SeaDog Systems, Inc.
To Use Global’s Wave Testing Facility
In late February of 2016, SeaDog Systems, Inc. became aware that the abandoned INRI wave pool facility would be sold at auction at the Montgomery County Courthouse. The property was purchased at that auction by a family trust and Kenneth W. Welch, Jr. acting in his capacity as President of Global Oceanic Designs, Inc. negotiated a lease to purchase agreement with that trust.
One week later, the contents of the abandoned wave pool facility were sold at auction on the property. At that time, Kenneth Welch purchased all items that were deemed to be useful to the operation and maintenance of the wave pool and property. Steve Keinath purchased the three SeaDog Wave Pumps that were, and still are, located in the middle of the wave pool.
Once all of the auction attendees had left the property with the items that they had purchased, Global Oceanic Designs found itself left with a lease to purchase agreement on 7.6 acres of land, a $1.5 million wave pool, a 2,500 square foot metal building and an elevated, 30,000 gallon, water tower and water well that were all suffering from the ravages of almost five years of complete neglect and utter abandonment.
Vegetation in the lawn and gravel drive areas had grown completely out of control, up to twelve feet high in places. The red metal building was in desperate need of a paint job and new roof and the interior was being used as home for a variety of wildlife.
Then, there was the wave pool…
It, too, needed a paint job inside and out, but first over half a million gallons of stagnant water had to be removed and a thick layer of aquatic slime had to be power washed from the walls. And, over three hundred trash bags worth of slime and sludge had to be shoveled up and removed from the floor before it too could be power washed and cleaned.
The wave pool’s connected, below grade bunkers were also filled with several feet of filthy stagnant water that had to be removed before their interior walls and floor could also be power washed and cleaned. The wave makers at the west end of the wave pool and the SeaDog Pumps in the middle got the same power wash and cleaning, then an exhaustive inspection.
Fortunately, the result of that inspection indicated that all of the equipment in the wave pool only required cosmetic repairs; some minor rust removal in spots, lubrication of rollers, some primer and a new coat of marine-grade acrylithane coating will put them back in showroom state.
Global Oceanic Designs has expansive future plans for the wave pool facility, but it came to a two year service agreement with SeaDog Systems, Inc. Global has agreed to rehabilitate the property, buildings and wave pool.
Global Oceanic and SeaDog Systems will share exclusive use of the entire facility for the next two years. During that period, SeaDog Systems will make improvements to the operation of the wave makers; test some modifications of the existing SeaDog Wave Pumps and then build install and test a Bi-Pyramidal, directional buoyancy block.
When the property was abandoned, the wave pool’s wave makers were powered by an air driven actuator system that was difficult to control and only capable of sustaining three and a half foot waves.
SeaDog Systems has already contracted to have a greatly improved actuator system created and installed. In the near future, the wave makers will be powered by three brand new, electrically powered, state of the art, screw-driven linear actuators.
This new actuator system, powering the wave makers, will be controlled and monitored by a computerized control panel that will also monitor and control all inputs and outputs of the entire system; such as flow rates and direction, pressures and kilowatts used and produced. Most importantly, this new actuator system will be capable of driving and sustaining between six to seven foot waves.