Koolfog worked with Crystal Fountains to create a niche water feature housed at the Via Bloor Parkette in Toronto, Canada. Via Bloor Parkette is a multi-purpose open space in a setting surrounded by retail, condos, and residential development. The parkette has been designed to integrate family-friendly recreational opportunities with natural paths and shaded areas for relaxing. Implementing sustainable strategies, such as LED lighting, and giving attention to accessibility and safety features, the area sports a skate spot, badminton, basketball courts, and a tennis court. The water feature has been executed as a splash pad fog scape where guests push a button to activate the system to create robust plumes of fog.
Koolfog Contribution: Water Feature Fog Effects
Koolfog has collaborated with world-class water feature design and manufacturing company Crystal Fountains to create innovative and memorable interactive water fountains, splash pads, and sculptural aquatic features across the globe. For Toronto’s Via Bloor Parkette Crystal Fountains was engaged to implement a unique water feature that flowed with the overall parkette design specifications provided by Janet Rosenberg & Studio architects, and they developed an approach that included fog, a critical component of the Via Bloor water feature. This atmospheric element adds a visual centerpiece and interactive guest experience that enhances the overall parkette aesthetic.
Koolfog Technical Details
The water feature is a straightforward flow-through system hooked up to city water lines. The filtration system, control system, and Koolfog high-pressure pump are housed in a shallow vault beneath the ground. The pump pushes water through a ring of six emitters to produce a visually stunning fog effect. Koolfog worked with the Crystal Fountains design team to assist with designing the custom fog rings, provide input during the design process on grating style, and scale the appropriate pump to support the water feature.
Production Details
A project that we collaborated on starting in early 2019, our teams exchanged information to develop a fog feature that was robust but also limited in footprint. A prototype/mock-up was designed in Crystal Fountain’s test pool to validate the fog production before project implementation and demonstrate the creative intent.
Mockup testing before implementation
Continuing our input post-COVID through the latter part of 2021, the Via Bloor design was finally realized. From a shallow underground vault, the high-pressure distribution lines were run to three groupings of the custom fog niches. This served to limit pressure losses while providing straightforward connections during implementation. In addition, each niche was designed so that fog nozzles were accessible outside the niche without removing all connections.
The result is an incredible example of a high-impact feature in a small footprint.
