Vgreen EVC225 2.25 HP motor with Hayward Super Pump

[rarerpool]

I'm looking for feedback from anyone who has upgraded their 2HP single speed Hayward Super Pump to the Century Electric VGreen 2.25 HP variable speed motor. Is it quieter at the highest RPM vs the original single speed motor? Any pros/cons you weren't expecting?

 

[Texas Splash]

I hate to kick the can around here, but I believe @1poolman1 has some experience with retrofitting pumps with VSP motors. Let's see.

 

[1poolman1]

I'm looking for feedback from anyone who has upgraded their 2HP single speed Hayward Super Pump to the Century Electric VGreen 2.25 HP variable speed motor. Is it quieter at the highest RPM vs the original single speed motor? Any pros/cons you weren't expecting?

Guessing you don't have automation.
Be very sure that the total horsepower of the existing motor is not higher than 2.25. You must match the motor to the impeller.
At their highest speeds a VSP is still quieter than a single-speed motor, but you will hear the fan moving air and water at 3450 RPM. Its when you use the motor properly, slower, that you get the best drop in noise.
For more control a Nidec Neptune NPTT225, or if the total horsepower is higher than 2.25, a Nidec Neptune NPTT270 will work.

 

[rarerpool]

Here's an update on my experience with the Century EVC225 pump matched to my Hayward Super Pump.

Pros:
- Easy to install if you have a Hayward Super Pump (or I suspect any pump). Installation is really no different than replacing any motor.
- Works well with a time clock or the simple power on/off schedule feature of your automation system.
- The onboard RS-485 connection claims to allow you to use full automation for most major systems, but I am not using that feature and can't attest to how well it works. I am not using this feature since I have an old-school Jandy RS8 board that does not support variable speed pumps as-is. I simply use the older Jandy controller to schedule on/off operations and use the pump motor's onboard programming for run schedule.
- Has a simple one button feature to pause/start the motor while running which makes things like backwashing and basket cleaning easy without completely shutting off the power or invoking service mode on my control panel.
- Has a simple one button feature that invokes the 3450 RPM setting when needed and when the pump is running at a lower RPM.
- Has several pre-programmed run schedules to choose from.

Cons:
- The pre-programmed schedules can not be modified. You have to pick from 16 choices, or use a feature that lets you set the pump to one single speed for the full runtime (you can set the pump in this use case to anywhere between 1000 and 3000 RPMs in increments of 100 RPMs). None of the pre-programmed schedules are exactly what I would choose if I were using full automation. If I ever upgrade my Jandry RS8 board to include iAqualink capabilities, I'd have the flexibility I feel the out-of-the-box motor lacks.
- While it is made for outdoor use obviously, I suspect the electronics might get pretty hot in the black box atop the motor when in full sunlight. My equipment is under a shade, so that's not an issue for me.

Summary Thoughts

For less than $600, I now have a variable speed pump that was easy to install and that has some flexibility in scheduling. I've preserved my use of the Hayward Super Pump platform, which I like since that platform has been tried and true for decades with easy and affordable access to maintenance parts. That is important to me since I maintain all of my own equipment. I'm disappointed in the variety, or lack of variety, in the pre-programmed schedules offered on the motor's controller and feel like I've settled on a program schedule that is ok, but not optimized. The fix for this is upgrading my Hayward RS8 control board to iAqualink and using the RS-485 connection feature on the motor. But, since Jandy won't sell iAqualink upgrades direct to consumers that prospect is either a) expensive or b) something I could only do by acquiring a Jandy iAqualink upgrade on the gray market without a warranty. Time will tell if I feel the need to make those additional investments. For now, I'm happy with my $600 investment vs. the $5,000+ quotes I received from local pool companies to install iAqualink and an integrated Jandy VS pump. I'll post future updates if my user experience changes.

Attached it the user manual - a good read for anyone considering this motor.

 

[1poolman1]

Here's an update on my experience with the Century EVC225 pump matched to my Hayward Super Pump.

