Ukraine war
Bath companies turn down the heating
Johannes Kleinsorg in the summer pool in Wilmersdorf, which is getting a new stainless steel pool. Photo: Joerg Carstensen/dpa
© dpa-infocom GmbH
The outdoor pool season starts this weekend in Berlin. To save energy, the water temperature is lowered. This is also the way to go in other cities.
As a result of the Ukraine war, the Berlin public baths want to save gas and turn down the heating in most of their bathrooms.
In the summer pools, the pool temperature is set two degrees lower than usual, said the CEO of the Berlin pools, Johannes Kleinsorg. In the indoor pools, the temperatures should go down by one degree.
This is a contribution to reducing dependence on Russian natural gas, said Kleinsorg. An exception is the Mariendorf summer pool, which is heated entirely with solar energy, said a spokeswoman. According to Kleinsorg, the bathing establishments assume that guests will “hardly notice” the lower temperatures.
Sports Senator Iris Spranger (SPD) added that the temperatures should not be lowered any further. Children’s paddling and therapy pools are excluded from the measure. The outdoor pool season starts this weekend in Berlin.
Pools also lower the water temperature slightly elsewhere, for example in Fulda, Dresden or Regensburg. The Dresden baths recently estimated that one degree less in air and water brings savings of up to 10 percent, depending on the property.