The pool that came with our house also has a Hayward H150 heater next to it. The previous owners said they never used it and we have not used it since moving it, so it likely has not been used in 6 years. Do you think that it should still work at this point in time? Is there anything we should have checked out on it? How much fuel do these things take to run (we are on propane)? Is there a solar heater that would work so we don't have to mess with figuring this thing out?
Pool heater help
- Thread starter newguyjosh
- Start date
Although it has a few "battle scars" from age and use, the heater that came with our pool is over 20 years old and still works great. I wouldn't be the least bit surprised if your heater did as well. However, after not being used for six years, it could benefit from a service call. The most likely things I would expect to see are dirt and/or spider webs throughout the unit. Gas heaters (applies to Natural Gas [NG] and Propane) require a relatively precise ratio of air to fuel in order to burn cleanly and efficiently. Any dirt and webs could impede the required airflow to the unit and disrupt this ratio. If the dirt/webs are present, the unit will likely fire-up but it will not burn at peak efficiency. In extreme cases, it's possible that the unit may not fire-up at all. The second most likely thing would be a fouled/rusted igniter from years of non-use. Both of these issues are easy to fix. My heater simply required a good cleaning and, being quite comfortable working on this type of equipment, I did that myself. If you are not comfortable doing that, I would definitely hire a pro.
As for the cost to run I can give you an approximation. I have a NG heater. Using my NG consumption costs, it would cost me about $0.87 per hour to run a 150K BTU heater. Propane would cost about 2-3 times that amount or anywhere from $1.74 to $2.62 per hour to run your heater.
I wouldn't give up on the heater, especially if it appears to be in relatively good condition. If you decide to get it serviced and run it occasionally, I would get a cover or at least a tarp to put over the top of the unit when you're not using it and after it has cooled down to keep water and much of the debris out of it. To guard against spider webs, spray an insecticide around the base of the unit periodically. Of course, using the heater periodically will also deter the spiders from setting up shop in there.
As for the cost to run I can give you an approximation. I have a NG heater. Using my NG consumption costs, it would cost me about $0.87 per hour to run a 150K BTU heater. Propane would cost about 2-3 times that amount or anywhere from $1.74 to $2.62 per hour to run your heater.
I wouldn't give up on the heater, especially if it appears to be in relatively good condition. If you decide to get it serviced and run it occasionally, I would get a cover or at least a tarp to put over the top of the unit when you're not using it and after it has cooled down to keep water and much of the debris out of it. To guard against spider webs, spray an insecticide around the base of the unit periodically. Of course, using the heater periodically will also deter the spiders from setting up shop in there.
So if I have a 150k btu heater and a 24' round by 4' deep agp, how many degrees per hour should I be able to gain? Also, Does the heater typically have to be ran everytime you want to swim or will the pool maintain the elevated temp? I do have a solar cover in place. Thanks
For your pool, you should get about a 1°F gain per hour, assuming an 80% efficiency rating. The 150,000 BTU's on the label indicate how much gas (in BTU's) that the heater burns per hour. Since no gas heater is 100% efficient, I assumed an 80% efficiency which is about the average efficiency of a pool heater which results in 120,000 BTU's going towards heating the water. The remaining 30,000 BTU's are lost to the atmosphere. Heating pool water is a relatively expensive proposition as it takes much more BTU's to heat water to a targeted temperature rise than it does to heat air.
Although I run my heater periodically to exercise it, I run it most often during this time of year since Mother Nature is working with me. Since we have had a lot of rain lately (and thereby less sun hitting the pool) the water is cooler than it normally is for this time of year. I've been using the heater to get the water up to normal mid-May temps. OTOH, I use it much less during the fall since it is a losing battle with Mother Nature. Where a gas heater really excels is for those situations, like a pool party, where you need to heat the water up "quickly". Quickly is a relative term when it comes to heating a pool, but a gas heater will do the job more quickly than other alternatives.
It really depends on several factors, most notably the ambient outdoor temperature, how much sunlight hits the pool during the day, and the ground temperature to name a few of the more common elements. The solar cover will no doubt help retain some of that heat.newguyjosh said:
Although I run my heater periodically to exercise it, I run it most often during this time of year since Mother Nature is working with me. Since we have had a lot of rain lately (and thereby less sun hitting the pool) the water is cooler than it normally is for this time of year. I've been using the heater to get the water up to normal mid-May temps. OTOH, I use it much less during the fall since it is a losing battle with Mother Nature. Where a gas heater really excels is for those situations, like a pool party, where you need to heat the water up "quickly". Quickly is a relative term when it comes to heating a pool, but a gas heater will do the job more quickly than other alternatives.
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