Project Profile

Glen Hills Middle School

Glendale, Wisconsin

Solar Pool Heating System makes

big impact on small school district
Glen Hills Middle School is part of the Glendale-River Hills School District located in the
suburbs of Milwaukee, Wisconsin. In an effort to reduce the cost of heating the pool
at its middle school, the district selected a renewable energy approach recommended
by Johnson Controls. Using a Solar Pool Heating System, the district will save $5,000
annually, and achieve a three and one-half year payback on the system.
The Glendale-River Hills School District is a unified, elementary school district serving
students in kindergarten through grade eight. Johnson Controls has been providing and
servicing the districts building controls for more than 20 years. Glen Hills Middle School
was one of the first schools in the area to install a Johnson Controls Metasys building
management system. The Metasys system is now used to monitor and control HVAC
equipment at all five district facilities, in addition to lighting in select buildings.
Under a $3.75 million facility referendum, the district sought to perform needed
maintenance and make building upgrades with a focus on improving energy efficiency.
Improvements included HVAC equipment upgrades, lighting retrofits, a pool cover,
low-flow plumbing fixtures, and various building envelope improvements. When Johnson
Controls heard we were looking for ways to offset the cost of heating our pool, they
recommended the solar heating system, says Jim Beckmann, director of operations for
the district.

An ideal solution
Without a dedicated boiler for heating
the pool, the middle school is forced
to operate its large boiler year-round.
By using the sun to warm the water,
the new Solar Pool Heating System
supplements the boiler by reducing
how often it must run, which saves
natural gas and reduces greenhouse
gas emissions.

When you look at the final cost to the

district after grants and incentives,
along with the $5,000 annual savings,
we have a three and one-half year
payback on the system which is
excellent. No one else presented us
with a solution like this. It was the
logical choice.





Jim Beckmann
Director of Operations
Glendale-River Hills School
District

Pool water is pumped to the solar

heating system on the roof using a
small, low-flow pump. The systems
flexible solar collectors use the heat
of the sun to warm the water as it
passes through them. The water is then
pumped back to the pool, reducing or
eliminating the need to use the boiler to
heat cold water in summer months.
The Solar Pool Heating System is
protected from freezing by design and
can last up to 25 years.
The Metasys system is used to
monitor pool water temperature, the
temperature of water returning from the
solar collectors, and the water pump
status (on/off). In addition, the Metasys
system allows the school to monitor the
solar bypass valve position to determine
if the pool water is being sent to the
solar collectors for free heating, or if
it is being re-circulated to the boiler for
additional heating.
Maintaining the integrity of the
buildings roof was a primary concern
as the district had just replaced the
roofs on all of its buildings. Because the
Solar Pool Heating System rests on top
of the roof, Johnson Controls was able
to install it without penetrating the roof
and voiding the warranty. The warranty
on the new roof was validated and
extended as part of the project.

Printed on recycled paper.

Metasys is a registered trademark of Johnson Controls, Inc.
2009 Johnson Controls, Inc. Printed in USA CSST-09-104
www.johnsoncontrols.com

The Solar Pool Heating System is an

excellent fit for our district. It makes a
big impact with minimal cash outlay,
says Beckmann. This approach would
be beneficial to any district with a pool,
but especially to small ones like ours.
Johnson Controls recognized this and
brought it to our attention, and were
pleased they did.

Maximizing impact,
minimizing cost
To help Beckmann gain the school
boards approval for the Solar Pool
Heating System, Johnson Controls
reviewed the districts energy bills,
analyzed the heating requirements for
the pool, and compared costs with
and without the use of the system
to determine potential savings. In
addition, Johnson Controls gathered the
technical information and completed
the applications required to leverage
available funding from We Energies (the
local utility), and Wisconsins Focus on
Energy program.
As a result, the district was awarded
two grants, which paid for two-thirds
of the project. When you look at the
final cost to the district after grants and
incentives, along with the $5,000 annual
savings, we have a three and one-half
year payback on the system which is
excellent. No one else presented us with
a solution like this. It was the logical
choice, says Beckmann.
Johnson Controls has embraced us
as a small district by offering this
solution and by helping us communicate
the benefits of it to our publics. The
project was well managed and I was
bombarded, in a good way, with
knowledge of what was going on
every day.