Hayward Variable Speed SuperPump

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Leebo

Leebo

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Jul 21, 2011
12,568
Eastern Ohio
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25000
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I'm in the spot of buying a new pump to replace our old SuperPump that was ran without water for to long. Motor's as loud as a train, and the housing was melted some. Rather than replacing the motor...the entire pump is now a new toy to be messed with later. I'm sure we'll find something to use it for.

I'm either debating about swapping in a new SuperPump for about $350, or putting in a new Variable Speed SuperPump for about $650. Energy is cheap around here (about 8cents a kWh) but I'm all for paying extra for the better pump if it's a noticeable difference. We've got a homebuilt solar (works kinda) but no other water features, vacuums, or spa's. I'd like to set this up on a timer somehow to turn on and off at set times, but can't tell if the VS one has the built in or not???

Which would you pick.
 
Re: Which would your choice be.....

If you don't want the trouble of changing the plumbing, I'd go with 2-speed of the same model. That's probably the easiest thing to do and the lower speed will save a ton of money. However, if you just want a variable speed pump, by all means, go for it! :)
 
Re: Which would your choice be.....

I'll write back if we end up going this route. We're going to need to do some PVC work regardless as I'm also going to install a check valve on the pool. Anything I can do to avoid running the pump dry yet again (I'd hate to know how many times this really happened) I plan on doing. One of the main reasons I'm debating about a VS pump over a 2speed is the "Prime Mode" where it looks like it will turn itself off if prime hasn't been reached after a set amount of time.

I can't find crud online about the VS pump other than where to buy it.....I hate not having video's. :(
 
Re: Which would your choice be.....

Just got off the phone with a rep from Hayward, and I've gotta say that I'm very impressed with their customer service. Wrote to them on Facebook asking about the timer, and a few hours later received a call from them. Spent about twenty minutes talking about this pump and the EcoStar.

I think we're going to go with the VS pump. I asked about the pluming, and he stated that no extra work will be required, just pluming on the pump itself. While the info on a "timer" for the super pump is misleading, it's still a great fit for us. It's got the ability to run it very slow 90% of the time, but still have the ability to fine tune it up for the heater. For the extra $100 I'd rather say forget it....pass on the 2-speed and purchase the variable speed.

Besides........it's the inlaws money :)
 
Re: Which would your choice be.....

Yep, in fact his words when I asked about that was that "you could just swap out the motor and have the same pump."

Our housing is trashed too much to try that however. Running the pump dry for several hours tends to mess everything up I've heard.
 
Re: Which would your choice be.....

Leebo said:
Yep, in fact his words when I asked about that was that "you could just swap out the motor and have the same pump."

Our housing is trashed too much to try that however. Running the pump dry for several hours tends to mess everything up I've heard.
Click to expand...

I would be cautious about the plumbing and the Ecostar. I was a very early adopter of this pump- 1st in GA.
I will say the following- if you have two lines feeding the pump (maybe say main drain and a skimmer line) be sure that if they are 1 1/2 pipes you run them into a 2" tee, and be sure the Tee is atleast 10" back from the inlet of the pump. This pump moves a huge volume of water. The issue is at higher speeds it will cavitate if plumbed all the way into the pump with 1 1/2 lines.

I have had a lot of issues with my ecostar because this wasn't done, and finally the Hayward rep came out with the PB and he instructed them on this. Once this was done my pump worked great.

I love the Ecostar now, but if the Hayward Rep never came, I never would reccomend one for a residential installtion. Now I can say I am very pleased :whoot:
 
Re: Which would your choice be.....

Just ordered the VS SuperPump. For just over $600 I couldn't pass it up. The EcoStar would never pay for itself in our case with our low electric rates, and the extra convenience just wasn't worth the extra expense for us. We only have one 1 1/2 pipe running from the skimmer into the pump, but I'll remember your "trick" if the water flow just isn't what we expected.

Now I've got to start looking for a timer for the pump. The one that's built in only switches the speeds on the pump. None of the timers allow for the pump to "turn on" and then "turn off" at set times. A downfall for us....but I understand they've got to leave something out to meet a price point.
 

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Received the pump yesterday, and the plumbing lines up 100% with the standard SuperPump. I did run into an issue however with the plugs. The largest problem is the fact that I know nothing about electrical work, nor do I plan on learning. It doesn't come with the plug wired, and I can't tell what plug it needs. Only stuff wrote that I can find is......
Total Horsepower: 1.5
Voltage: 230 single phase

Heck if I know what this means, as again, I'm an electrical moron. We've got a normal GFCI outlet wired out there now, but if this needs a 220 outlet then there's no way I see us running a new wire to use this pump. I'm really hoping that this pump works fine with only a new plug being installed.

Did I mention I hate electrical work, and plan on learning none of it. :D
 
That pump is designed to be hardwired into a 230 volt supply. It will not work with a 115 volt outlet.

Posted from my Droid with Tapatalk ... sorry if my response is short ;)
 
well that's a horrible answer for me. :(

Will we need to run all new wire from the breaker, or can we tie into the wire that's ran to the pool already?
 
Depends on the wiring. Is there any 230 volt to the equipment pad?

You might be able to convert the wiring you have, but not sure it would meet code ... likely would have top consult an electrician.

Posted from my Droid with Tapatalk ... sorry if my response is short ;)
 
Oh trust me....I'm not touching this stuff! I'll do a switch and outlet, but other than that....I'm not touching NOTHING! The other members of my family know about this stuff, and I've never had a desire to learn. They're going to be doing 100% of all this work. :D They'll take a look at it and know just what it is they're looking at.....where all I see is wires. Told ya I'm dumb.

As for 230volt....the closest I know of that number is something like a clothes dryer. If that's the case, then no. There used to be a hot-tub out by the pool, but the breaker is about 50foot away from the pad.
 
If nothing else is using that circuit, and there is room for another breaker in the panel, the odds of being able to upgrade to 230volts are very good. But you won't know for sure until someone who knows wiring can look at the entire setup.
 
^^^^I like that answer. :) There's only lights and a handful of GFCI outlets wired in the entire panel. The outlet that's powering the pump is on its own breaker, so here's to hoping.
 
If that outlet is dedicated to the pump, then the odds are pretty good you could convert that circuit pretty easily.

Posted from my Droid with Tapatalk ... sorry if my response is short ;)
 
We finally got the pump wired up and running. First thing I notice is how quiet it is. As compared to the old single speed pump this ones almost silent.

My question is about setting the speeds on the pump. Does anybody know how to figure a guest-a-ment number of gallons of water flowed at certain RPM's. Right now we're running it at 2400RPM's as that seems to be flowing water well. I'm not sure however if we're running it at too high of a rpm.
 

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