Ants killed my pump again...replacement ideas?

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Are you replacing the motor on a 3/4 hp pump or the 1 hp pump you stated in your first post?

Either of those motors should work if you're replacing a 3/4 hp motor, but if you go with the 2-speed you have listed, you'll lose some flow due to the impeller being sized for a smaller hp. depending on what the rating of the motor was you may not lose much at all or you may lose a good bit.

The 1/2 hp 1.6 sf motor will still work to replace the 3/4 hp 1.0 sf but it won't work to replace the 1 hp even if it has a 1.0 sf.

I hope this is not too confusing but it's important to match the sfhp (sf*hp) of the new and old motors. The new motor's sfhp can exceed the old sfhp but the old cannot exceed the new's sfhp.

As far as the 1.5 hp motor being too large for your pipes, don't worry about it. It'll add more restriction so the flow will be a little lower than if it was 2" plumbing but it won't hurt anything. Besides if you're sticking that motor on a 1 hp impeller the flow will be the same as before on high speed.
 
Sorry for the confusion.

My original pump was a 3/4 hp 1.0 sf. (5.5 amp)
My genius pool guy changed it to a 1 hp 1.5 sf (7.5 amp) So he made things worse, as far as noise and $$ to run the pool. Both increased.

The impeller is still the original 3/4 hp impeller.

So I think you are telling me that flow is defined by the impeller size, so the 1.5 hp 1.3 sf 2-speed motor just tosses away $$ when in high speed mode, and saves $$ in low mode. Does the 3/4hp impeller further reduce flow here, when the 2-speed is in 1/4 hp mode, making it possibly ineffective?

It looks like the possible savings is to go from 5.3 amps to 3.1 amps, if I choose the 2-speed over the 1-speed.
 
I don't think the amp savings is quite that simple as the power consumed is somewhat a function of the head loss in your system.

Also the 1.95 sfhp motor may have cost a little more to run than the 0.75 sfhp motor, but it would not consume the same power it would have if the impeller was sized for the 1.95 sfhp ... it was easier to turn the smaller impeller at the max rpm.

On low speed the pump will move about ~1/2 the amount of water as on high speed. To do so will use ~1/4 the amount of power. This is independent of the motor/impeller size.

If the original pump was moving water sufficiently, then just look for a 3/4 HP 2-speed motor. If you need more flow on high speed, then get a larger 2-speed motor and replace the impeller as well.
 
Just because the new motor is bigger (larger SFHP) doesn't mean it will draw more power. Power draw is determined primarily by the impeller and wet end. If the new motor is less efficient than the old motor then it might draw a little more power but normally, a larger motor is more efficient so it actually should draw less power. However, the power factor may be lower with the new motor so you would need to measure power and not just current to confirm. The current may be slightly higher than the old motor but the real power consumed may be less.
 
Thanks to all who offered advice while I was not "getting it".

I have settled on the following replacement motor:

STS1072R A.O. Smith Replacement C-Face Motor 3/4 - 1/6hp Full-Rated 2-Speed
6.4/1.9 Max Amps
1.50 Service Factor = 1/4 hp low speed, 1 1/8 hp high speed

I know I am being simplistic comparing the amp ratings, but this one is even better at 1.9.

Thanks again for your patience. I had to open up to more vendors to discover this motor existed.
Price is not bad either at $229
 
I guess the question I have is how to best select a pump that will NOT be vulnerable to the ants? I know there are some double insulated pumps that are encased in plastic but I think they are still vented - correct? I can't think of any design that would prohibit ants from getting in - does anyone else have thoughts about a motor that would be less vulnerable?
 
A TEFC (totally enclosed fan cooled) motor, such as on most variable speed pumps would not be susceptible to an ant invasion. Marathon makes a single phase 56C frame motor that might work on some pumps. I'm sure others make them too.
 
Bama Rambler said:
A TEFC (totally enclosed fan cooled) motor, such as on most variable speed pumps would not be susceptible to an ant invasion. Marathon makes a single phase 56C frame motor that might work on some pumps. I'm sure others make them too.
Click to expand...

Are there any 2 speed pumps made in this style? It sounds crazy expensive but replacing pump after pump seems pretty expensive as well.
 

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I plan to treat the slab as though it were part of the house, as far as a regular regimen of insert killer.

After the first invasion, I removed the section of rock wall around the pumps which gave them a spot to make a nice hideout.
This time, they just made a mound in a flat open space, surprising me.

I also got a quote from my lawn guy to treat the entire yard, since we get those anthills all over after a rain.
 
New pump is here! Now time to think about wiring.
Short term , I can wire as with a single speed and run the pump on high mode.

Long term, I am thinking about using the same switch as the booster pump? Is that a possibility?
The desire is to switch one of the hot legs between terminal L1 and terminal A, still using the original timer to control on/off.
(I actually replaced my timers with X10 switches long ago, so if anyone knows an X10 angle to this, that would be super.)

The idea of a switch on the back of the pump cover feels lame to me. I would like something in the electric box. Willing to run the extra wire to the pump. Is there a standard color for the extra wire? Can I just use 2 reds, since they will both be switched from a Red source wire? Guess I would risk messing up which is high, which is low when servicing in the future.
 
Any clues as to the best way to switch the final wire to vary the speed?

I have heard that the high speed is only needed when the booster pump is active. I haven't been inside my wiring box in awhile, but the main pump switch must be on in order for the booster pump to operate....not sure if that means they are wired in series?
That would seem weird. I would think I would need a SPDT switch to direct the current down one path or the other.

Seems X10 has discontinued my favorite XPS2 DPST switch, 3 of which I have been running for 9 years now...can't have been discontinued for reliability issues.

Can I possibly just wire in a 110volt relay of some sort, in which when energized sends the current to the "Fast" connection, and when off sends the current to the "Slow" connection. Then somehow, the booster switch also energizes the relay?
What would such a relay be called?
 
Not sure how to answer your question. But, the pump does not have to be on high speed for the booster pump to work, low speed is fine.

Many people, myself included, just have a spdt switch to manually select the speed.

Posted from my Droid with Tapatalk ... sorry if my response is short ;)
 
standard 4 wire cable colors are red/black (these are hot) white (neutral), and green/bare copper (ground). If you're looking to change speeds remotely, use the white wire for the steady leg, red for one speed , and black for the other speed. Or some other system that works for you. Just use the ground properly, and ideally you should have a 240V dualpole GFCI breaker on all this to prevent shocks.
 
The pumps aren't wired in series but in parallel after the switch.

The best way to do it would be to get a dual timer that will run the booster but if you don't want to do that you can use the 2-speed switch after the main pump switch/timer and don't worry about which speed the main is on when running the booster.
 
My pool game with the requisite GFCI breakers and all.

It was also the crappy Intermatic yellow dials, which I changed out for the DPST X10 XPS2 switch, remotely controllable from the house, computer, etc. For some reason, the XPS2 is no longer available.

Good to hear that it is not necessary to be on high for the booster pump/Polaris.
So, I am thinking some kind of switch on the breaker box SPDT, only needs to be 110v rated.
I am having trouble shopping for this. Can anyone supply some model/part numbers for s SPDT switch that would fit in a standard light switch gang box? (The X10 switched look and feel like light switches, and have that form factor. I have one space left in my box.)
 

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