New pool - what do you think of this equipment?

[rickv]

Hey guys,

My name is Rick and I am a clean water addict.
or should I say:
I have been clean for x months?

Aaaanyway, we bought a new place without a pool, but we'll build one in the next 2 months. In regards to the equipment, we got this equipment quoted from the pool building company:
- Astral P320XT Variable Speed Pump
- Astral Viron EQ25 Salt Chlorinator with PH Sensor with Bluetooth
- Astral HP88 9kW Heat Pump
- Dolphin/Maytronics S50 Robotic Cleaner

What do you think of these products?

Our current pool needs quite a bit of maintenance. Not sure if it's because it's old or because there are many trees around it so there is constantly debris in it. Multiple friends of ours have pools and one of them chucks in 2 bags of salt in it and never looks at it beside that and the pool looks crystal clear. Another friend has a chemiegem and only puts acid in it and that device balances it automatically. Doesn't do anything else.

Unlike my introduction, I am more the lazy type than the obsessive type. The sound of chucking in salt once a year and done is music to my ears, but I understand this is probably not really well balanced water. Reason for this anekdote is because it may impact the choice of equipment.

 

[Dirk]

Hey guys,

My name is Rick and I am a clean water addict.
or should I say:
I have been clean for x months?

Hi Rick!

(See, I got it!)

Aaaanyway, we bought a new place without a pool, but we'll build one in the next 2 months. In regards to the equipment, we got this equipment quoted from the pool building company:
- Astral P320XT Variable Speed Pump
- Astral Viron EQ25 Salt Chlorinator with PH Sensor with Bluetooth
- Astral HP88 9kW Heat Pump
- Dolphin/Maytronics S50 Robotic Cleaner

What do you think of these products?

Our current pool needs quite a bit of maintenance. Not sure if it's because it's old or because there are many trees around it so there is constantly debris in it. Multiple friends of ours have pools and one of them chucks in 2 bags of salt in it and never looks at it beside that and the pool looks crystal clear. Another friend has a chemiegem and only puts acid in it and that device balances it automatically. Doesn't do anything else.

Unlike my introduction, I am more the lazy type than the obsessive type. The sound of chucking in salt once a year and done is music to my ears, but I understand this is probably not really well balanced water. Reason for this anekdote is because it may impact the choice of equipment.

I don't know Astral. I'm just bumping your thread and subscribing to learn about it.

Congrat's on the new place and future pool. PS: there are no short cuts. You need to test regularly, take care of the gear, and stay on top of the water chemistry. There is no set it and forget it solution, and that especially applies to pool guys! As you progress, I can share how I got my pool about as maintenance free as possible, as I am all about the lazy. All it takes is a pile of dough.

We have one of your countrymen that has gotten hers pretty maintenance free, too. She'll be along in a bit, and she probably knows Astral.

Oh, Riley!

Welcome to TFP, Rick!!

 

[riley00dog]

Hi Rick [emoji1309]I’ll come back and answer your questions best I can but a bit later. The person you really want to comment is Costas.

In the meantime if you could fill out your signature attached to your profile people will be able offer more specific advise.

 

[riley00dog]

Hi again, how have you been testing your water? Are you using the CCL test kit? Are you maintaining your own water as per TFPC or are you using a pool store for testing and advice? The first thought that occurs to me is that your lack of lovely water might not be anything to do with your equipment at all. If however, you have been maintaining your water as per TFPC and still having issues it might be a consideration. If you are testing your own water post your last set of test results. This will help identify any issues there.

As for the equipment, it’s hard to know without having the info for your pool, especially the size. To me the size of the chlorinator seems mismatched to the size of the filter. Our pool is 6 x3.2m and roughly 25,000 litres. Pb did well with the equipment provided and it is a little oversized, which is what you want. We have the 280 filter and eq35 chlorinator. So your quote is for a bigger filter but smaller chlorinator. I love both just make sure you get the correct (over)size. Also have them add in the ph probe for auto acid dosing. The probe itself is around the $400 mark I think. It’s so great as it reads and corrects the ph from a drum of acid all by itself. As for the heater. We weren’t overly impressed by the Astral range. We have the ip45 from Australian Energy Systems. It’s significantly more efficient. Once again we upsized. The model below would have been sufficient. As for the robot, we love our robot, Jeff. He is my absolute favourite piece of equipment hands down. We have a pb model the db3. I’m not sure on your quoted model, but just make sure he climbs the walls as well as doing the floor.

