but at that time, there wasn’t a large demand for it,” she says, noting it’s really been in the last three years that consumers have really started to seek out these types of products.

The likely reason behind that, she says, is people’s desire to live a healthier lifestyle all around.

“I think even if (their decision) is not from an environmental standpoint, people are looking at living a healthy lifestyle. They want to diminish the amount of toxic product that they are utilizing in their swimming pools, and this is a means of doing that.”

Because of the recent upswing in this trend, Moreau-Robillard says the number of products to choose from –earth-friendly technologies, salt water pools, solar lighting or heating or energy smart pools – is growing exponentially, and are great alternatives.

“Salt is a greener alternative to your standard chlorine system, plus you don’t have the storage issues. Most people that have pools have children, and you’ve got these toxic chemicals being stored, it becomes a hazard issue,” she says. “(With salt) you don’t have those issues with storage, and you can maintain lower chlorine levels.”

She also admits that “going green” is definitely going to be the way of the future – and soon.

“Most companies are already jumping on that bandwagon because that’s what the consumer is indicating that’s what they want,” she says. “They want products that are going to be friendlier for the environment, safer for them to use, and most people are looking at reducing their operating costs.”

Looking at the products and equipment you use on you pools, she says, will help to do that. One popular option for that are solar panels. While she admits the initial expense of purchasing the panel may seem a bit steep for some, in the long run, it will actually save you money.

“Yes, you have the initial expense for purchasing the solar system, but you’re utilizing the same pump system that’s already on your pool, so there are no additional operating costs to use it. Plus, there is no heating bill like you have with a gas heater or heat pump because it’s free energy from the sun. It’s much more economical and is one way to warm your water. You can get a temperature increase of about 10 to 15 degrees.”

The use of solar panels is another “green” item that has been growing over past several years. Before that, she admits, an order could likely sit on the showroom floor for an entire season with only a few making their way out the doors. Now, she says, more and more customers are coming in and purchasing the product.

“Anything that’s designed reduce operating costs has become quite popular,” she says.

While Moreau-Robillard admits that making some of these environmental decisions will cost more in the beginning, over the long run, it will prove to be much more economical.

For more information on some of the earth friendly products offered at Huronia Pools LeisureScapes visit the accompanying links.