Pros:
- Easy to install if you have a Hayward Super Pump (or I suspect any pump). Installation is really no different than replacing any motor.
- Works well with a time clock or the simple power on/off schedule feature of your automation system.
- The onboard RS-485 connection claims to allow you to use full automation for most major systems, but I am not using that feature and can't attest to how well it works. I am not using this feature since I have an old-school Jandy RS8 board that does not support variable speed pumps as-is. I simply use the older Jandy controller to schedule on/off operations and use the pump motor's onboard programming for run schedule.
- Has a simple one button feature to pause/start the motor while running which makes things like backwashing and basket cleaning easy without completely shutting off the power or invoking service mode on my control panel.
- Has a simple one button feature that invokes the 3450 RPM setting when needed and when the pump is running at a lower RPM.
- Has several pre-programmed run schedules to choose from.

Cons:
- The pre-programmed schedules can not be modified. You have to pick from 16 choices, or use a feature that lets you set the pump to one single speed for the full runtime (you can set the pump in this use case to anywhere between 1000 and 3000 RPMs in increments of 100 RPMs). None of the pre-programmed schedules are exactly what I would choose if I were using full automation. If I ever upgrade my Jandry RS8 board to include iAqualink capabilities, I'd have the flexibility I feel the out-of-the-box motor lacks.
- While it is made for outdoor use obviously, I suspect the electronics might get pretty hot in the black box atop the motor when in full sunlight. My equipment is under a shade, so that's not an issue for me.

Summary Thoughts

For less than $600, I now have a variable speed pump that was easy to install and that has some flexibility in scheduling. I've preserved my use of the Hayward Super Pump platform, which I like since that platform has been tried and true for decades with easy and affordable access to maintenance parts. That is important to me since I maintain all of my own equipment. I'm disappointed in the variety, or lack of variety, in the pre-programmed schedules offered on the motor's controller and feel like I've settled on a program schedule that is ok, but not optimized. The fix for this is upgrading my Hayward RS8 control board to iAqualink and using the RS-485 connection feature on the motor. But, since Jandy won't sell iAqualink upgrades direct to consumers that prospect is either a) expensive or b) something I could only do by acquiring a Jandy iAqualink upgrade on the gray market without a warranty. Time will tell if I feel the need to make those additional investments. For now, I'm happy with my $600 investment vs. the $5,000+ quotes I received from local pool companies to install iAqualink and an integrated Jandy VS pump. I'll post future updates if my user experience changes.

Attached it the user manual - a good read for anyone considering this motor.

With regard to your summation, which is very thorough;
Jandy won't sell direct to anyone that is not a distributor.

The amount of control you will get with upgrade to a newer Jandy chip/board/upgrade kit, etc. is very extensive. The amount of fiddling with speeds/run times/etc. is fun at first, but the reality is that once you find settings you like and that work for your pool, they are seldom changed. Some here run their VSP 24/7 at one speed and it works for them. My VSP is capable of 8 programs, I use three. And I only need two, but I set them 14+ years ago to try, liked what the pump did, and never bothered to change to something else. Pool is clean, SWG is happy, spa heater works when I need it to.

If you really want that control, and have a Jandy 50-pin board, the R0466801 chip will upgrade the system for between $400-$600.
Old chip unplugs, new one is attached, reprogram and you're good.
If you want Wi-Fi, you can always get an iQ30 antenna later.

 

[Bugman1400]

With regard to your summation, which is very thorough;
Jandy won't sell direct to anyone that is not a distributor.

The amount of control you will get with upgrade to a newer Jandy chip/board/upgrade kit, etc. is very extensive. The amount of fiddling with speeds/run times/etc. is fun at first, but the reality is that once you find settings you like and that work for your pool, they are seldom changed. Some here run their VSP 24/7 at one speed and it works for them. My VSP is capable of 8 programs, I use three. And I only need two, but I set them 14+ years ago to try, liked what the pump did, and never bothered to change to something else. Pool is clean, SWG is happy, spa heater works when I need it to.

If you really want that control, and have a Jandy 50-pin board, the R0466801 chip will upgrade the system for between $400-$600.
Old chip unplugs, new one is attached, reprogram and you're good.
If you want Wi-Fi, you can always get an iQ30 antenna later.

I upgraded mine to MMM version (the latest and the one that allows Variable Speed) for about $30 from Amazon. I have had no issues for over a year now.