You’re the man Steve. There’s nothing of this quality on TH-cam, and the fact you have you live system showing us all of this is incredible. I’m learning so much from your videos on the REAL way to properly look after my pool
Im a new pool owner and was only running 8 hrs. No pool school here. I have it set for 24 hours with 2/2500 4/1500 and the rest at 1000. I am going to keep learning and refine that. Thank you for making it easier to understand !
Just built s new pool 14X32 Fiberglass 11,100 gallons all 2" piping using Hayward WS224 Sand filter with glass media, running Tristar VS900 pump here in NJ a kilowatt is .23$ my filter scheduale is 1 Hour 2750 RPM pushing 63-GPM @ 824 watts, 2 hour @ 2250RPM @ 55-GPM @ 496 watts, 6 hours @ 1725RPM @ 240 watts and 15 hours @ 800-RPM @ 41 watts Total watts used in 24 hour run time is 3,871 3.8KW X .23 is 89 cents per day and I'm filtering 42,780 gallons Turning over the pool 3.85 time in 24 hours. Great stuff STEVE.
kudos. We have a new pool just about this same size with an Intelliflo VSF, so these numbers are nearly perfect for our needs, and it's great being shown WHY they are the best. Thank you!
One thing to add, or to warn people, is that everyone’s pool system is a bit different, so after you plan your schedule make sure that your water running to your chlorinator is able to surpass the system pressures and drip on the chlorine tablets at low speeds, or at least your medium speed. After I changed my schedule with three different rpm’s based on this video I realized that there was no chlorine left in my pool and my tablets were still in tact. At first I thought there was something wrong with my Rainbow 320 chlorinator so I changed the check valve and cleaned it, but later realized the problem was that at low speed/pressure the water was not able to feed the chlorinator. My pump has to be close to 1800 rpm or 32 gpm for water to flow to my chlorinator. So my schedule ranges from 1800 rpm to 2000 rpm, and 2500 rpm at high speed. I may be paying a bit more money but this is the only way for me to circulate the water efficiently making sure that there’s chlorine in my pool.
If you need 1800 rpm to get only 32 gpm maybe the pump impeller is too small. Maybe a 1 hp impeller on a 2 hp motor? Put a larger impeller and you should be able to lower the rpms back.
Your videos are so helpful. I ended up going with 1000, 2000, and 2500 RPMS for my pool. I’d like to get more precise however I don’t really have a good way to measure the gallons per minute at each RPM level.
Steve, this is exactly what I want to do. Tell us how to set 3 different speeds for the same day on Pentair Variable speed pump on the intellitouch screen
Using the numbers from this video you might try the following: Speed 1/2500 rpm/6am-8am; Speed 5/750 rpm/8am-9pm; Speed 6/1400 rpm/9pm-1am; Speed 7/750 rpm/1am-6am That is 2hrs on HIGH (2500 rpm); 13 hrs on LOW (750 rpm); 4hrs on MED (1400 rpm); and 5 hrs on LOW (750 rpm). If you only want 3 different speeds, adjust the times to remove the 5 hrs. on LOW. I'm just tossing out this schedule to give you an idea of using multiple speeds to use. You decide your schedule based upon your pool, equipment and where you live. Hope this helped.
So your power in watts is higher because you are using 120V. Using a 240V pump will result in lower power usage (watts) and save more. If you have 240V capability, then I would suggest getting a pump that can use it. I have a 240V Hayard VS pump and 3250 rpm it uses 750 watts. At 2500 rpm it only uses 341 watts.
This is exactly what I was looking for. Thank you. We are 1st time pool owners and are pretty insecure at this point! I have a question if you don’t mind. When I turn my Jandy variable speed pump down past 1000 rpm I get a “no flow” message on the salt water chlorinator. What do you recommend doing in this case? Thanks!!
Run a few hundred rpm above this amount to make sure your salt chlorinator flow switch is able to close. Every pool is unique. This is your minimum rpm for your salt system.