This is all jumping the gun a bit. Let’s see where your water is first and also if you could say what sort of equipment you currently have. Regardless the heater and robot will be amazing investments that you should go ahead with. Hopefully Costas will see this thread as he’s the Australian equipment guru.

 

[rickv]

Sorry for the late response guys. Hassle with some finance approvals and building inspections. Drained all the energy last few days.

Hi Rick!

(See, I got it!)



I don't know Astral. I'm just bumping your thread and subscribing to learn about it.

Congrat's on the new place and future pool. PS: there are no short cuts. You need to test regularly, take care of the gear, and stay on top of the water chemistry. There is no set it and forget it solution, and that especially applies to pool guys! As you progress, I can share how I got my pool about as maintenance free as possible, as I am all about the lazy. All it takes is a pile of dough.

We have one of your countrymen that has gotten hers pretty maintenance free, too. She'll be along in a bit, and she probably knows Astral.

Oh, Riley!

Welcome to TFP, Rick!!

Haha thanks Dirk!

Hi again, how have you been testing your water? Are you using the CCL test kit? Are you maintaining your own water as per TFPC or are you using a pool store for testing and advice? The first thought that occurs to me is that your lack of lovely water might not be anything to do with your equipment at all. If however, you have been maintaining your water as per TFPC and still having issues it might be a consideration. If you are testing your own water post your last set of test results. This will help identify any issues there.

I use a proper kit with drop testing. Basically a Taylor kit, but that's not really available properly in Australia, so I use my kit from Clear Choice Labs: Total Pool Water Testing Kit, Salt Water Clear Choice Labs

As for the equipment, it’s hard to know without having the info for your pool, especially the size. To me the size of the chlorinator seems mismatched to the size of the filter. Our pool is 6 x3.2m and roughly 25,000 litres. Pb did well with the equipment provided and it is a little oversized, which is what you want. We have the 280 filter and eq35 chlorinator. So your quote is for a bigger filter but smaller chlorinator. I love both just make sure you get the correct (over)size. Also have them add in the ph probe for auto acid dosing. The probe itself is around the $400 mark I think. It’s so great as it reads and corrects the ph from a drum of acid all by itself. As for the heater. We weren’t overly impressed by the Astral range. We have the ip45 from Australian Energy Systems. It’s significantly more efficient. Once again we upsized. The model below would have been sufficient. As for the robot, we love our robot, Jeff. He is my absolute favourite piece of equipment hands down. We have a pb model the db3. I’m not sure on your quoted model, but just make sure he climbs the walls as well as doing the floor.

This is all jumping the gun a bit. Let’s see where your water is first and also if you could say what sort of equipment you currently have. Regardless the heater and robot will be amazing investments that you should go ahead with. Hopefully Costas will see this thread as he’s the Australian equipment guru.

I assume you are talking about the new pool here right? No point in talking about the old pool as that is hopefully behind us in 5 weeks time.

So the new pool is 7.0m x 3.4m (and another 0.4m wide for a part where you can sit, but I'll ignore that for the volume calculation). Shallow end 1M, deep end 1.8M. Assuming it is an even slope, that would be around 33k - 34k Liters of water.

They didn't specify a filter, just that you can choose a cartridge or sand filter. I am thinking of a cartridge filter, because of the placement of the pool equipment the huge sandfilter is not going to be pretty. I don't mind hosing it down sometimes. You said "So your quote is for a bigger filter but smaller chlorinator. ". Where did it say anything about the filter?

If I look at the website:
https://www.astralpool.com.au/sites/default/files/products/brochures/AstralPool%20Chlorinator%20Product%20Catalogue%20web.pdf
At the final page it says E25 Chlorinator can handle a 60k liter pool in tropical climates. That should be sufficient shouldn't it be?

On page 7 of that file it says "system 2" (which I assume is the first number after the E) has a PH Probe possibility and in the description it says "Full automation of measuring pHand dosing of Acid". As the quote we received said "with PH Sensor with Bluetooth". A sensor is usually just to measure stuff, but I think this is the automatic acid dosing as well. I will confirm that with them. This is what you are talking about right?

We have a heater in our current pool Evoheat. We are happy with the result, but I am not sure about how efficient it is. It's also $1100 more expensive. So it's cheaper to just use this one and put solar panels on the roof heh.

As for the robot, I googled: pb model the db3. But I couldn't find it? Have any link for it? The pool building company advised not to get a wall crawling one, simply because they usually stuff up the wall and how important are the walls? Debris falls down anyway. If I have to scrub the side of the pool once every quarter, I am happy to do that manually.

