Advice: Why not have the Pool Heater plumbed to water feature / waterfall piping pathways?

[mxp]

Hi,
Typically, a pool heater install is to have it plumbed on the piping pathway that includes the Pool Filter.

Will it make sense to have the pool heater plumbed separately instead, say to the water feature/waterfall piping pathway? Because our waterfall feature is turned on only a few times in the year, the use case is likely the same as the pool heater. Granted, this will mean both the pool heater and the waterfall feature may both need to be simultaneously turn on for normal operation. Or, have some heater bypass valves installed.

Our Pool has 3 pumps:
One Polaris booster pump for the pool sweeper ;
One Pentair WhisperFlow 1.5HP being the primary which is connected to the Filter ;
One other identical Pentair WhisperFlow 1.5HP which is an under utilized pump because it connects to the waterfall feature of the pool which also have its own piping pathways. There are 3 waterfall outlets (0.5" x 2 feet wide rectangular) and 2 intakes/return. We don't turn on this waterfall feature much at all...

Would like to know if anyone here on TFP have considered/discussed connecting a pool heater on the separate piping circuit away from the primary piping line which typically have the pool filter. What are the pros and cons of doing it this way?

Thanks for any guidance.

Rgds,
Mike

 

[ajw22]

I think there are many cons and few pros to running the heater through your water features.

You will lose heat spraying the heated water into the air before it falls into the pool.

And the pool will heat unevenly with the warm water sitting on the surface and not mixing well with the colder water below.

You will create a thermocline between the warm water on top and the cold water below. Heat rises and cold falls and so they will not naturally mix.

Does your water feature circuit have a filter? Running unfiltered water through the heater runs the risk of clogging the heater.

I don't see in your post describing why you think it may be a better technique for heating your pool. Give me the pros.

 

[mxp]

I think there are many cons and few pros to running the heater through your water features.

You will lose heat spraying the heated water into the air before it falls into the pool.

And the pool will heat unevenly with the warm water sitting on the surface and not mixing well with the colder water below.

You will create a thermocline between the warm water on top and the cold water below. Heat rises and cold falls and so they will not naturally mix.

Does your water feature circuit have a filter? Running unfiltered water through the heater runs the risk of clogging the heater.

I don't see in your post describing why you think it may be a better technique for heating your pool. Give me the pros.

Many thanks for your reply! All good points especially the thermocline situation.
My water feature does not have a filter in the piping pathway but the Pentair pump has the usual basket and I always use a sock to filter out any silt or smaller bits.

The only reason why I am thinking of using the water feature pipe pathway for the pool heater is to avoid having any reduced water pressure problems being introduced anywhere within the primary pool pump with the filter piping pathways. Or, the primary pump may have to work harder and that means my pump may not last longer. My current primary pump is pretty old and I rather it not fail prematurely.

On the other hand, the water feature pump looks pretty new and don't get much use.

The background here was that I was reading a couple of these other TFP articles and thought of why not just use my water feature piping instead...

Verifiable Benefits of a Heater Bypass Install

I found when considering a bypass, that there are primarily 2 types of responses I would get when inquiring about the pros and cons. 1. I don't see why you would want to install a heater bypass, but I cant see how it could hurt anything. (My builder was in this group as well) 2. It's a...

www.troublefreepool.com

and

Heater bypass

My pool has a heater bypass. Should I always keep the bypass partially open so the bypass pipe doesn’t get stagnant water in it - and in the winter doesn’t freeze due to no water flow. If I do a harsh treatment to the water I would temporarily bypas the heater all together but am curious about...

www.troublefreepool.com

Thanks again for any of your thoughts!

 

[JoyfulNoise]

My EasyTouch systems allows you to run a canned feature called AERATOR and, if the heater is active on that circuit, then it runs as well. The valves are set such that the pump pulls water from the pool and returns the water through the attached spa’s jets. The overflow of the spa is then returned to the pool through the spa waterfall.

I actually like running in this mode because it creates a warm spa with a warm waterfall and the pool stays mostly cooler than the spa. Certainly not the most efficient use of the heater but we rarely use the attached spa as a hot tub so it’s more of an early season fun feature.

