In short
- An aquatic centre is one of the best solar sites there is: pool heating, filtration pumps and dehumidification run around the clock, so the centre uses nearly all its solar.
- A gym is a different shape. Its peaks are 6am and 6pm, outside solar hours, but lighting, air conditioning and cardio equipment give a daytime base that solar covers.
- Most aquatic centres are council-owned, so the approval path runs through the council, and it often has its own program.
Solar pays very well on an aquatic centre and reasonably well on a gym, and the difference is the water. A heated pool needs energy every hour of the day to hold temperature, run filtration and control humidity in the hall, so an aquatic centre has a large, flat load that soaks up whatever its panels make. A gym has no such base. It fills before work and after work, when panels make little, and its daytime load is lighting, air conditioning and the cardio floor. Both sites work, but they should be sized differently and the quotes should show different self-use figures. This page is the fitness and leisure version of our guide to solar for clubs and pubs.
| Quick facts | Aquatic centre | Gym |
|---|---|---|
| Share of solar used on site | often 90% or more | often 80–85%, more if open all day |
| What solar cuts | pool heating, pumps, dehumidification, lighting | daytime lighting, HVAC, cardio floor |
| What it doesn't cut | overnight pool load, the fixed charge | the 6am and 6pm peaks |
| Who approves | often the council, with its own program | the owner or landlord |
| What to send | one recent bill; we get the interval data from it | the same |
What does the load look like?
Aquatic centre. Pool water heating is the biggest single item, whether by gas boiler, heat pump or a mix. Filtration pumps run continuously, by regulation and for water quality. The pool hall needs dehumidification and ventilation around the clock, more in winter. On top sit the lighting, the learn-to-swim and lap programs from 5am, and often a gym and café. The outcome is a load that barely dips overnight and rises through the day, which is close to ideal for solar.
Gym. Members arrive from 5am, thin out by 9am, trickle through the day and flood back from 4pm to 8pm. Lighting, air conditioning, music, screens and the cardio equipment run all day regardless, so there is a steady daytime base, but the peaks that set the demand charge are at the ends of the day when panels make little. A 24-hour gym runs lighting and HVAC all night as well.
How much will solar save an aquatic centre?
A worked example with made-up figures. These are example figures, not our prices or a real site.
A Brisbane council aquatic centre with a heated 25-metre indoor pool, learn-to-swim pool and gym installs a 100kW system, which makes about 145,000 kWh a year.
- With heating, pumps and dehumidification running through the day, the centre uses about 90% of the solar itself.
- 130,500 kWh × $0.28 = $36,540, plus 14,500 kWh × $0.05 to the grid = $725. Yearly saving $37,265.
- At an example price of $73,000 after the STC discount, that pays back in about 2.0 years.
That matches the cold store on our payback-by-site table, and for the same reason: a steady 24-hour load that peaks in the afternoon. If the pool is gas-heated, the saving above covers pumps, air handling and lighting only, and the next question is whether a heat pump run on daytime solar should replace some of the gas.
How much will solar save a gym?
A suburban gym open 5am to 10pm installs 30kW, which makes about 43,500 kWh a year.
- Lighting, HVAC and the cardio floor run through the day, so the gym uses about 85% of the solar itself.
- 36,975 kWh × $0.28 = $10,353, plus 6,525 kWh × $0.05 = $326. Yearly saving $10,679.
- Our cost page gives $21,000 to $29,000 after STCs for 30kW, so the payback is about 2.0 to 2.7 years.
A larger 24-hour gym with a pool or a big HVAC load may justify 50kW or more; the interval data shows where the daytime base sits.
Pool heating: the second lever
Most aquatic centres heat their pools with gas, and solar panels do nothing for the gas bill. A heat pump that takes some or all of that load, timed to run hardest in the middle of the day, turns the spare solar into a gas saving and raises the solar system's self-use at the same time. It also means the centre can size a larger solar system than the electrical load alone would justify. Ask for pool heating as its own line in the proposal: the heat pump's size, the hours it runs on solar, and the gas it replaces. Our page on commercial solar batteries covers the other way to store midday solar; for a pool, the water itself is usually the cheaper store.
Who approves it: councils and their programs
Most public aquatic centres are owned by a local council and run either by the council or by a contracted operator. That changes the path:
- The council owns the roof and the meter, so the council signs. A contracted operator cannot install on its own.
- Many councils have an emissions target and a program for solar on their own buildings, sometimes run centrally rather than site by site. The aquatic centre is usually the largest energy user a council owns, so it is often first on the list.
- Procurement rules apply. A proposal prepared for the operator may need to go through the council's process before anyone can accept it.
Private gyms are simpler: the owner or landlord decides. A gym in a leased tenancy needs the landlord's consent and, if the centre runs an embedded network, the centre's agreement; see solar for leased buildings.
What does each state offer?
Nothing specific to aquatic centres or gyms. The federal STC discount applies everywhere, and since 1 October 2026 it covers eligible systems up to 1MW. Victoria's Victorian Energy Upgrades program gives an upfront discount on business systems from 30kW to 200kW. NSW discounts batteries through the Peak Demand Reduction Scheme. The other states add nothing for solar. State sport and recreation grants sometimes fund facility upgrades that can include solar, and they change each year. The full state table is on the clubs and pubs page.
Roofs, humidity and the install
- Pool halls are humid and often chlorinated inside; fixings and any cabling in the hall need to be specified for it.
- Aquatic centre roofs are large and often curved or sawtooth. Orientation and the usable flat area decide more than the total.
- Gyms often sit in tilt-panel industrial units with a simple metal roof, which is the easiest case.
- Access around programs. Learn-to-swim and squad training run early; the install is scheduled around them.
What to send for a proposal
Just one recent bill, every page. Using the NMI on it, the team gets your interval data, which shows the overnight pool load or the gym's 6am and 6pm peaks, and the daytime base in between. You don't need to request anything.
If you know them, mention these:
- Pool heating: gas, heat pump or both, and the pool temperature
- Operating hours: and whether the gym is 24-hour
- Ownership: council, contracted operator or private
- Roof: material, shape and age
Already have a quote? Compare it line by line with our checklist.
What to ask your installer
- What share of the solar do you expect us to use, and is that from our interval data?
- Is pool heating in the savings, and what would a daytime heat pump change?
- What does the system save at our real rate per kWh, not a typical one?
- What does the install do to our demand charge, on its own line?
- Have you installed over a pool hall before, and how are fixings and cabling specified for it?
- For a council site, how does the proposal fit the council's procurement process?
Send a bill and an accredited installer prepares a costed proposal sized to how your centre uses power. It's free, with no obligation.