The misses also want spa jets (4x) and lower/peper pot jets to the bench seat. I am contemplating whether a second pump for just the jets/blower would be smart. More power for better jetting, cheaper running costs as you have a smaller pump running for keeping it clean and better for your filter?

 

[riley00dog]

I assume you are talking about the new pool here right? No point in talking about the old pool as that is hopefully behind us in 5 weeks time.

So the new pool is 7.0m x 3.4m (and another 0.4m wide for a part where you can sit, but I'll ignore that for the volume calculation). Shallow end 1M, deep end 1.8M. Assuming it is an even slope, that would be around 33k - 34k Liters of water.

They didn't specify a filter, just that you can choose a cartridge or sand filter. I am thinking of a cartridge filter, because of the placement of the pool equipment the huge sandfilter is not going to be pretty. I don't mind hosing it down sometimes. You said "So your quote is for a bigger filter but smaller chlorinator. ". Where did it say anything about the filter?

If I look at the website:
https://www.astralpool.com.au/sites/default/files/products/brochures/AstralPool%20Chlorinator%20Product%20Catalogue%20web.pdf
At the final page it says E25 Chlorinator can handle a 60k liter pool in tropical climates. That should be sufficient shouldn't it be?

On page 7 of that file it says "system 2" (which I assume is the first number after the E) has a PH Probe possibility and in the description it says "Full automation of measuring pHand dosing of Acid". As the quote we received said "with PH Sensor with Bluetooth". A sensor is usually just to measure stuff, but I think this is the automatic acid dosing as well. I will confirm that with them. This is what you are talking about right?

We have a heater in our current pool Evoheat. We are happy with the result, but I am not sure about how efficient it is. It's also $1100 more expensive. So it's cheaper to just use this one and put solar panels on the roof heh.

As for the robot, I googled: pb model the db3. But I couldn't find it? Have any link for it? The pool building company advised not to get a wall crawling one, simply because they usually stuff up the wall and how important are the walls? Debris falls down anyway. If I have to scrub the side of the pool once every quarter, I am happy to do that manually.

The misses also want spa jets (4x) and lower/peper pot jets to the bench seat. I am contemplating whether a second pump for just the jets/blower would be smart. More power for better jetting, cheaper running costs as you have a smaller pump running for keeping it clean and better for your filter?

Sorry, I confused myself. I was talking about the old pool. I’m with you now!

Yes, that’s what I’m talking about with regard to the ph probe.

With the chlorinator you’re best to go double the size recommended so I would go the 35.

Our robot, being a pb special isn’t listed along with the usual products. All I have is the instruction manual. I can’t imagine how it cleaning the walls could damage it. The surface is the same surface it’s cleaning on the floor. They don’t just pick stuff up, they also brush as they go. I brush by hand once a week or so and let the robot run most days of the week. If you’re having a pebble type of interior you will need to brush several times a day manually for the first few weeks anyway. After that you can let the robot do most of the work.

Yeah, if you already have a heater you can use that and add solar. Whatever works for you.

I misread your pump as a filter model. I have a sand filter but probably would have preferred the cartridge. I think that’s a personal preference as long as you once again make sure it’s oversized.

Good to hear you’re using the CCL test kit.

Your new pool sounds like it will be a good size. Looking forward to following your build [emoji4]

 

[rickv]

Awesome Riley, thanks again for your indepth reply.

As the pool is roughly 34k Liters, 2x = 68k Liters. That's pretty close to the 60k Limit the manufacturer gives us? Is there a downside to going for even bigger (IE the 35)? I understand the purchase price is higher. Spare parts? Running costs? I want to be a bit careful not to go for "the best" options for aaaalll the components around our pool. There are some many goodies it adds up quickly hah.

Did some research on the robots, it's likely going to be a Zodiac TX35. Again increased the price by 220, but many good reviews and brushes the side as well. We don't have a pebble interior, just a "clean" fibreglass pool with blue sparkly paint.

Sorry we don't have a heater for the new pool yet (I made it confusing there). We have a heater for our existing pool, but unfortunately I can't take that to the new property heh. As we are likely go for solar anyway, I'll probably just go for the more inefficient astralpool as the price is quite good ($2150).

I'll ask the exact specification of the filter and pump.

