Pool pump advice

[tabs]

Here is the pool I built..with the sentry on duty




I built this pool back in 91...

Behind the hedge on top is 204 ft of 6-8 ft high Split Block Garden Wall at $35 a ft...

Then there is 104 ft of 5ft to 6 ft retaining wall at the then price of $11 sq ft.... and 240 ft of 3.5 ft retaining wall. 65 yds of concrete for the footing...

The the pool itself which was 16 x 34 and 6'5" deep with Spa, fountain and lions heads...That back pool wall had rebar 4" on center, had Gunite 18" thick in the bottom and used 55 yds GUNITE. The Ballestrated Railing and precast steps to the pool was $7500 just for the material. Tile was 3500, Custom coping was 4200, plastering was 1800, Pool equipment was 3500, The bronze fountain was 5K but I got it for $2500. the lions heads were copper out of Nevada City, MO..for $50 each...The pool ran 3 whisperflow motors, had a 60 gallon DE filter and heater...the pool had its own commercial grade subpanel and jandy in house control system...

All told I removed over 200 cubic yards of dirt to get this thing into that slope...I also built a 750 sq ft second garage out back...which cost 25K..completely drywalled, insulated, 220 subpanel, and even a walk in vault...

That backyard cost me 150K...back in 91...

[Danimal16]

Tabs,

Very Nice.

Dan

[azasadny]

We have a 10,500 gallon above-ground Doughboy pool with a Hayward pump and filter. I use 1 1/2" flexible PVC with union couplings and we've run the Hayward pump 12 hours a day during the summer for 6 years with no problems. I believe that AO Smith make the pump motors for Hayward.

[Joeaksa]

Originally Posted by Danimal16

Tabs,

An 8,000 gallon pool is on the small side of things. 2.5 hp pump is truely wasted energy. My little pool is 8k gallons and the Pentair 1.5 VS 3050 pump can handle it without going to the solar heaters at about 20% rated max and I can get to the collectors at about 60%. This is a two story lift. No need for that big of a pump. As a matter of fact I could have gone with a 1 or less hp if I wanted to spend the money on a custom impeller. Not worth it, very pricey for custom complex machining.

Agreed. My pool is 13,000 gallons and the 1.5 hp pump handles it just fine.

[Danimal16]

Originally Posted by Joeaksa

Agreed. My pool is 13,000 gallons and the 1.5 hp pump handles it just fine.

How long do you run the pump?

[TerryH]

I would go the scientific route and have the two salesmen do "ROCK-PAPER-SCISSORS" to determine the best pump for your application.

Sounds like either pump will get the job done for you and size/power consumption is more important than brand.

[Danimal16]

Here is a you tube demo that sums up how the VS pumps (any manufacturer) save big money.

[Danimal16]

This is a well written illustration of how VS pumps and engineering the size save a tremendous amount of money.

http://swimming.about.com/od/poolandspamaintenance/a/pool_pump_size.htm

[red-beard]

Saving Money by Saving Energy
Depending upon utility rates, pool characteristics, and equipment selected,
it is possible to recoup the premium cost of an upgrade from a standard pump
to an energy efficient pump in the first year of operation.
For example, a system featuring an energy efficient high performance pump
drawing 5.34 amps at 230 volts where the local utility rate is $0.12 per kWh
will cost you approximately $1.78 over a 12 hour period per day. A standard
pump drawing 7.0 amps will cost you approximately $2.32 per day or an
extra $197 annually!

I have a 1 hp pump, low back pressure system, 100 gpm flow, running about 7 amps at 240 volts = 1.7kw. @ $0.129 = 22 cents per hour to run. I run 6 hours per day which is right around 1.5 turns. The cost is $1.32/day. I also run 1/2 hp pool cleaner for 2 hours per day. figure it costs about 11 cents per hour, 2 hours per day. My total daily cost is $1.54 or about $45 per month.