[scociny]

My husband and I were thinking of geting a variable speed pool pump and were wondering what our savings may be if we did switch. I am sure there are alot of variables but we would like to hear your experience with the pump if you have one. Our pool is about 12,500 gallons, spa included and right now run the pump 9 hours a day. Thanks so much everyone!

[bmac88]

Here is a post I had made from another thread...
So Saturday morning I found my pump motor had failed,tripped the breaker and failed to start.After switching on the breaker and listerning to the motor just hum for 5 min,I checked the capacitor and verified the motor internal failure.I went to the pool store and asked about replacing my single speed motor with a variable one to save electric.Well the replacement motor for the one I had was $275 (me doing the labor),but the variable speed motor must be replaced with a new housing/basket ,basicly the entire pump set-up...it comes in 2 ways: manual (where you set the speed manually,or change it manually at the pump) or fully automatic (when it senses the water flow and automatically adjusts the pump speed to maintain),the prices were $950 and $1450.Doing the math the break even point is about 3 years on the manual unit or 4 years on the auto unit(it is slightly more efficient then the manual one).I choose to go with the regular replacement motor
as the new assmy would have also required new PCV pumping for the hook up,besides the extra $675 or $1175, and this is with me doing all the labor.So just a heads up for those considering the switch,its a great idea but it doesn't come cheap !

[WestieJeff]

Your savings will depend on the size of your existing pump (in hp) and how long you're running it. Google "variable speed pump savings calculator" and there are calculators out there where you plug in all the info (fyi, our electric rate is around .11 kwh, you'll need that for the calculator) and it will tell you how much you'll save.

A 2-3/year payback period sounds reasonable. Also, NV Energy has a $200 instant rebate if you buy a variable speed pump here in town. See Pool Pump Rebates

Another thing to be aware of is that the variable speed pump should last a lot longer since it isn't running nearly as hard nor getting as hot as an old single speed pump.

I personally wouldn't replace a working single speed pump with a variable speed pump, but absolutely if my pump was dead I would replace it with a variable speed pump. Some states such as CA don't even allow single speed pumps any more.

[AA702]

GE has multi-speed replacement motors now. I've seen them, but I don't know how good they are. You can look them up as GE Marathon variable speed replacement motors.

[scociny]

Thanks everyone for your replies! We have a 2hp motor that is working fine. I guess we should probably wait on it since after research we'll have to replace other things since my husband wants a remote control and our software is outdated.

[WestieJeff]

Without knowing all the details, a 2hp motor is likely pretty oversized for a 12.5k gallon pool (which is very common since pool builders sell with the idea that more is better!).

Realistically your pool should be turning over once per day, so the filter should be filtering 12.5k gallons of water every day. If you can find the GPM specs for your pump you can determine how long you need to run your pump to make that happen.

I've found that most people way overrun their pump in terms of how long it runs per day.

I have a 1.5hp pump on my 15k gallon pool and that is oversized as well.

Originally Posted by scociny

Thanks everyone for your replies! We have a 2hp motor that is working fine. I guess we should probably wait on it since after research we'll have to replace other things since my husband wants a remote control and our software is outdated.

[bmac88]

I also have a 2hp pump for a 12,000 gallon pool,the builder had a 1hp in the contract but they changed it to 2hp when I added the solar heat on the roof (2nd story home).I guess to pump it up two stories they said that was correct.Funny that the pool store never mentioned the rebate,guess they were keeping it for themselves because it says it is applied at time of sale.That would have reduced my pay back time by a year.

[AA702]

You have to remember when it comes to pump/motor HP, you have to consider more than just turning your water over once per day. A lot of pools have spa's build in and if you only use 1 pump for both the pool and spa a 1.5-2 HP is usually better for the jets to work. Some pools also have an inground cleaning system and/or solar. If you have just a regular pool with no spa or other features, then a 1HP is more than sufficient.

[jaimslaw]

AA702: I appreciate your comment/admonition about us pool owners who have (i) solar on 2 story house (ii) polaris floor cleaner (iii) spa w/ spill over.

So much is written up about the benefits of the expensive variable speed option, but often in the context of a simple pool set up. My take on reading so many, sometimes conflicting posts, about the VS v. dual speed pump subject is that as soon as you add into the equation, a combo of solar and floor cleaner (and maybe spa spillover), which I believe a lot of us pool owners have, the cost-benefit curve takes a real negative hit.

So I guess I am leaning toward a dual speed pump (cost: replacing the motor for, say $300) vice spending, what: $1600 or more for the Intelliflo pump plus Itellicom adaptor and who knows what else, given my existing older aqualogic Ps-4 SWG set up and a real desire for full/intelligent automation?

Still so many questions and doubts - I guess the underlying sentiment of this post is that I can't be the only pool owner in this same cost-benefit quandry (yes, exacerbated by my gadget fix, ie high anxiety if I am not buying the the latest/greatest, most super duper, state of art gadget, whatever be the application).

Will decide soon.

My pool info:
Size: approx 15k
Pump: 2HP whisperflo
Piping: 2"
Configs: Solar on 2 story house
Polaris floor sweep
Spill over spa
Automation: PS-4 aqualogic SWG (older ver. I fear)

One concern: possibly that in going w/ 1.5 Hp, when my solar is on, my spillover (2 sides of spa), water will not cascade out into the pool - it will just be a broken up cascade - not as asthetic looking.

[WestieJeff]

The only way you'll really know what you need is if you do a full head calculation to figure out how much head your pump is working against. That would require knowing about variations in elevation plus some idea of how many tees, elbows, etc. in your plumbing setup.

My gut feeling is pool owners with rooftop solar won't gain much/anything going to a variable speed pump unless you can get by running the rooftop solar only a small portion of the day.

Originally Posted by jaimslaw

AA702: I appreciate your comment/admonition about us pool owners who have (i) solar on 2 story house (ii) polaris floor cleaner (iii) spa w/ spill over.

So much is written up about the benefits of the expensive variable speed option, but often in the context of a simple pool set up. My take on reading so many, sometimes conflicting posts, about the VS v. dual speed pump subject is that as soon as you add into the equation, a combo of solar and floor cleaner (and maybe spa spillover), which I believe a lot of us pool owners have, the cost-benefit curve takes a real negative hit.

So I guess I am leaning toward a dual speed pump (cost: replacing the motor for, say $300) vice spending, what: $1600 or more for the Intelliflo pump plus Itellicom adaptor and who knows what else, given my existing older aqualogic Ps-4 SWG set up and a real desire for full/intelligent automation?

Still so many questions and doubts - I guess the underlying sentiment of this post is that I can't be the only pool owner in this same cost-benefit quandry (yes, exacerbated by my gadget fix, ie high anxiety if I am not buying the the latest/greatest, most super duper, state of art gadget, whatever be the application).

Will decide soon.

My pool info:
Size: approx 15k
Pump: 2HP whisperflo
Piping: 2"
Configs: Solar on 2 story house
Polaris floor sweep
Spill over spa
Automation: PS-4 aqualogic SWG (older ver. I fear)

One concern: possibly that in going w/ 1.5 Hp, when my solar is on, my spillover (2 sides of spa), water will not cascade out into the pool - it will just be a broken up cascade - not as asthetic looking.