 

[riley00dog]

I don’t think there’s any down side to upsizing the chlorinator other than cost. With regard to the lower model chlorinator, there is a very real danger of it not being able to keep up with the chlorine production or you having to run the pump and chlorinator longer than you otherwise would to keep your FC up. I think I mentioned our pool is around 25,000 litres and we have the 35. Typically it runs on setting 3 out of 8 for two pump cycles of 4 hours a day. It all depends on location and the amount of sun and use the pool gets etc. As it gets hotter and the pool sees more sun and kids I will probably need to bump it to 4 or 5 to keep up.

I’ve heard good things about the zodiac cleaners. As for the heat pump, definitely whatever fits your budget and needs. Although I would still going bigger. My friend has the Astral 9kw (I think) on a pool smaller than mine (4.5 x 2.75) and it struggles to maintain temp.

Sounds like you have a good grasp on what you need.

 

[Costas > DownUnder]

Hi Rick - Welcome to TFP

I have a similar setup to you which was installed around late April this year.

First thing first - read up on TFP's Pool School and read it again, again and again.

I new nothing about maintaining a pool before we installed ours and all I heard from friends was how "expensive & difficult" pools were to maintain.

I then stumbled on TFP and found that the above comment to be absolutely false and really only sprouted by people who have not been educated correctly on pool maintenance...


In reality, with the correct science based maintenance methodology, pools are relatively cheap & easy to maintain providing you understand the basic principles TFP outline in their Pool School section.

From the day my pool was first filled with water - I have maintained it to TFP standards. I have yet to have my water tested by a pool store and the other day when handover was carried out, the guy that turned up was amazed by the clarity and did not even bother to test my balance as he could clearly see that I had been maintaining a healthy pool for the last six months. He wished all his handover jobs were like mine...

I don't even know what algae looks like in my pool - hopefully will never have to....!


Good thing you have found this site as you can start off on the right foot before you even have your pool installed which is a great bonus. Many others have had to go through the motions of owning a swamp which becomes difficult to manage and then and only then they manage to stumble onto this site to get themselves out of trouble.


Now with your equipment - Some have already commented but I'll add my 2¢ worth.

Astral P320XT - Good variable speed pump - Can't really go wrong with this pump.


Astral EQ25 Chlorinator - Opt for the larger model (SWG cell size), either the 35 or even the 45 which I have - although the 45 is quite overkill as I have only been running mine at its lowest setting (and sometimes switched off) over the winter months. The only difference in these models is simply the size of the Chlorinating cell and nothing else. Reasons for over sizing the cell has been outlined by others above.

Manufacturers usually specify a certain sized SWG cell for a given pool volume but what they fail to mention is that the cell needs to usually run flat out 24/7 to achieve those figures. You do not want to run your cell at or near its max rating for hours on end as cell life is not finite but based on 'X' amount of hours run-time at a given drive level. So opting for a larger cell allows the user to dial back the drive level to the cell as well as reducing the number of hours it has to operate for thereby increasing its useable lifespan.


The PH probe is handy as you will need to dose the pool with small amounts of acid regularly (once a week etc). If you are really lazy the PH probe and auto dosing setup seems to work very well (when setup correctly) otherwise you can manually add acid which is no big deal either.

Don't get talked into buying an ORP sensor and running the unit in AI mode as it does not work very well in this mode and if running with TFP recommended levels of CYA in the water, this function will be next to useless - You simply don't need this feature at all.


Filter - You will need to make a choice - Sand style or Cartridge. If you are lazy then a sand filter IMHO is the go. Cartridge filters are great but cleaning them thoroughly is, or can be a PITA due to their pleated design. Both filter well... Another option is a DE filter, but as you said you are lazy you may want to steer clear of these. You can read up on filters over here: Pool School - Pool Filter Comparison

As far as actual filter sizing is concerned, opt for the largest you can fit & afford. The larger the filter, the longer you get between backwash/cleaning cycle time frames. The Astral P320XT pump can backwash sand filters up to 800mm in diameter so no drama for it to clean these large filters.

 

[rickv]

Cheers guys! I have requested a quote for the EQ35...

The filter is an Astral ZX100 with a 6h turnover of 135k Liters. No idea if that is "good" lol. The ZX150 does 160k liter, above that the increases become quite small.

The Astral P320XT is a 1HP pump. Is that sufficient for jets + spa blower?

 

[Costas > DownUnder]

The filter is an Astral ZX100 with a 6h turnover of 135k Liters. No idea if that is "good" lol. The ZX150 does 160k liter, above that the increases become quite small.

