High gas prices put pressure on swimming pools and saunas that have to heat up considerably to attract customers. Yet they don’t turn the thermostat down (yet). How is that possible?
“Experience shows that what goes up does not come down just as quickly. So yes, we are certainly concerned about the high gas price. It will be very exciting,” says Sjoerd Peters. The owner and manager of Top Alivio Saunacentrum in Horn sees the future with mixed feelings.
From one crisis to another
He can count himself lucky with a contract that was signed before the war in Ukraine further exacerbated the gas crisis. Until April 2023, he will be spared sky-high bills. So Peters has a year off to come up with something quickly. Is that time enough? “Due to the corona pandemic, we were able to save our company with great effort. However, our financial buffer has shrunk considerably. Although we are now fully operational, we cannot make major investments. Because we roll from one crisis into the other, we continue to We’re in that position now.”
Renewable energy
He would prefer to make his sauna more sustainable. Significantly reduce gas consumption with solar panels, a heat pump and good insulation. “Just like a house, but on a large scale and therefore with more costs. Installing such a heat pump alone would cost 80,000 to 90,000 euros.” Peters is therefore looking forward to more space at the bank and, above all, help from the government. He thinks a reduction in energy tax would be a good move. “That is the lion’s share of my costs. If some form of compensation is possible there, I will have room to make our sauna more sustainable.”
Thermostat
Top Alivio is a relatively small family sauna with regular customers, especially in the immediate vicinity. The independent company has less financial leeway than saunas that are part of a chain or big brothers such as Thermae 2000 in Valkenburg. Nevertheless, Peters does not hesitate for a moment when it comes to the entrance fees. “That is not an issue for the time being. Due to the higher purchase prices, I do not rule out the possibility that adjustments will be necessary for our catering area. Lower the thermostat of the sauna? No, you cannot turn a cabin back from 90 to 70 degrees Celsius. That would never take customers. Maybe lower the pool a degree, but I won’t start on that now.”
Long-term contracts
Peters is not alone in this. A tour of swimming pools and saunas soon teaches no one to turn the thermostat down. At least for now. In most cases this has to do with multi-year gas supply contracts. Renewable energy is also increasingly proving to be a good alternative to heating with gas.
- Geusseltbad Maastricht:
“We do not have a gas connection, but use solar panels and geothermal heat thanks to a source in the ground. This way we keep the temperature in order. There are five swimming pools. The warmest pool is 33.5 degrees and the coldest is 29 degrees.”
- Aqua Mundo Heijderbos in Heijen:
“We have longer-term contracts. This applies to all of our swimming pools. This also applies to our Meerdal and Limburgse Peel parks in America. The water temperature is 30 or 31 degrees. We offer that tropical feeling, a distinctive feature to which we do not make concessions.”
- Swimming pool Hoensbroek:
“We also work with a long-term contract. We are affiliated with the Netherlands Sports Fund, like many swimming pools in the Netherlands. The water temperature in the recreational pool is 30 or 31 degrees and we heat the competition pool to 28 degrees.
- Glanerbrook Sports Center in Geleen:
“We work with an ongoing energy contract, so we have little to do with high gas prices. If the outside temperature rises, we will look at it. The instruction bath is 29 degrees and the subtropical bath 30 to 31 degrees.”
- Thermae 2000 Valkenburg
“There has been no question of lowering the temperature of the baths. We have not yet thought about that and we are not going to do it.”