Sea swimmer finds bathing water as warm as Caribbean near Shoreham (From The Argus)
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Sea swimmer finds bathing water as warm as Caribbean near Shoreham
12:20pm Monday 23rd January 2012 in News By Neil Vowles
John Kapp wades out to the patch of warm sea water off Shoreham
A sea swimmer claims to have found a little piece of the Caribbean off the Sussex coast.
John Kapp has been bemusing passers-by throughout the winter by swimming for up to three-quarters of an hour in just his swimming trunks in what should be icy waters.
But Mr Kapp claims he has found a small stretch of water near to Shoreham power station that is twice the temperature of the surrounding water and hotter than even summer seawater, closer to that of the Caribbean.
He says the stretch of water, which he has dubbed Shoreham Lido, is about the size of a football pitch and about a foot deep with water temperature as high as 20C.
He said: “Even in the summer I never usually spend more than around 15 minutes in the water but I can now stay in the water for up to three quarters of an hour."
Mr Kapp believes the hot water may hold the key to a clean and cheap way to heat the city.
The temperature difference in the water is caused by the water being continuously fed by a hot spring which pumps seven tons of sea water per second from inside Shoreham harbour through the condensers of Shoreham power station.
Mr Kapp, who is secretary of Hove Civic Society (Renewables Infrastructure Group), says the energy used to heat this sea water is more than 300,000 kW and the total energy wasted in 2010 was 2.6 billion kWh per year.
The group are campaigning for the a modification of the system to use the waste heat to heat the radiators of 150,000 homes in the Brighton, Hove and Adur area.
Comments(10)
PaulOckenden
says...
12:37pm Mon 23 Jan 12
Hotbeans
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1:51pm Mon 23 Jan 12
You're welcome.
ShorehamBeachcomber
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2:20pm Mon 23 Jan 12
ShorehamBeachcomber
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2:22pm Mon 23 Jan 12
ShorehamBeachcomber wrote:Look at the photo you plonker!
Good story, so Exactly where is this 'pitch' nt Carats or east by Groune or further east of groune & how far?
ShorehamBeachcomber
says...
2:23pm Mon 23 Jan 12
ShorehamBeachcomber wrote:Good point, well made
ShorehamBeachcomber wrote:Look at the photo you plonker!
Good story, so Exactly where is this 'pitch' nt Carats or east by Groune or further east of groune & how far?
nivek 604
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3:27pm Mon 23 Jan 12
minimee
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4:16pm Mon 23 Jan 12
deedles
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10:24pm Mon 23 Jan 12
anonymous coward
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2:03pm Tue 24 Jan 12
The hot pipe has been known to fishermen and surfers forever.
In fact, didn't The Argus print a picture of one of the shoals that periodically hang out at the mouth of the pipe eating algae bloom at few years ago?
Anyway, John Kapp had better keep an eye out for the weekend warriors. Yup, even London surfers know about the hot pipe!
StyleCop says...
12:26pm Mon 23 Jan 12