It is not the overall turnover rate that we are interested in.

Basically the idea is to opt for the largest filter you can afford/fit as the larger the filter, the less frequently you will need to clean the internal cartridge element.

The Astral P320XT is a 1HP pump. Is that sufficient for jets + spa blower?

The P320XT is equivalent to a 1.5Hp motor - If running jets and spa blower you would probably require a second pump just for the spa blower if you have lots of spa outlets.

I have 4 outlets on my main step - I don't have a dedicated air blower for my massaging jets but a simple venturi system which allows air to be drawn in (vacuum side) which then mixes in with the water flow to produce air bubbles in the water flow.

I'll take a video (on the weekend) with my P320XT running the 5 outlets so you can get an approximate idea of flow and compare it to a more powerful dedicated spa setup.

 

[rickv]

It is not the overall turnover rate that we are interested in.

Basically the idea is to opt for the largest filter you can afford/fit as the larger the filter, the less frequently you will need to clean the internal cartridge element.




The P320XT is equivalent to a 1.5Hp motor - If running jets and spa blower you would probably require a second pump just for the spa blower if you have lots of spa outlets.

I have 5 outlets on my main step - I don't have a dedicated air blower for my massaging jets but a simple venturi system which allows air to be drawn in (vacuum side) which then mixes in with the water flow to produce air bubbles in the water flow.

I'll take a video (on the weekend) with my P320XT running the 5 outlets so you can get an approximate idea of flow and compare it to a more powerful dedicated spa setup.

The challenge we have is space for the equipment. We do have quite a bit of space on the other side of the garden as one corner is out of sight and quite a bit of space there. But we are talking about 15 meters away from the pool. The pool building companies we talked to advised this distance is too long.

So we have to put our equipment on the side of the house, but that's very close to the outdoor clothesline.

We are talking about 4 jets and 4x Pepper Pot Jets to Bench Seat with a blower. It's not an individual spa unit, just jets on the side of the back of the bench seat and jets (backed by a blower) at the seat of the bench for the bubbly effect.

 

[riley00dog]

You can put your equipment wherever you like, but you may need to pay for it. Ours is about 10 meters downhill from the pool. We originally thought it had to be close and the only place we could think of was in the pool area. Thank goodness for one of the tradies early on who asked why weren’t we putting it down in this unused, out of the way area. His exact words are you could put it on the other side of the street if you want to (I’m guessing to actually do that would require some powerful pumps lol).

I think you will definitely need a boost pump for your jets if you really want them to bubble. They’re not expensive items, though from my experience they are quite loud compared to the vs, so take this into consideration when planning you equipment pad location.

 

[rickv]

Right... They said you needed a stronger pump for it and advised against it. In the other corner we have this feature wall:

It's horizontally placed in the corner. In other words, there is A LOT of room behind it which is wasted space. If we can place our pool equipment there that would be AWEsome.

So you do need to up your pumps for it? Would the mentioned pump suffice? Ugh...I feel so stupid asking all these questions heh. Would you loose a lot of heat when using a heat pump as well when it has to travel 15 meters?

I wouldn't mind a relatively noisy boost pump. Simply because it is not turned on by default. So a boost pump is a secondary pump that cares of the extra power to go through the jets? And it works with the blower, where the blower causes bubbles I assume. Any advice on a good boost pump? Ideally turned on by a remote control (or phone app) ;o

 

[riley00dog]

Costas is the person to best answer those questions. If it’s the location you want for you equipment though, you should be able to make it work. Just about how much it’s worth to you. Pool builder will charge per metre to go the extra distance. Ours didn’t but the rest of the quotes I had did.

 

[Costas > DownUnder]

If you really want full on spa performance jets then you will certainly require a dedicated pump.

You can use a dedicated blower to inject air bubbles into the water flow or venturi styled plumbing setup where an air blower is not required - there are pluses and minuses to both setups

A 15m horizontal run is no biggie for most pumps but make sure PB uses min 50mm ID plumbing lines.

Automation can get expensive pretty quickly here in Aus - Still a novelty for most PB's so they seem to charge a packet for basic automation.

If you simply want to turn on/off pumps etc there are some standalone solutions but if you want full integration with your chlorinator etc then there is not a huge selection to choose from.

