Optimal flow rate

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Mattikuss

Mattikuss

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Sep 1, 2023
148
Minnesota
Pool Size
21000
Surface
Vinyl
Chlorine
Salt Water Generator
SWG Type
Pentair Intellichlor IC-40
Hi Friends,

I’ve been reading as much as I can about flow rates, pumps, and proper circulation and I just can’t get a clear picture on what is right. I have a variable speed pump and a SWG. My SWG gives me a flow error under 1250 RPM, so my minimal rate is that.

I have a booster pump for my in wall cleaner and I run that at 2450 rpm because I think that’s what the pool builders set it at, I also have the heater running at this rate. It equates to about 50 GPM.

I know my pump runs a lot higher than this but I don’t know enough about where it SHOULD be set in order to feel comfortable making any impactful adjustments - also, at 2450 RPM I’m at about 800 watts which seems high to me. With my size pool (21k gal) and my equipment, what would you run it at? It seems like what I’m doing is working, my pool water is crystal clear, but I don’t want to waste energy, or be too hard on my equipment.
 
Matt,

If your cell turn on at 1250, you should run at 1350 or 1400, most of the time.. This will ensure your cell is always working.

Then you should experiment and find what speed allows your cleaner to work well.. Then you can run at that speed, just when you want the cleaner to run.. Same for your heater..

The goal is to run as slow as you can and still get the job done. It is not to run at a speed that will accomplish everything all day long.

Does your IntelliFlo3 app allow you to have several speeds at different times??

I assume you do not have an automation system.

Thanks,

Jim R.
 
Jimrahbe said:
Does your IntelliFlo3 app allow you to have several speeds at different times??

I assume you do not have an automation system.
Click to expand...
thanks Jim! That’s the word that keeps popping up “experiment” so I guess I have some work to do, I just figured that there was a general consensus on how to most effectively run the pumps.

The app allows me to set three different speed, 1) heater 2) cleaner 3) baseline

I’ve got baseline at 1950 rpm but that speed wont even run my slide. It seems like it hardly moves the water, which surprises me.
 
Mattikuss said:
It seems like it hardly moves the water
Click to expand...
Matt,

Kind of just depends on what you are used to.. I assume that you are comparing your water flow to what you had with a single speed pump running at 3450..

The whole point of having a VS pump is not running it at 3450... :)

There is just no reason to run the pump that fast just to have your SWCG generate chlorine.. That is what you most likely do 90% of the day..

I suspect that you do not run your slide all day long.. You only run it for the few hours a day you are using the pool.

Since you only can store three speeds, then I'd combine two of them.. As an example.. Say your cleaner needs 3000 RPM and you slide need 2800.. The just use the cleaner speed as your slide speed.

I have no heater, so I can run my pump at 1200 RPM.. If you look down into the skimmer you'd think that almost nothing was moving. But that is just not true.. I use hairnets in my skimmers and they fill up with large amount of debris. It just takes a little patience..

You can't hurt anything by experimenting..

The only rule (For the lack of a better term) is that you should not run slower than whatever speed turns on your SWCG. There is almost no reason to run the pump if you are not making chlorine.. :mrgreen:

Edit.. Is your pump a 1.5 HP or 3 HP IntelliFlo3??

Thanks,

Jim R.
 
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Jimrahbe said:
Matt,

Kind of just depends on what you are used to.. I assume that you are comparing your water flow to what you had with a single speed pump running at 3450..

The whole point of having a VS pump is not running it at 3450... :)

There is just no reason to run the pump that fast just to have your SWCG generate chlorine.. That is what you most likely do 90% of the day..

I suspect that you do not run your slide all day long.. You only run it for the few hours a day you are using the pool.

Since you only can store three speeds, then I'd combine two of them.. As an example.. Say your cleaner needs 3000 RPM and you slide need 2800.. The just use the cleaner speed as your slide speed.

I have no heater, so I can run my pump at 1200 RPM.. If you look down into the skimmer you'd think that almost nothing was moving. But that is just not true.. I use hairnets in my skimmers and they fill up with large amount of debris. It just takes a little patience..

You can't hurt anything by experimenting..

The only rule (For the lack of a better term) is that you should not run slower than whatever speed turns on your SWCG. There is almost no reason to run the pump if you are not making chlorine.. :mrgreen:

Edit.. Is your pump a 1.5 HP or 3 HP IntelliFlo3??

