Vdara Pool Requires Some Heavy-Duty Sun Block

I have written about window film before. (See article.) I have also had a guest columnist write about the window product. (See article.) Low-E window films can reduce heat loss by up to 30 percent and air-conditioning costs by blocking more than 70 percent of the sun’s heat. Of course window film makes the most sense where the sun beats down the hardest. After reading an article in the Las Vegas Review-Journal about the Vdara Hotel at CityCenter, one has to wonder what kind of window film they are using (they are using some). Perhaps they need something a little thicker? Or, perhaps they need a lot more than window film? Turns out guests who sit in certain spots around the hotel's pool risk being roasted a bit. How so?

Because of the way the hotel was designed, the sun's rays bounce off of the hotel's south-facing tower and are focused to become what some employees are calling the "Vdara death ray." Ouch! That's not the kind of phrase you want tossed about in the same sentence as your hotel. One guest recently told the Review Journal that he was "effectively being cooked" one day earlier in September while "relaxing" by the hotel pool. His hair was actually scorched. The rays bouncing off of the building even melted the plastic bag holding the guest's newspaper. According to the Review Journal, the hotel guest's theory is that Vdara's curved southern wall acts as a parabola to collect and intensify the afternoon rays, which it then reflects. A spokesman for the LEED certified hotel said solutions under review include adding more foliage to the pool deck, offering larger sun umbrellas, and building a shade structure.

Perhaps the Vdara should install some solar panels next to the pool? Or, roast some weenies there when the sun is the strongest?

For architects and designers, there is certainly a lesson to be learned here: Pay much closer attention to the way the sun reflects off of a building early on. Don't wait until your guests feel like kindling in a fire pit.