Moving pumping station plumbing

[Mule]

Hello TFP,
I am going to move my plumbing under my screened porch. And I am want to upgrade
some of my equipment while I’m at it. So that leads to some questions.
My pool and equipment (Northern Virginia):
Pool: dark plaster, 17‘X39‘X4.5’ with two small sitting areas (about 25,000 gals)
Filter pump: 2HP Centurion/Pentair single speed
Booster pump: Century 3/4 HP pressure side with Polaris 280
Filter: Triton II TR-60 sand pump
SWCG: Circupool RJ45
Heater: Teledyne Laars Series 2

We opened the pool the first summer (5 years ago). I deployed overseas for two months
and no one refilled the pool while I was gone. I bought new o-rings, etc for both pumps, but
I think replacement may be a better option at this point.
The second summer, I kind of got it running long enough to add the SWCG, but it had about
an inch of algae on the bottom (still there, I believe). The pumps would run, but there wasn’t
enough suction for the vacuum to pull it up.
I have uncovered the plumbing lines. I found one that is not connected at all, that is labeled
“Pool Drain Return.” I found the line underground and uncapped. One of the skimmers doesn’t
work. It appears that there is an outlet for a water feature of some kind, but I don’t think that
works either.
The center line to the filter pump is routed through a "T" to the left of the left valve. Any thoughts
on why they would have plumbed it that way?

Please chime in on any and all aspects of this plan. Thanks in advance.
Circuit breakers and control: Intermatic PE30065C Control panel with remote.
Filter Pump: IntelliFlo Variable Speed (011018). 3HP (Talks directly with control panel)
Robot (No booster pump): Dolphin Premier or Quest
Filter: use same filter. remove sand and move. Should I replace the sand?
Gas heater: No Change
Solar heater: Add EvoSun Solar Pool Heater ($347).

Is a 3HP VS pump overkill?
If so, I probably don’t need that control panel. I wanted a digital control panel, not a
necessity, though.
If I get a robot, should I keep the plumbing for for the Polaris? Any thoughts on those two robots?
I plan to use the same filter and move it onto the old hot tub concrete slab under the porch.
Should I replace the sand or reuse the sand?
Should I add the solar heater? Significantly more plumbing and unsightly pipes running down the
side of the house from the roof.

Still reading?? I think I would need to break up some of the pool deck to fix the other skimmer.
If I were to do that, I should probably redo the whole pool deck. It seems to be sinking in a couple
of places and have some cracks. That seems like a pretty expensive fix. Thanks again for any
thoughts and advice. Mule

 

[JasonLion]

Re: pumping station move and upgrades

Getting a larger variable speed pump is only worth it if you have very high electric rates (over $0.20/kWh) or some large water feature that requires that kind of power and medium electric rates (over $0.15/kWh). For a simple pool and more reasonable electric rates, a 3/4 or 1 HP two speed pump is usually more than enough. There are also smaller, 1 1/2 HP, variable speed pumps that cost less and are a better deal for medium electric rates compared to their larger cousins.

 

[Patrick_B]

Hey Mule,

First of all, thank you for doing whatever you did where you were deployed and all of your service.

A lot here to chew on, and it may be why you haven't been answered yet. Plus it is getting busy aroud here. I'll just take a couple of these.

Yes, the pump is probably over kill, and you won't see a return on your investment in saving of electrical, but I'm a fan of them because I like "more". As you know, the best choice if you get one is with some Automation. I love mine, but it's simple, and has a remote. Love that too.

Good choice on the Robot. My first pool built last year, and I can't say enough good about it and ditching the vaccum hose. And not having another pump to run a cleaner, so I would say dump that from the plan for sure. Spend it elsewhere, and don't worry about that pump/cleaner failing in the future while adding to the light bill.

Size your salt cell for double your pool size, or go 1.5 X the size you need at minimum. It will last longer and won't have to work as hard to give you what you need.

Hard to say, but I'm guessing the "Pool Drain Return" is a capped off suction for the main drains. I would want that back if it is.

Others will chime in and give you some ideas on other items. Good luck, and let us know how it's going.

 

[Mule]

Thanks for the replies! I will have to look at replacing the pool deck to get all of the plumbing to work
again. That seems like a big investment. I accidentally posted this in the "Just Getting Started"
forum first. I couldn't figure out how to delete it over there. Thanks again for the help. Mule

 

[Divin Dave]

Hi Mule,
I agree with the others about the pumps and robots and other things mentioned.

You dont have to put in new sand if you dont want to. Just do a deep cleaning of the sand before you empty it out of the filter and reuse it.
here's how.
http://www.troublefreepool.com/threads/73192-Deep-Cleaning-a-Sand-Filter

Replacing the deck is going to be an expensive endeavour. You can certainly probably fix the skimer without destroying it though.
Use a skill saw with a diamond blade made for concrete, and you can cut out an area around where you need to fix.
After fixing the skimmer, you can make a nice repair with Tiles or something like that so it would look nice enough.

If the cracks arent too big, use concrete crack filler, then power was the deck with a strong power washer, and you will be surprised how nice it might look.

 

[Mule]

Thanks Dave. I'll try the deep clean. I was thinking of putting a tray of some sort under the filter so that I could drain
the water away from the filter during a deep clean. I need to do more investigating on the skimmer. I think it's a long
run under the concrete pool deck and I'm not sure where the problem is. Thanks again for the help! Mule