Trouble finding a Calimar pump

kchinger

Well-known member
Aug 20, 2017
325
Southeast PA
I placed an order about 4 weeks ago with Propool for a Calimar 3hp to replace my 1.65 VSP. However, it's apparently backordered and they keep moving the time frame on me, currently saying early May it'll get to them, after originally saying it would be in last week. So maybe second week of May I'd have it.

I usually open between late April and first or second week of May due to temperatures. I was hoping for late April this year since it's getting warmer.

I called Pools unlimited and it's the same story. I haven't tried Active Pools yet because I hadn't seen them before and I just noticed them on a further search, but I suspect the same issue there.

I called Discount Salt Pools and they don't have any 3HP but they do have a 1.7, which is the old 1.5 but has been uprated. Obviously they're much more expensive ($795 for 1.7 versus like $550 for 3), but they have the 5 year warranty and they answer the phone and it's actually in stock.

I usually ran my old pump at full speed only a couple hours a day for cleaning the surface, but I never got the surface very clean because my circulation sucks. Would a larger 3HP be able to clean it better? I only have 1.5HP pipes so I'm not sure more water would really move anyway.

Should I hold out and hope the 3HP that's cheaper actually arrives in time to open, or should I just order the in stock 1.7HP for more money but actually get it here for sure?
 
为您的泳池泵出大量的水。
Maybe they can strap the pump to the back of the ship to help it get here sooner.

Keep us posted kchinger. They were hard to come by most of last season too, although the 4 to 6 week wait wasn't terrible.
 
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Active Pool Supply doesn't have any either. Sure would be cool if these people's websites actually reflected their stock levels, but then they're less likely to get your money for something they don't have I guess.

Any thoughts on whether the 3HP would actually improve my skimming ability or anything? Or am I better off just going ahead and getting the 1.7HP that actually has a warranty and better support.
 
You should never need full speed.

The main benefit is that the pump produces a lot less noise because you can run it slower for any given flow rate.
That makes sense. I can never hear my old 1.65 from outside the poolhouse anyway, unless it's turned way up for skimming (I think I used like 3400rpm or so), which is rare and if it bothers us because we're nearby I just kick it down, but that rarely ever happened. So 1.7HP and in stock and 5 year warranty is getting tempting...
 
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