Stingerbend
Elements Works has patented (PATENT PENDING) an innovative sea pool, which forms a protected area where you can swim, play or relax. The Stingerbend sea pool is also an effective barrier against ocean stinger (like jellyfish) or against pollutants, and can provide one or more swimming lanes anywhere there is water! Its innovative design adapts itself automatically to a varying water depth, therefore performing well in a diverse set of conditions:
- water depth at the site varies from point to point
- there are significant tidal ranges
- the barrier stays in place also in the presence of significnat swell.
The sea pools can be used as jellyfish protection nets, to create confined spaces useful for elders or people with disabilities, or to help in projects for the mitigation of coastal erosion, as an alternative or in conjunction with fixed or wave blocking barriers. They can be deployed by sports enthusiasts or instructors anywhere there is enough depth to swim (or to dive, for diving courses).
Simplicity of installation and removal: after a brief training or even by simply reading the user manual, assembly and removal can be executed by local personnel, even several times in a week depending on local conditions.
Elements Works, always very sensitive to the environment, has designed a sea pool that does not obstruct plancton (but of course a finer net can be used in sites with specific risks associated with small organisms); this allows for the passage of spores, eggs and larvae thus keeping the coastal area alive but nevertheless protected from stingers like Pelagia noctiluca or Carybdea marsupialis.
The first sea pool based on this patent was installed in 2017 in the high profile beach vacation town of Forte dei Marmi, in Tuscany (Italy) and it immediately received very positive response from beach users. The sea pool can be as small as 10m by 10m, perfect for small kids to play safely, or larger to be used also by adults for swimming: all the advantages of a swimming pool, but at sea!
For Jellyfish related news, go to our Jellyfish news page
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The StingerBend sea pools are based on a patented concept: the structure is not a single panel going from the ground to the water surface, but has instead a "concertina like" structure, which allows it to stretch or reduce itself in response to changes in the water depth.
F.A.Q.
Q: Does the kit include installation or mooring weights?
A: No, the net has been designed to make installation very simple (as the net will be removed when storms arrive or for cleaning).
Q: Does the sea pool need scuba divers to be installed?
A: No, especially if the depth at the farthest point is at 1,5m or less. In sandy installations you need to put the small mooring weight just under the ground.