I have a pool that holds 9500 gallons of water. According to this article http://www.inyopools.com/HowToPage/how_to_size_a_pool_pump_for_your_in_ground_pool_.aspx, based on 8 hours turnover and 50' of head, I need a pump that has 20 gpm flow. That seems to me very low, but if correct that would mean that 3/4 hp super pump would do a job. Now I intend to use Polaris pressure side cleaner. So instead of buying a separate booster pump, I was thinking of installing one of those jandy three way valves to divert part of the water to Polaris. I've seen this setup at my cousins house. So would I then increase a pump to 1 1/2 hp? Or would 1 HP be enough?
Help me size a pump
- Thread starter exptrade
- Start date
Turn over is meaningless. Read: Determine Pump Run Time
We generally recommend the smallest 2-speed pump that will provide enough flow rate for your needs. IF you have no spa or water features, then a small pump like the 1HP 2-speed Pentair Superflo or Hayward Super Pump would be good (assuming you have 230V available).
What cleaner do you have? Some pressure side cleaners require a booster and other models do not. So, if you have a cleaner that does NOT required a booster pump, I would think that the 1HP pump should still be adequate on high speed. And you would run on low speed to save money on power when not running the cleaner.
I would suggest considering a robot instead of a pressure cleaner so that the cleaner is not tied to requiring running the pump on high speed.
We generally recommend the smallest 2-speed pump that will provide enough flow rate for your needs. IF you have no spa or water features, then a small pump like the 1HP 2-speed Pentair Superflo or Hayward Super Pump would be good (assuming you have 230V available).
What cleaner do you have? Some pressure side cleaners require a booster and other models do not. So, if you have a cleaner that does NOT required a booster pump, I would think that the 1HP pump should still be adequate on high speed. And you would run on low speed to save money on power when not running the cleaner.
I would suggest considering a robot instead of a pressure cleaner so that the cleaner is not tied to requiring running the pump on high speed.
Thanks for replying. I have no cleaner yet as I am in a process of putting an equipment list together. I will probably be getting one of the Polaris cleaners. I have seen at my cousins house that he does not run a booster pump for cleaner, but rather just adjust the flow of water to it by Jandy valve. That is what I was planning on doing. He has 25K gallons pool and runs all that with 1 1/2 HP pump. So, mine is smaller, so I am thinking that 1HP would to the job. I would prefer pump that I can hook up to 120V. Seems like Pentair Whisperflo Dual Speed WFDS-24 would fit the bill.
The Whisperflo is a larger pump than the Superflo line of pumps. As such it will use more electricity even is the HP rating is lower. There is a 3/4HP 2 speed Superflo that is also 120V, but a little difficult to locate. This is also a much smaller pump, but should be adequate for a simple cleaner.
Based on my research I will go with a Superflo, as they are designed for medium head. Now, as to size it seems that 1HP is more efficient than 3/4HP. 1HP at low speed draws 2.3 Amps at 230V where 3/4 HP draws 4.7 Amps at 115V. I think I'll go with a 1HP. How do I find out GPM for this pump?
I was trying to figure out which cartridge size filter to get, and it should not have flow rate lower that pump. Do you have any suggestions which size I should get? Seems like 100 sqft filter should be plenty big for 9500 gallons pool. Pentair cc100 seems like it would do the job.
Well, for cartridge filters, the bigger the better. Using my rule of thumb and given that you will have your pool open year round, I would suggest at least 140 sqft to lower the frequency of cleaning.
Thanks for your help. Just ordered pump Pentair SuperFlo 1 HP Two Speed Pump 340042 and Hayward C17502 plus filter.
That should be a great setup 
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