If you have an electric heat pump, yes it matters a lot. If you do not use an electric heat pump I do not see how filtration volume / flow rates / time of day will affect water temp EXCEPT every heater has a max, min and optimal heating range. I believe 60gpm is close to where manufacturers say optimal heating is.
One thing that you don't account for is PSI on filter increasing over time. I have a Sand Filter that I put DE in after I backwash and over 2 weeks or so the PSI slowly creeps up. I don't really want to keep re-programming my pump to maintain the 3x filtration goal. I suppose I could just raise pump levels to 3x at the highest PSI level but then I am wasting energy until it reaches that level. Maybe no ideal solution, but curious to hear your thoughts. On a secondary note my pool is 16x32 with a Sand filter that has 60GPM limit and 1 1/2 inch piping (all done by my installer, I know now not ideal). In any case, to reach the 3X goal of filtration I pretty much have to get 40GPM 24 hours. I could try and go higher GPM for a few hours but I reach a limit at 60GPM and I can see the flow dynamics are not ideal as I can actually see my pipes shaking, probably don't want to go above 50GPM for this reason so hard to take full advantage of the VSP.
Hey Steve. Appreciate you sharing all your knowledge and expertise. Because of you my installer will be using all 2" and sweep elbows. Question though, does the pump basket negate the need for the straight run on the suction side? Seems like every install I see this practice isn't being implemented.
You are right it is not being implemented. But take a look in the installation instructions and there it is! Pump hydraulics matter, but we are barely even at the point where the average installer is using something bigger than 1.5" pipe so there is boatloads of room for efficiency improvements with the average installation. Sometimes it's both efficiency but also longevity as poor design or installation can easily make equipment operate outside of specification like above a filter max design flow rate or a pump operating too far from BEP, best efficiency point. If the pool industry were like the car industry we are all still driving 45hp cars with leaded gas and Awwooooga horns.
The manufacturer designs the input of the pump for maximum hydraulic efficiency, and yes this includes the strainer basket. Definitely want a 5x pipe diameter straight run as the minimum value. No valves, twists or turns in that space.
I have a 17,800 Gallon pool located in southern Ohio. I have a Salt Cell and Heat Pump. I love the idea of throttling down the speeds and setting up a run schedule. In your example shown here, it looks like your running the 18 hr schedule in the morning and afternoon, while running at higher speeds at night??
I run high speeds at night because it is cost effective. The pump uses a lot of power at hig speed and my lowest cost for variable electricity rates is at night. Did you see my video on pump rpm needed for a salt cell? It was much lower than expected for all brands. It does not take much flow to meetthe minimum flow requirements for most salt cells.
Very satisfying to see the math. Would love to understand the difference between a heated pool vs a maintenance pool during the winter when you don't have the heater on. Are they the same?
Bathers and organic debris are the concern. Any time you don't have bathers in the water I am less concerned about filtration volume. Cold water does not grow much bacteria or algae so you can definitely filter less etc. But that is because the pool is essentially closed for an extended period and circulating just enough to maintain the water from turning bad. That is different from how you should run a pool that is being used, heated or not.
The first three numbers in the calculation so the volume of the pool in cubic feet. The fourth number, 7.5, is how many gallons of water are in a cubic foot.
We are pricing out a 14’ x 24’ in-ground vinyl lined pool. When I asked the contractor to price out 2” pvc pipe he said 1.5 is fine when we have no water additional features. I asked him to still price the 2” pipe. Would you agree that 2” is better even in a simple pool?
Hi, First of all thanks so much for so much info that I learned from your channel, I have 25k gallon pool with spa and 420 sqft cartridge filter, currently I am remodeling my pool and which pump should I install? I have here two pumps sitting in my garage pentair intelliflow i2 2hp variable speed and intelliflow Pentair IntelliFlo VSF Variable Speed Plus Flow Pool Pump 011056, which one will be more suitable for my setup?
Hi Steve, I have a Whisper Flo VST 2.6 which looks identical to the pump in this video. You said that pump is only a horse and a half. I'm wired for 240 and the one in your video is 120,does that matter or is the 2.6 actually 1.5 horse? Its very confusing.
