New AGP - looking for recommendations on equipment

[bigbrewbowski]

Hi all, I was directed here by the r/pools subreddit.

I'm currently in the planning stages of installing a new salt water AGP, and I was looking for some recommendations on the pool equipment. Currently I have a quote from a pool discounter who includes Bluetorrent sand filter, pump and salt ionizer. Some googling seems to indicate that this brand of equipment doesn't have the best reliability.

Comments and suggestions are welcome!

 

[Newdude]

Hey BB and Welcome !!!

Let's start with a budget and go from there. You can easily spend more on the name brand equipment than you did on the pool.

Also, what size pool are you looking at ? Is your yard open or full of foliage ?

 

[hwy17]

I would recommend first reading about the three filter types: Sand, DE, Cartridge, and see if one sounds best to you. It's preference more than anything, they all work.

Pool Filter Comparison

Your pool's filter is a vital part of your equipment pad. We'll take a look at each type of filter and list the pro's and con's of each.

www.troublefreepool.com

When you know which you prefer we can recommend more specifically. Hayward or Pentair usually.

 

[bigbrewbowski]

EDIT: Deleting this. I don't want to make any assumptions based on half a** internet research.

 

[bigbrewbowski]

Hey BB and Welcome !!!

Let's start with a budget and go from there. You can easily spend more on the name brand equipment than you did on the pool.

Also, what size pool are you looking at ? Is your yard open or full of foliage ?

Looking at a 27' salt water pool. Yard is mostly open, however we live "in the woods" and there are some very tall pine trees (+40' tall) roughly 50' behind the proposed pool area.

Budget-wise, I was hoping to be under $10,000. I may install everything myself, unless I can get the entire thing soup to nuts installed in a short time frame (sometime within the next month is what I'm hoping)

 

[LovelyGong]

$10,000 for equipment or 10k for total build? I suspect the latter as 10k on equipment would be quite the budget. As you look at filters you may want to look at city or municipality rules. Some cities have been putting restrictions on DE and sand backwashing.

 

[VinnyinNJ]

We just purchased a 24 foot 52" pool, all Hayward equipment - sand filter, pump, SWG and Penguin suction cleaner. Also a Confer step system with safety gate and Swimline liner and it came in at around $7300 with tax. I asked about a 54" hight pool and it would have been $1000 more just for a reference in possible costs.

We have an existing pool electrical line but it has to be upgraded to today's standards so we're budgeting about $1000, pool sand? Installation $1300. Since we had an existing pool all the original excavation was done to level the ground. We figure $10 K all in.

Just remember that there are code standards that should be met when installing a pool.

 

[Mdragger88]

You mentioned “salt ionizer” not sure exactly what that is but if it’s an ionizer of any kind they aren’t recommended. That sounds like permasalt which is a copper ionizer masquerading as a swg. You don’t want copper in your pool.

Non-Recommended Pool Chemicals

These pool chemicals should not be added to your pool. Save your money and frustration and avoid these chemicals!

www.troublefreepool.com

You want an actual saltwater chlorine generator rated for at least 2x’s your pool’s volume.
With a 17k gallon pool u want one rated for 40k gal or more.
Hayward, pentair & circupool are all good reputable options here.
Circupool is the most diy friendly in terms of warranty.
Here’s a good chart to compare actual outputs as the volume ratings aren’t always apples to apples

Compare and Review Saltwater Chlorine Generator Prices and Features | DSP

www.discountsaltpool.com

All swg cells have a finite amount of hours of life (generally 8-10k hrs @100%).
The larger the cell, the less u have to run it to produce the necessary free chlorine thus resulting in a longer cell life. This also helps reduce pump run times which can save on energy costs.
Speaking of pumps, u want a 2 speed or a variable speed pump so u can run it at lower rpms unless vacuuming - as single speeds are energy hogs.

 

[nwardoh]

I second the variable speed pump. I bought a single speed and that is my one area of regret.

 

[Newdude]

+3. It will literally pay for itself, and probably even cover the cost of the next pump, which will then save you more than it's own cost.

 

[bigbrewbowski]

Thanks everyone for your replies, this has been extremely helpful!

 

[bigbrewbowski]

There's a deal going on discountsaltpool.com for a RJ-45 PLUS Salt System, SmartFlo® 3.0 VS Pump, CJ2750 Filter, and TJ-16 Pre-Filter. Looks like a pretty good deal?

 

[bigbrewbowski]

Is an inline annode something I should consider? Will it actually help the life of anything, considering I am buying a 100% resin pool?

 

[Newdude]

Sacrificial anodes are for where two dissimilar metals meet. Nothing that your water touches qualifies. But because they *can* inhibit rust (in the right circumstances), they are many times wrongly applied here.

 

[Mdragger88]

There's a deal going on discountsaltpool.com for a RJ-45 PLUS Salt System, SmartFlo® 3.0 VS Pump, CJ2750 Filter, and TJ-16 Pre-Filter. Looks like a pretty good deal?

Save your moola on the pre filter- really not necessary- the pump has a basket.
U can always use skimmer socks to keep stuff like cottonwood out. Much easier to deal with too.

 

[bigbrewbowski]

Is a 3 HP pump really necessary for a 27' AGP? +/- 19,000 gallons

 

[Mdragger88]

Is a 3 HP pump really necessary for a 27' AGP? +/- 19,000 gallons

Not really- i have a 1.5 hp single speed & get lots of flow.
Keep in mind that u will almost never run it on high. But 2 hp should be sufficient.

 

[bigbrewbowski]

Not really- i have a 1.5 hp single speed & get lots of flow.
Keep in mind that u will almost never run it on high. But 2 hp should be sufficient.

I was looking at performance curves on the pumps and the flow rates on high are too high for the filter to handle even with a 2.0 HP. I'm thinking I can go with a 1.5H and save $400.

 

[bigbrewbowski]

I was looking at performance curves on the pumps and the flow rates on high are too high for the filter to handle even with a 2.0 HP. I'm thinking I can go with a 1.5H and save $400.

Looks like I'm wrong about the max flow rate. I went by a chart I found online vs the manufactuer's spec. In any case, I assume you save cost running the pump at a lower speed, but there should be a balance between HP and amount of time you run the pump that is most cost effective. How many times are most people turning over the water a day? Is it 2x? Should it be more?

 

[Mdragger88]

Looks like I'm wrong about the max flow rate. I went by a chart I found online vs the manufactuer's spec. In any case, I assume you save cost running the pump at a lower speed, but there should be a balance between HP and amount of time you run the pump that is most cost effective. How many times are most people turning over the water a day? Is it 2x? Should it be more?

Calculating Turnover isn’t necessary- u just need to run the pump long enough for your swg to produce enough fc, to skim to your liking & remove particulates to your satisfaction. The speed/rpms just needs to be high enough to satisfy your flow sensor & skim effectively. Low & slow provides the best filtering.

Determine Pump Run Time

To figure out how many hours you need to run your pump, you need to know how fast your pump works. You can find this here.

www.troublefreepool.com