Thanks,

Jim R.
Click to expand...
Jim, thank you for the thoughtful comment. This is very insightful. I have the 3HP pump and a Polaris PB4SQ booster although I think that only kicks in when I’m using my in-wall cleaner. Correction: I have to run my pump at a minimum of 1550 to keep the SWG running.
 
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Your MasterTemp 250 needs a minimum of 25GPM. I would want to have at least 35-40 GPM when the heater runs.

If you do not have automation to increase the pump speed when your heater runs then your minimum pump speed should be enough for a good flow through the heater. Your VSF pump will tell you the GPM.
 
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Jimrahbe said:
I assume Allen mean if you are using the heater, you should run 35 GPM, not just run 35 GPM, because you have a heater...
Click to expand...

Assuming no automation, depends if you want to remember the increase the pump speed manually before turning on the heater and reducing the pump speed after turning the heater off.

And if other family members or visitors turn on the heater will they know the dance with the pump speed?

Or eliminate that step and just run the pump at a higher default speed.
 
Jimrahbe said:
Matt,

I assume Allen mean if you are using the heater, you should run 35 GPM, not just run 35 GPM, because you have a heater...

Thanks,

Jim R.
Click to expand...
Appreciate the clarification, Jim. This makes sense. When the heater kicks on it jumps to 2450 I’m running 49GPM, so I’m assuming this is fine for heat distribution even if it is a little high.
What bugs me the most is that I have to fiddle with turning off the jets and changing the flow rate to run the slide. Everything that you guys are saying makes sense though.
 

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Jimrahbe said:
Matt,

The things you want to do are normally done by an automation system.. It changes pump speeds based on the features that you want on..

Thanks,

Jim R.
Click to expand...
Sorry for the terrible question, but… how do I know it I have this? 😬
 
Friends, I searched for this question and it doesn’t appear to have been asked. While I may be able to look this up in the owners manual, I thought I would ask for posterity sake.

Does anyone know what the optimal operating flow rate is for a Polaris 280T?

I have a booster pump on this in-wall cleaner and the thing is a beast. My pool is always clear but I run it a lot. The pool builder manually set it to 2450 rpm which is about 50GPM, and I’m just wondering if I can turn it down and still have a super clean pool.
 
Matt,

It would be a big box mounted near your Equipment pad..

Show us a bunch of pics of your pad and we will tell you if we see it..

I really doubt you have an automation system..

Thanks,

Jim R.
 
ajw22 said:
Polaris booster pumps are usually single speed. What model booster pump do you have where RPM can be adjusted?

Proper cleaner flow is based on having 28 - 32 wheel RPMs.
Click to expand...
This is really helpful. Thank you. My booster is a Polaris PB4SQ. See the image I’ve included showing my app cleaner flow setting, I could very well be missing something.
 

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That is the speed of your main filter pump.

The PB4SQ pump is single speed and picks water off from the filter pump return flow to boost it and send it to your 280 cleaner.
 
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ajw22 said:
That is the speed of your main filter pump.

The PB4SQ pump is single speed and picks water off from the filter pump return flow to boost it and send it to your 280 cleaner.
Click to expand...
So what is actually happening when I turn on my cleaner and set the RPM? Does that mean it’s irrelevant?
 
Mattikuss said:
So what is actually happening when I turn on my cleaner and set the RPM? Does that mean it’s irrelevant?
Click to expand...

Are you already in POOL mode when the cleaner is turned on?

If so, the filter pump RPM is increased to 2450 and after a 5 minute delay the Polaris PB4SQ booster pump AUX relay is turn on which runs the PB4SQ pump.

What is your default filter pump speed?
 
ajw22 said:
Are you already in POOL mode when the cleaner is turned on?

If so, the filter pump RPM is increased to 2450 and after a 5 minute delay the Polaris PB4SQ booster pump AUX relay is turn on which runs the PB4SQ pump.

What is your default filter pump speed?
Click to expand...
Whaaaat, this is blowing my mind right now. Where is all of this set? I have no idea what POOL mode is. My default (when the cleaner and heater are not on) is 1950 RPM.

If my booster is kicking on after 5 minutes, why does my app continue to show that the pump RPM is running at 2450 (where I set it).

Do you suppose I could test this by turning on the cleaner, and holding my hand in front of the jet for 5 minutes to see if the flow increases when I turn the cleaner on (jumping to the 2450 I have it set at) and then decrease once the booster kicks on? Or, is my main pump running at 2450 when the booster is running because it’s too dumb to recognize the booster pump?
 

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