watering

Pool toys this summer are getting strikingly high-tech. Or maybe they've been high-tech, but I hadn't noticed because last summer there was no such thing as Crave yet (shocking!) Either way, they're a whole lot more sophisticated than the Super Soakers we had back when I was a kid.

We've already seen that many of the season's hottest (coolest?) water toys are pirate-themed. I like being a pirate. But I realize you might not. If you're more enamored by the idea of trench warfare than high-seas combat, this water balloon cannon, called the Water … Read more

AUSTIN, Texas--Have you ever wondered how much water an office park puts into its lawns each year?

About 1.8 million gallons for an average size (20 acre) property, according to Daniel Keelan, vice president of sales and marketing at AccuWater, which has developed a sensor/database system that more precisely controls water consumption. That comes to about $6,700 per acre per year, he said.

Keelan, speaking at the Clean Energy Venture Summit taking place this week in Austin, claims the company's system can reduce water consumption to about 890,000 gallons a year. As a result, AccuWater'… Read more

Wednesday's episode of Lost may have saved it from jumping the shark, but its writers may want the AquaSkipper from Inventist just in case.

The 6-foot-long self-propelling Jet Ski is made of aircraft aluminum and has a wingspan of seven feet. A fiberglass spring on the AquaSkipper responds to a hopping motion to propel it forward.

The hydrofoils on the human-powered Jet Ski create minimal drag, which allows it to go up to 17 miles per hour, according to Inventist. As you can see from this video, water-skiers wishing to exert less effort can also "sail" (or … Read more

Warm weather will be back before we know it, so it's not too soon to start thinking about water toys and beach gadgets. (For therapeutic distractions from the cold, if nothing else.)

This has got to be our favorite so far: a remote-controlled water cannon. Uber-Review suggests getting 10 of them to have a water war.

With backward, forward and spin movements, the water cannon can supposedly shoot streams as far as 10 feet. For our money, that's $129 well spent.

Good news, fellow germaphobes. We've seen all manner of gadgets that sterilize surfaces but none that address what we ingest. Until now.

The "SteriPEN UV Light Water Purifier" treats H2O with a germicidal lamp, supposedly rendering it bacteria-free with no chemical aftertaste and "99.99 percent safe to drink," according to Mobile Magazine. With our luck, we'll probably be among the remaining 0.01 percent.

How far the technology of physical fitness has come. We remember commercials touting the scientific principles of Gatorade and its revolutionary effects on the human hydration process. What Neanderthals.

Today, what's being touted as "the world first interactive water bottle" promises to calculate a person's specific hydration needs with its patented monitoring technology and dispense advice accordingly. According to a post on Trend Hunter, the "HydraCoach" supposedly "tracks every sip taken, monitors daily progress and motivates individuals to achieve and maintain proper hydration."

Now if it only had some kind of way … Read more

Not all of us live in a city where you can get spring water directly from the tap. Playing on our fears of water pollution cover-ups, the Sharper Image offers a $10 device that measures if your H2O is pure. In addition to checking the tap, you could also use it to see if that bottled or filtered water you are paying for is really worth the extra price.

The Water Checker measures water for the Total Dissolved Solids (TDS) in parts per million (ppm). The device is powered by 2 AAA batteries and, as Cool-Gadgets aptly quips, is by … Read more

No, you don't see news from Rheem, the vacuum and household appliance people, too much on our site. But you may in the future, as the company emerges as one of a growing number of advocates for solar water heaters.

In these systems, water is heated by solar rays directly from a tank on the roof--a common practice in Spain or Israel--or panels on the roof can conduct energy to a basement heater, as in Rheem's products. (See photo of jolly salesman.)

The basement versions are less obtrusive because the panels fit into the roofline of a house. … Read more

This item begs for a biblical reference, which is exactly why we won't go there. (Never discuss religion, etc.)

Deities aside, this water-walking invention is definitely worth passing along. Gizmag reports that a patent has been granted to a Massachusetts inventor for an "Upright Human Floatation Apparatus And Propulsion Mechanism," which basically looks like a pair of pontoon-shaped shoes. A grainy video demonstration seems appropriately eerie for this weird creation. And if you look closely, the image may even bear a resemblance to a certain well-known Scottish seagoing creature.

(Photos: Gizmag, Wikipedia)