 

[rickv]

Alright, so as it seems;

- Astral P320XT Variable Speed Pump
- Astral Booster Pump (TX model I think) to go with a blower for the Jets + bubbles
- Astral Viron EQ35 Salt Chlorinator with PH Sensor with Bluetooth (this has auto acid injection)
- Astral HP88 9kW Heat Pump
- Read quite a few good reviews on the Zodiac TX35 robot (also scrubs the side)
- We'll put the equipment in the corner, 15meter away, but make sure the pipes are 50mm

Probably going for a sandfilter instead of cartridge as we are going to put it in the corner of the garden anyway. Easier to use.

No automation, except for the auto acid dosing.

 

[Costas > DownUnder]

Alright, so as it seems;

✓ - Astral P320XT Variable Speed Pump
✓- Astral Booster Pump (TX model I think) to go with a blower for the Jets + bubbles
✓- Astral Viron EQ35 Salt Chlorinator with PH Sensor with Bluetooth (this has auto acid injection)
** - Astral HP88 9kW Heat Pump
** - Read quite a few good reviews on the Zodiac TX35 robot (also scrubs the side)
✓- We'll put the equipment in the corner, 15meter away, but make sure the pipes are 50mm

Probably going for a sandfilter instead of cartridge as we are going to put it in the corner of the garden anyway. Easier to use.

No automation, except for the auto acid dosing.

Ok - sounds good.

As far as the heat pump is concerned - might pay to send a PM to riley00dog as she initially chose an Astralpool heat pump but changed her mind as apparently there are some more efficient units out there. I only have solar heating so cannot comment...

Robot - personal choice - just check many reviews and see what suits your budget.

With regard to automation of pumps etc - you can purchase a standalone controller from PAL for just under $900.

They have a 5 ch controller which can switch five individual 10A loads - Works with WiFi and they have an app: http://www.isolek.com.au/?pid=11&ProductID=431


Another thing to think about is lighting for your pool. A few brands to choose from - IMO, suggest you look for a brand that does not have the LED driver in the light itself but one which uses a standalone LED driver which is usually mounted at your equipment pad. From a purely technical perspective these are much cheaper to replace the LED lamp assembly as compared to units which have the driver incorporated with the LEDs inside the lamp assembly.

riley00dog and myself have the PAL 'color touch' series which can be controlled remotely via WiFi.


BTW - I took a quick video of my venturi driven bubble jets in action this morning - just to give you a rough idea of how much 'action' they create Vs a proper spa setup - Good enough for a quick back massage methinks....

4x jets situated in my main entry step/seat - These are being driven from my Viron P320XT running in Overdrive mode for the video.

 

[rickv]

Cheers mate! I appreciate your effort for even making a video That looks like plenty of action to me! But how would a blower affect it? As that takes akes away pressure from the jets.

Originally I was quite happy with the heating pump we have now, but it's $1200 more. I figured for that money, we already have an investment towards solar panels on the roof. The heater only runs during the sunny moments during the day anyway, so even a less efficient heater would be covered. Or did I overlook something Riley?

Just checked the quote and they said:
40mm Return Pipework
50mm Suction Pipework

Should I request the return pipework to be 50mm as well?

We want two lights in the pool and it includes "Astral Connect Lite Multi Colour LED Including RF Remote & Bluetooth.", which I assume is Connect Lite + | AstralPool

Another thing to think about is lighting for your pool. A few brands to choose from - IMO, suggest you look for a brand that does not have the LED driver in the light itself but one which uses a standalone LED driver which is usually mounted at your equipment pad. From a purely technical perspective these are much cheaper to replace the LED lamp assembly as compared to units which have the driver incorporated with the LEDs inside the lamp assembly.

They sell everything from Astral (as you can tell by the equipment). How do I figure out what you are saying? I barely know what you are saying What is the LED driver? Is that basically the "command center" which the connect Lite+ seems to be?

Can you also easily turn the jets off when it is driven by one pump without actually turning valves manually? Or is that done by the controller? I don't really understand how this could work, unless the pump itself has valves that are mechanically opened/closed just for the jets/blower?

 

[Dirk]

LED lighting consists of the actual Light Emitting Diodes and some circuitry (the driver). If both are in the same unit or bulb, and either fail, you pay for both again to replace the unit. If they are separate, then they can be replaced separately, presumably at less cost. Like owning a combo office printer vs a separate scanner, printer and fax.

When you hear of LEDs with crazy-long lifespans (like 50,000 hours!), that’s the diodes. The driver (made up of the same imported crud that make up all the other electronic junk that doesn’t last very long nowadays) is the part of a light bulb that usually fails first...