Relentless

For days now the snow has fallen, some clear nights...but not tonight, the blizzard continues. Our road  has seen its fair share of mishaps recently, including a charter bus stuck sideways trying to ascend the icy heights of Henry Road.
Snow removal has been an immense chore as of late. With such heavy dumps of snow, the breezeways quickly fill up, as does the hot tub and pool decks. Don't be surprised if during a very heavy snowfall you find the hot tub, or especially the pool, closed. The in slab heating system that usually keeps our spa decks clear, simply cannot keep up with an immense snowfall. The hot tub, being partially protected from the elements is rarely an issue. However, the pool, being completely exposed can be an issue. If the access door to the pool is locked, that means the pool is closed. Although jumping into an 82 degree pool from a snow drift is invigorating, its not nearly as exciting as a lawsuit from the potential enthusiast who slips on ice and breaks a bone. ;)
During a heavy snowfall, the cover is left off the pool to prevent snow from accumulating while it's in place. The unsavoury side effect of this is that it wastes a lot of energy. Whether the pool is the only culprit or not, we used almost twice the amount of propane this month. Actually, in 21 days we used 3700 more litres of propane than in the previous 30 days! The weather was colder and the snow kept falling and the boilers kept running, and I’m sure the in suite fireplaces kept blazing as well...but we drained that tank in record timing. I'm working on running the pool as economically as possible, but no matter what steps are taken, its a considerable amount of power to heat a pool and deck in a climate like this.
Tonight, the pool is closed and the storm continues.