How much restriction do the HI Vis Flow meters add to a system? Negligible? Example being if that low speed of 22gpm had no flow meter in line would it be 30gmp, or more like 23gpm? Can I install one just before my pump or better to install after the pump in between the pump and filter?
It is hard to say exactly, and I have not made a test for this so only speculation, but yes I would expect the flow to be somewhat less than a system without a flow-through style meter. The Rotameter style also has flow restriction, but I think it is less than the flow through meter due to the spring resistance on the flapper. Worth noting I believe this is an option and while common you can get Flowvis meters without the check valve feature which would make the resistance to flow more equal between the two comparisons. As for putting it on the suction side I would not. You do not want debris to compromise how the flow reads, and any check valve on the suction side (foot valve) is a fairly serious restriction to flow. I would prefer to see flow meters on the pressure side after the filter.
Hay Steve your video s have been very helpful as my wife and i are building our pool this summer. My question has nothing to do with this video. We live in manitoba and have a lot of movement due to frost. Im afraid if we install ridged pvc under ground it will break due to movement. Would you recommend flexibility pvc in this case?
@@ianginter7743 In cold climates flex PVC is the most popular choice despite it being inferior to rigid PVC in basically every way. Rigid pipe can shatter in cold weather making it a very risk choice in these areas. Most likley flex is the right choice, but it is more like the lesser of two evils kind of situation.
It is not clear why you need high speed and how long you need it. If you just want to reach 39,000 g/d circulation, you can run the pump at one speed of about 1000 rpm for 24 hours.
The answer is that pools are more dynamic than needing a static 1000 RPM. This would not be enough to filter water effectively, nor enough to run a pool heater, not enough for skimmers to work and clean, filtered water to diffuse effectively within the body of water. As purely a math equation, sure a 1000 rpm pump uses less power, and this could be useful in a fishtank perhaps, but not useful in a swimming pool. Pools commonly require periods of time at high speed, medium speed and low speed every day.
@@Swimmingpoolsteve I don't have a pool heater. So what are the speeds needed for skimmers? If you want to diffuse, isn't high-low-high-low more effective, assuming you can only program 4 speeds?
All VS pumps have built in timers and use constant supply power so this is how I would handle this issue. You are not going to find new tech coming out for single speed pumps so the old school Intermatic timers is as good as you can do for mechanical timers.
@@len9483 No - that’s a common misconception and bad advice. For best water chemistry and sanitization the maximum pump flow should be done during the warmest part of that day. Pool professionals understand the importance of circulation timing but there’s always homeowners pining to use off peak hours during the night. This usually leads to multiple algae outbreaks and increased chemical use which more than offsets any perceived energy savings. Steve had a dozen sample timer programs and stresses the importance of maximum filtration during daylight hours.
@@drdrew3 Thanks Andrew for the advice. I live in Arizona and the low is about 95 degrees. And that is about 4: a.m. So I just run at night so as not to kill my utility any more than I have to. Any chemical additives I have to add to offset nighttime hours will in no way effect any thing because our utility costs are out of this world.
You’re the man Steve. There’s nothing of this quality on TH-cam, and the fact you have you live system showing us all of this is incredible. I’m learning so much from your videos on the REAL way to properly look after my pool
Im a new pool owner and was only running 8 hrs. No pool school here. I have it set for 24 hours with 2/2500 4/1500 and the rest at 1000. I am going to keep learning and refine that. Thank you for making it easier to understand !
How do you set your Pentair VSF pump to 3 different speeds in one day?
