Technical & Financial Advice for Building a Curling Rink

Norwegian Curling Federation

2011-02-05

The Norwegian Curling Federation sponsored the writing of this report with the objective of developing a manual to address what is needed to build and operate a curling facility. It contains technical and financial guidance and is intended as an aid to potential developers and a „catalyst? for the realization of plans for curling rinks.

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Why do Batteries Sulfate? / Make your Batteries Last

Bill Darden - Rainbow Power Co. - Australia

2010-04-17

This is an excellent article to read as we move into the summer months - when battery powered scrapers are being stored until the start of the next season.... We receive many phone calls in the fall of each year ... asking for assistance with batteries that have 'died'. Oftentimes, this problem can be avoided by maintaining a charge on the battery during the summer. Rainbow Power is a Solar Power Coop - with customers who face very similar problems. Bill Darden has provided some useful tips to help you save and/or revive your scraper batteries. If you are experiencing problems with your batteries and cannot get them to recharge, please call us for additional assistance! Ice King now provides military grade batteries that are better suited for the long storage periods and short running time typical for most scrapers. The technology employed in these batteries prevents sulfation and lengthens the life of the battery (up to 8 years of useful life).

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Pebble Head Cleaning

Don Powell - Weston Golf & Country Club

2009-02-22

Pebble head holes will tend to become plugged with particles present in the water used – regardless of the source. Instructions are provided using common household materials. Our thanks to Don Powell - Weston Golf & Country Club Head Ice Technician - who provided this information.

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A Player's Guide to Curling Ice

John Minnaar - Scottish Curling-Ice Group

2008-06-27

In order to protect curling ice, players need to be aware of the nuances of ice making and the ice surface itself. John has written this report to educate players on the problems they themselves may be responsible for. His discussion includes some very valuable insights regarding ice making as it affects the players and how the behaviour of the players will impact the ice… as John says – “it is a vicious circle”…. Good reading for icemakers as well as players…

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OCA Ice Technician's Manual

OCA Ice Team

2007-09-01

This manual is intended to address the immediate needs of the curling club ice technician in a general way. It provides a basic checklist of items of concern to the club and the ice technician no matter what size of club you have or what experience you have.

- This is a great manual for the Ice Technician as well as Club Board Members...

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Why Do Stones Curl?

John Minnaar - Scottish Curling-Ice Group

2006-03-14

The study of why curling stones curl is not new. Many theories have been suggested by highly qualified individuals and many have been flawed, while others have looked at certain aspects of physics without even knowing about other factors that could be involved. In science it is said that a beautiful theory is often ruined by one single awkward fact, and here this is certainly the case. As a starting point, it would be wise to consider all known aspects of the stones, the ice and the environment, that could have an influence on curl. Then perhaps the theories might make more sense.

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Water in a Curling Rink

John Minnaar - Scottish Curling-Ice Group

2006-03-08

Water is the only material on earth commonly found as gas, liquid and solid. In a curling rink it is found as a gas in the air, as a liquid in fog or condensation and during flooding and pebbling, and as a solid in ice. From the phase diagram of water below, it is clear that water can exist as all three, or as any of these, around 0ºC (273ºK). There is also a fourth form of water, supercritical, that only exists under extreme pressure and temperature, which will not be further discussed here.

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Cutting Technique

John Minnaar - Scottish Curling-Ice Group

2006-02-01

When a blade is used to remove pebble and other irregularities from the surface of curling ice, three words are commonly used to describe the action: scraping, cutting and shaving…

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Curling Ice in an Arena

Leif Ohman & John Minnaar

2003-09-25

The words of this heading are carefully chosen, because the two items are very different. Ice is simply the result of water being frozen by lowering its temperature to below 0ºC, whereas curling ice is a manufactured product of specific definition that has been made from ice, or by freezing water in a very specific way. It is the purpose of this half of the section to bring together the relevant essential pieces of information scattered throughout the manual, to enable technicians to convert ice to curling ice in an efficient and cost-effective way on a regular basis. In the next half of this section, Curling Ice In An Arena, the same subject is addressed, but there it is aimed at providing excellent ice for a competition of some duration.

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