The Project
In this case study we look at multi squash court heating project at Brooklands Squash Club which is part of Brooklands Sports Club in Sale, Greater Manchester. Brooklands sports club is a private club which caters for 6 sports with vast facilities including three squash courts and 10 all-weather tennis courts.
Prior to February 2023, each one of their courts were heated by two 2.5kW long wave radiant heaters which were thermostatically controlled. The problem was their existing heaters had to be on for 6-8 hours to reach a playable temperature. Given the sporadic use of the courts, their heating bill was very high and they were often heating an empty court.
Brooklands Sports Club offers an array of sporting activities to the local community including bowls, cricket, hockey, lacrosse, squash and tennis
Quartz halogen heaters provide instant comfort heat making them ideal for a sporadically used squash courts
The Requirements
During initial conversations, Brookland Squash Clubs’ management team had a few key requirements:
- The system should not interfere with matches.
- The heating should be instant and require no prewarming.
- Running costs must be kept to a minimum.
- The heaters should be controlled so the courts are never energised outside of occupation.
The Heaters
Brooklands researched various heating solutions and finally decided on BN Thermic’s shortwave quartz halogen heaters. They concluded that this was the most efficient and cost-effective solution for the following reasons.
- Shortwave heaters are instantly effective with no need to prewarm the area to build up a body of warmth. Any person or building fabric within the beam of the heater will feel a temperature increase the moment they are switched on.
- The heaters can be mounted at high level, so they do not interfere with the game
BN Thermic quartz halogen heaters provide simple to control heat and have an average lamp life of 7000 hours
BN Thermic unique magic lamps do not interfere with players’ vision
Traditionally, halogen heaters have been associated with a bright red beam when turned on. This is easily tolerated in applications like warehouses and workshops, but not ideal when playing a racquet sport.
To avoid using lamps with red beams, BN Thermic’s zero glare ‘Magic Lamps’ were specified in each court. These heaters give off the same amount of heat as regular lamps but have a heavily reduced light output with a faint pink glow.
The Solution
The solution for Brooklands Squash Club was to install two 4.5kW shortwave halogen heaters with the Magic Lamps (HN3-45BM) spread equidistant throughout their courts. The heaters in each court were to be controlled by a movement sensor meaning they only operate when a court is occupied.
Given the load of the heaters, each court required a contactor. In the summer months, the squash club can simply interrupt the power to the PIR sensor with a switch in a lockable box.
By installing a motion sensor in each court, Brookland’s heaters will only operate when a court is occupied
The Specification
The following heaters were specified for each court. 2 x 4.5kW quartz heaters gives you enough W/m2 density to comfortably heat each court.
2x HN3-45M
1x Movement Sensor
1 x Contactor/ Relay
1x lockable box
The Finished Project
We’re happy to share that the management team at Brooklands Squash Club loved the installation, saying, “The change in the playing conditions was amazing.”
This project was a big success and it was a pleasure working with the squash club.
BN Thermic designed heating schemes for a range of leisure applications including squash courts, sports halls and gymnasiums. Please contact us on 01293 547 361 to discuss your heating project.
BN Thermic’s quartz halogen heaters can be easily installed directly on support beams or suspended on chains