 

[ajw22]

My water feature does not have a filter in the piping pathway but the Pentair pump has the usual basket and I always use a sock to filter out any silt or smaller bits.

The pump basket is hardly a filter. Otherwise you would never have to clean the real filter.

Where is the water intake for your water features that you use a sock on it?

Tell us what model heater we are discussing?

The only reason why I am thinking of using the water feature pipe pathway for the pool heater is to avoid having any reduced water pressure problems being introduced anywhere within the primary pool pump with the filter piping pathways.

What type of water pressure problems do you think you can have? The main pool water loop does not need more pressure then what can satisfy the heater. Many of us with VS pumps run at low speeds and thus low pressure.

Or, the primary pump may have to work harder and that means my pump may not last longer. My current primary pump is pretty old and I rather it not fail prematurely.

Water pressure does not make a pump work harder. SS pumps fail due to water leaks, corrosion, or bearings wearing out. None of which water pressure contributes to.

On the other hand, the water feature pump looks pretty new and don't get much use.

You said the pumps are identical. Swap the pumps.

The background here was that I was reading a couple of these other TFP articles and thought of why not just use my water feature piping instead...

Swap the pumps.

 

[mxp]

The pump basket is hardly a filter. Otherwise you would never have to clean the real filter.

Where is the water intake for your water features that you use a sock on it?

Tell us what model heater we are discussing?



What type of water pressure problems do you think you can have? The main pool water loop does not need more pressure then what can satisfy the heater. Many of us with VS pumps run at low speeds and thus low pressure.




Water pressure does not make a pump work harder. SS pumps fail due to water leaks, corrosion, or bearings wearing out. None of which water pressure contributes to.



You said the pumps are identical. Swap the pumps.



Swap the pumps.

Hi,
The water intake for the waterfall feature is at the shallow end of the pool near one of the output water jets. Again the piping here is all separate circuit from the primary pump that feeds into the pool filter.

The heater that I am planning to install is a new Pentair MasterTemp 400k BTU NG. I have requested for a heater bypass configuration from the installer. I believe they are preparing the necessary diverter valves and check valves for my installation.

So far I haven't asked nor discussed with the installer, this idea of using the water feature piping pathway for the pool heater. I am trying to learn as much as I can from TFP so that I can be prepared if I raise this topic with my installer. Based on your feed back so far (And, thank you for that) it seems this is not a viable approach. Perhaps, I should just stick with the most common method of installation.

I have attached a couple of pics of the current equipment.
In the 1st pic, You will notice that there is existing spot on the ground where the natural gas piping is located on the right. The previous home owner must have had a heater there previously but it is no longer there. The new pool heater will likely go to the same location. The 1st picture with the piping directly behind/next to the electrical box is the waterfall feature piping. The pipe has a black check valve. As you can see, if the heater is installed next to the electrical box area, the piping will be simple and just connect up to the waterfall piping pathways.

The 2nd picture is taken from the opposite side. Ignore the metal box as it is for the garden lighting system. You will see my primary pump connected to the pool filter. There is also a booster pump for the pool sweeper connected somewhat to this primary pump /filter piping circuit. You can see a green spigot with a small pipe connected to the booster pump driving the sweeper. The booster and primary pump are programmed to turn on and off at roughly the same time with timers.

Again, the piping for the waterfall feature (in the 1st pic) and the primary pump /filter are separate and do not connect in anyway to each other.

My current pool filter is a Pentair Clean & Clear Plus CCP520. The pressure gauge on the top currently shows only 4 - 5 PSI during normal operation. I thought this was a bit low, but there isn't any other issue that I can see ... Hopefully, by adding the pool heater isn't going to cause any other issues that is unforeseen.

Sorry, I am noob trying to learn as much on TFP....

Thanks again!

 

[ajw22]

It would be helpful if you create your signature with details of your pool and equipment.

Adding the heater will raise your filter pressure about 5 psi due to the added restriction from the heat exchanger. That will not cause any problems.