Just built s new pool 14X32 Fiberglass 11,100 gallons all 2" piping using Hayward WS224 Sand filter with glass media, running Tristar VS900 pump here in NJ a kilowatt is .23$ my filter scheduale is 1 Hour 2750 RPM pushing 63-GPM @ 824 watts, 2 hour @ 2250RPM @ 55-GPM @ 496 watts, 6 hours @ 1725RPM @ 240 watts and 15 hours @ 800-RPM @ 41 watts
Total watts used in 24 hour run time is 3,871 3.8KW X .23 is 89 cents per day and I'm filtering 42,780 gallons Turning over the pool 3.85 time in 24 hours. Great stuff STEVE.
kudos. We have a new pool just about this same size with an Intelliflo VSF, so these numbers are nearly perfect for our needs, and it's great being shown WHY they are the best. Thank you!
One thing to add, or to warn people, is that everyone’s pool system is a bit different, so after you plan your schedule make sure that your water running to your chlorinator is able to surpass the system pressures and drip on the chlorine tablets at low speeds, or at least your medium speed. After I changed my schedule with three different rpm’s based on this video I realized that there was no chlorine left in my pool and my tablets were still in tact. At first I thought there was something wrong with my Rainbow 320 chlorinator so I changed the check valve and cleaned it, but later realized the problem was that at low speed/pressure the water was not able to feed the chlorinator. My pump has to be close to 1800 rpm or 32 gpm for water to flow to my chlorinator. So my schedule ranges from 1800 rpm to 2000 rpm, and 2500 rpm at high speed. I may be paying a bit more money but this is the only way for me to circulate the water efficiently making sure that there’s chlorine in my pool.
Great info. Thank you for commenting as I am sure others could experience something similar
If you need 1800 rpm to get only 32 gpm maybe the pump impeller is too small. Maybe a 1 hp impeller on a 2 hp motor? Put a larger impeller and you should be able to lower the rpms back.
This has really given me some good baseline numbers . I'm thinking about installing a vs pump . Thank you .
Your videos are so helpful. I ended up going with 1000, 2000, and 2500 RPMS for my pool. I’d like to get more precise however I don’t really have a good way to measure the gallons per minute at each RPM level.
Try a flow meter, I use a FlowVis and it works great.
Oustanding information brother. Thanks 👍
Thank you
Steve, this is exactly what I want to do. Tell us how to set 3 different speeds for the same day on Pentair Variable speed pump on the intellitouch screen
Using the numbers from this video you might try the following: Speed 1/2500 rpm/6am-8am; Speed 5/750 rpm/8am-9pm; Speed 6/1400 rpm/9pm-1am; Speed 7/750 rpm/1am-6am That is 2hrs on HIGH (2500 rpm); 13 hrs on LOW (750 rpm); 4hrs on MED (1400 rpm); and 5 hrs on LOW (750 rpm). If you only want 3 different speeds, adjust the times to remove the 5 hrs. on LOW. I'm just tossing out this schedule to give you an idea of using multiple speeds to use. You decide your schedule based upon your pool, equipment and where you live. Hope this helped.
So your power in watts is higher because you are using 120V. Using a 240V pump will result in lower power usage (watts) and save more. If you have 240V capability, then I would suggest getting a pump that can use it. I have a 240V Hayard VS pump and 3250 rpm it uses 750 watts. At 2500 rpm it only uses 341 watts.
If the pool has an ozonator installed, does this approach change? if so, how so?
Love your videos! What's the best schedule during winter AND/OR summer for I think a 20g none salt pool with a 3hp motor and 2-inch pipes?
This is exactly what I was looking for. Thank you. We are 1st time pool owners and are pretty insecure at this point! I have a question if you don’t mind. When I turn my Jandy variable speed pump down past 1000 rpm I get a “no flow” message on the salt water chlorinator. What do you recommend doing in this case? Thanks!!
Run a few hundred rpm above this amount to make sure your salt chlorinator flow switch is able to close. Every pool is unique. This is your minimum rpm for your salt system.
Thanks Steve, very informative. In the 24 hour period, from a heating perspective, does it matter what time you run each cycle?
If you have an electric heat pump, yes it matters a lot. If you do not use an electric heat pump I do not see how filtration volume / flow rates / time of day will affect water temp EXCEPT every heater has a max, min and optimal heating range. I believe 60gpm is close to where manufacturers say optimal heating is.
