Death defying swimming pools are apparently set to become the latest architecture trend in Central London, allowing visitors to float over 200 meters above the capital’s skyline.
Pool designers at Uk-based manufacturer Compass Pool have unveiled this week, the designs for what could be the world’s first rooftop infinity pool (according to the designers), with 360-degree views of the London skyline.
The heart-stopping designs of the pool, called Infinity London, features four walls and a clear bottom on top of a 55-storey building. The pool is made from cast acrylic rather than glass, as this material ‘transmits light at a similar wavelength to water so the pool will look perfectly clear’, the firm says.
It would feature on top of a luxury hotel (55-storey building) in the center of the city and has see-through acrylic sides and a transparent floor. The 600,000-litre pool is also transparent, allowing visitors to see the swimmers and sky above.
Swimmers will access it through a rotating spiral staircase based on the door of a submarine, rising from the infinity pool floor when someone wants to get in or out.
The designers explained, just getting into this Infinity London is enough to make you feel like James Bond. In an effort to keep the views from all sides pristine as people get in and out of the water, the designers pulled a trick that seems straight out of a spy flick
“Normally a simple ladder would suffice, but we didn’t want stairs on the outside of the building or in the pool as it would spoil the view – and obviously you don’t want 600,000 liters of water draining through the building either,” said Compass Pool’s technical director and pool designer Alex Kemsley.
“You have to imagine a tube in a tube. The first tube is to ‘cut a path’ through the water and create an airlock. The second to deliver the staircase up to water level,” Kemsley told. “The engineering is complex but delivers the seamless look.”
Other advanced technical features:
A built-in anemometer will monitor wind speeds and a digitally-controlled building management system will make sure the water is always at the right temperature, and water doesn’t get blown down to the streets below. In addition, the heating system will use waste energy from the air conditioning system for the building.
The hot gas that is produced as a by-product of creating cold air in the building will run through a heat exchanger to heat the water for the rooftop pool. However, as the pool is more than 220 meters in the air, Alex added, “It’s definitely not one for the acrophobic!”
Construction of the building beneath the pool could begin as early as 2020 “if all partners and contractors are confirmed,” the company said. Also, the Infinity London’s exact location is yet to be confirmed.