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Showering at the South Pole

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Re: Showering at the South Pole

#81

Post by cozzyd »

zeristor wrote: post #56
umvi wrote: post #9

...why not just have a nuclear reactor to provide an infinite heat source? Submarines at the bottom of ocean have more shower time than south pole stations.

Antarctica is a big place, maybe not at the South Pole, especially sitting on a thick ice sheet. But there must be several areas of geothermal power. The idea is to make no changes, or to mine resources, but if there’s wind turbines set up, near McMurdo, that has concrete footings.

Pole has very little wind and the bedrock is 2 miles below the ice.

Re: Showering at the South Pole

#82

Post by ALLTaken »

amarant wrote: post #37
_boffin_ wrote: post #11

Earlier quoted context omitted.

Did anyone ever engineer the shower heads to reduce the GPM and thus, increase their shower time?

Someone made an even better solution, surprised it's not used at the South pole actually! Originally developed for the ISS, this shower system filters and recycles shower water, saving both water and energy! https://orbital-systems.com/

Wow, impressive. I didn't know such a thing existed. Need to tell my uncle who builds/maintains gas/water/heating systems for houses in Germany for clients.

Re: Showering at the South Pole

#83

Post by ocdtrekkie »

atemerev wrote: post #49
ocdtrekkie wrote: post #36

Earlier quoted context omitted.

"why not just use a nuclear reactor" might be the most insane "why not just" I've ever seen in my life. :D

Come on, nuclear is not black magic. There are nuclear reactors in submarines and carriers, so why not at the polar station.

This was less a comment objecting to the idea of a nuclear heat source, and more that "why not just" is a comment that fails to account for all of reasons the experts involved probably considered but decided not to "just" do that.

Why not just a nuclear reactor is a huge version of this, because obviously there are a lot of additional expenses and concerns when you deploy a nuclear reactor anywhere.

Re: Showering at the South Pole

#85

Post by detaro »

ocdtrekkie wrote: post #83
atemerev wrote: post #49

Earlier quoted context omitted.

Come on, nuclear is not black magic. There are nuclear reactors in submarines and carriers, so why not at the polar station.

This was less a comment objecting to the idea of a nuclear heat source, and more that "why not just" is a comment that fails to account for all of reasons the experts involved probably considered but decided not to "just" do that. Why not just a nuclear reactor is a huge version of this, because obviously there are a lot of additional expenses and concerns when you deploy a nuclear reactor anywhere.

And of course the small detail that they had a reactor a McMurdo, got rid of it because it was less reliable than fueled generators, and had a massive cleanup mess to deal with because the damn thing leaked.

Re: Showering at the South Pole

#86

Post by joshvm »

throwawaaarrgh wrote: post #64
LoveMortuus wrote: post #40

"Every 14 days: 480.2 seconds. That’s 8 minutes (!!!), 0.2 seconds. Congratulations! You’ve scrounged and saved, and you’ve managed to accrue enough shower-seconds to take an average American shower! You’ve sacrificed your health, well-being, social life, and potential future job prospects, but you can enjoy a truly obscene amount of shower, guilt-free." I'm a bit sceptical about the "sacrificed your health" part, I…

There's a range of potential things that could develop, like fungal infection, clogged pores, bacterial infection in unknown cuts, etc. Likelihood depends on a number of factors.

This is relatively unlikely at Pole. While you aren't supposed to take regular showers, you're still expected to maintain general hygiene - hand washing, sponge/cloth baths on other days. If you had a cut that was serious enough that you'd worry about infection then you would probably visit medical anyway. Otherwise clean the wound and bandage as you would otherwise.

Re: Showering at the South Pole

#87

Post by joshvm »

randyrand wrote: post #15

I was curious to see how and if they meter it. Is there a wall clock? Honor/Guessing system? A bell? Edit: found it "McMurdo doesn't really care. According to my buddy who worked at both the power plant and the water treatment plant, the station produces more than enough water. You can pretty much shower twice a day (though it's so damn dry there that I don't recommend it at all). Pole is restricted - people will pol…

It's an honour system. Actually the showers have two mechanisms. One is flow restriction/misting. Though some showers are much better than others. The other is a small valve on the shower head which you can use to pause the flow while you soap up. It's convenient because you don't need to reset the temperature each time. It's a normal screw valve to open the flow, it's not a timed system like you'd find in a gym/pool shower.

Also there are times over winter when we're allowed extra time, such as when the tanks are being cleaned (and have to be drained). Occasionally "vouchers" are given out as prizes, eg for the annual marathon.

I think heckling is more likely because at peak capacity there are 150 people on station and only ~10 shower cubicles per gender. There are 2-4 cubicles per dorm wing, each with up to ~30 people. So there can be some contention and people want to shower after work/before dinner.

Re: Showering at the South Pole

#88

Post by joshvm »

Pegasus930 wrote: post #4

How does this work if you're a medical or sanitation worker and require more cleanliness? Are there exceptions for that type of staff?

Yes, it's an honour system. If you really need a shower, for example if you get covered in grease, then you can take one. The rule is there to prevent everyone on station taking long daily showers. Some jobs are unofficially allowed to shower on more days e.g. kitchen/galley, vehicle maintenance, stewards. Medical probably, too, though there isn't usually much work.

Re: Showering at the South Pole

#89

Post by joshvm »

zeristor wrote: post #55

How does this work? Do you have to use an ID card to access your allocation, does it cut the water off? Is there a tap for washing hands, is that limited too? Toilets?

The showers themselves aren't timed, it's an honour system. Taps are free to use, similarly drinking water is not restricted (it'd be a serious dehydration risk otherwise). Toilets do flush, but the urinals are water-free. The bathrooms are very similar to what you'd find in a gym or pool.

Re: Showering at the South Pole

#90

Post by _boffin_ »

Baeocystin wrote: post #31
_boffin_ wrote: post #11

Earlier quoted context omitted.

Did anyone ever engineer the shower heads to reduce the GPM and thus, increase their shower time?

At 1.3gpm, you're already well into this-is-an-unsatisfying-flow-rate territory. I stayed at a camp once that had .9gpm showers, and even though our time limits were a lot more lenient than what is described in TFA, it was close to the point where I would have rather had a bucket and a sponge. 1.8gpm is the current standard for California, just as an example, and I would say subjectively ~2.5gpm is where you hit genu…

Took a unique shower experience at White's Landing on Catalina Island. It was late at night and the open-roof stall was surrounded by walls. The stalls were divided by plywood walls with a 2ft gap from the ground and curtains. Wind was strong, around 20-30 mph, making everything blow around. The temperature was chilly, mid-50s, and water pressure was low, around 1 GPM. There was also fox poop in the next stall. Despite these conditions, showering under the stars with my partner was a memorable moment. We laughed at the strange noises we made due to the cold and wind.

We realized that we should shower earlier next time.

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