One thing that you don't account for is PSI on filter increasing over time. I have a Sand Filter that I put DE in after I backwash and over 2 weeks or so the PSI slowly creeps up. I don't really want to keep re-programming my pump to maintain the 3x filtration goal. I suppose I could just raise pump levels to 3x at the highest PSI level but then I am wasting energy until it reaches that level. Maybe no ideal solution, but curious to hear your thoughts. On a secondary note my pool is 16x32 with a Sand filter that has 60GPM limit and 1 1/2 inch piping (all done by my installer, I know now not ideal). In any case, to reach the 3X goal of filtration I pretty much have to get 40GPM 24 hours. I could try and go higher GPM for a few hours but I reach a limit at 60GPM and I can see the flow dynamics are not ideal as I can actually see my pipes shaking, probably don't want to go above 50GPM for this reason so hard to take full advantage of the VSP.
How about a video on the right speed to heat a pool (effecancy and fast heating)
Faster speed is better. I run ours at 3000rpm for the pool and 2750 for the hot tub
Hey Steve. Appreciate you sharing all your knowledge and expertise. Because of you my installer will be using all 2" and sweep elbows. Question though, does the pump basket negate the need for the straight run on the suction side? Seems like every install I see this practice isn't being implemented.
You are right it is not being implemented. But take a look in the installation instructions and there it is! Pump hydraulics matter, but we are barely even at the point where the average installer is using something bigger than 1.5" pipe so there is boatloads of room for efficiency improvements with the average installation. Sometimes it's both efficiency but also longevity as poor design or installation can easily make equipment operate outside of specification like above a filter max design flow rate or a pump operating too far from BEP, best efficiency point. If the pool industry were like the car industry we are all still driving 45hp cars with leaded gas and Awwooooga horns.
The manufacturer designs the input of the pump for maximum hydraulic efficiency, and yes this includes the strainer basket. Definitely want a 5x pipe diameter straight run as the minimum value. No valves, twists or turns in that space.
I have a 17,800 Gallon pool located in southern Ohio. I have a Salt Cell and Heat Pump. I love the idea of throttling down the speeds and setting up a run schedule. In your example shown here, it looks like your running the 18 hr schedule in the morning and afternoon, while running at higher speeds at night??
I run high speeds at night because it is cost effective. The pump uses a lot of power at hig speed and my lowest cost for variable electricity rates is at night. Did you see my video on pump rpm needed for a salt cell? It was much lower than expected for all brands. It does not take much flow to meetthe minimum flow requirements for most salt cells.
Very satisfying to see the math. Would love to understand the difference between a heated pool vs a maintenance pool during the winter when you don't have the heater on. Are they the same?
Bathers and organic debris are the concern. Any time you don't have bathers in the water I am less concerned about filtration volume. Cold water does not grow much bacteria or algae so you can definitely filter less etc. But that is because the pool is essentially closed for an extended period and circulating just enough to maintain the water from turning bad. That is different from how you should run a pool that is being used, heated or not.
Steve your videos are priceless. In determining the size of the pool, I don't know what the 7.5 is in your equation could you please explain?
The first three numbers in the calculation so the volume of the pool in cubic feet. The fourth number, 7.5, is how many gallons of water are in a cubic foot.
We are pricing out a 14’ x 24’ in-ground vinyl lined pool. When I asked the contractor to price out 2” pvc pipe he said 1.5 is fine when we have no water additional features. I asked him to still price the 2” pipe. Would you agree that 2” is better even in a simple pool?
Hi, First of all thanks so much for so much info that I learned from your channel, I have 25k gallon pool with spa and 420 sqft cartridge filter, currently I am remodeling my pool and which pump should I install? I have here two pumps sitting in my garage pentair intelliflow i2 2hp variable speed and intelliflow Pentair IntelliFlo VSF Variable Speed Plus Flow Pool Pump 011056, which one will be more suitable for my setup?
Hi Steve, I have a Whisper Flo VST 2.6 which looks identical to the pump in this video. You said that pump is only a horse and a half. I'm wired for 240 and the one in your video is 120,does that matter or is the 2.6 actually 1.5 horse?
Its very confusing.
If you’re home owner yeah but if you’re at this house every week imposible
Is this schedule also good for opening the pool or I will be have to run the pump at higher speed until the pool is clean and balanced?
How much restriction do the HI Vis Flow meters add to a system? Negligible? Example being if that low speed of 22gpm had no flow meter in line would it be 30gmp, or more like 23gpm?
Can I install one just before my pump or better to install after the pump in between the pump and filter?
It is hard to say exactly, and I have not made a test for this so only speculation, but yes I would expect the flow to be somewhat less than a system without a flow-through style meter. The Rotameter style also has flow restriction, but I think it is less than the flow through meter due to the spring resistance on the flapper. Worth noting I believe this is an option and while common you can get Flowvis meters without the check valve feature which would make the resistance to flow more equal between the two comparisons. As for putting it on the suction side I would not. You do not want debris to compromise how the flow reads, and any check valve on the suction side (foot valve) is a fairly serious restriction to flow. I would prefer to see flow meters on the pressure side after the filter.
Hay Steve your video s have been very helpful as my wife and i are building our pool this summer. My question has nothing to do with this video. We live in manitoba and have a lot of movement due to frost. Im afraid if we install ridged pvc under ground it will break due to movement. Would you recommend flexibility pvc in this case?
@@ianginter7743 In cold climates flex PVC is the most popular choice despite it being inferior to rigid PVC in basically every way. Rigid pipe can shatter in cold weather making it a very risk choice in these areas. Most likley flex is the right choice, but it is more like the lesser of two evils kind of situation.
Does a solar heating system impact the need for higher pump speeds?
I was told for a single-story home run 2800 RPM with 6 - 4' X 12' panels on roof.
It is not clear why you need high speed and how long you need it. If you just want to reach 39,000 g/d circulation, you can run the pump at one speed of about 1000 rpm for 24 hours.
The answer is that pools are more dynamic than needing a static 1000 RPM. This would not be enough to filter water effectively, nor enough to run a pool heater, not enough for skimmers to work and clean, filtered water to diffuse effectively within the body of water. As purely a math equation, sure a 1000 rpm pump uses less power, and this could be useful in a fishtank perhaps, but not useful in a swimming pool. Pools commonly require periods of time at high speed, medium speed and low speed every day.
@@Swimmingpoolsteve I don't have a pool heater. So what are the speeds needed for skimmers? If you want to diffuse, isn't high-low-high-low more effective, assuming you can only program 4 speeds?
I’ve been trying to find a good pool pump timer and having a hard time finding a good one. Any suggestions?
All VS pumps have built in timers and use constant supply power so this is how I would handle this issue. You are not going to find new tech coming out for single speed pumps so the old school Intermatic timers is as good as you can do for mechanical timers.
You're saying turnover rate of 3x?
Yes that will result in 95% of the water in your pool being filtered at least one time
What time of day should each speed be set at? Located in North Florida. New pool owner
Check with your power company to see when your rates are 'off peak'. That is when you run your equipment. i.e. 9:00 p.m. to 7:00 a.m... ish?
@@len9483 No - that’s a common misconception and bad advice. For best water chemistry and sanitization the maximum pump flow should be done during the warmest part of that day. Pool professionals understand the importance of circulation timing but there’s always homeowners pining to use off peak hours during the night. This usually leads to multiple algae outbreaks and increased chemical use which more than offsets any perceived energy savings. Steve had a dozen sample timer programs and stresses the importance of maximum filtration during daylight hours.
@@drdrew3 Thanks Andrew for the advice. I live in Arizona and the low is about 95 degrees. And that is about 4: a.m. So I just run at night so as not to kill my utility any more than I have to. Any chemical additives I have to add to offset nighttime hours will in no way effect any thing because our utility costs are out of this world.