Spillover mode during freeze protection Jandy

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dphanes

Well-known member
Aug 19, 2020
151
NC
All of our equipment is Jandy and am curious about spillover mode. In the freeze protection part of the app I can select filter, spa, slide. I also have a spillway mode and am wondering if I can have the system in spillway mode during freeze protection.

Thanks
 

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Why would you need spillover mode to prevent freezing? Spa mode takes care of the spa plumbing, pool mode, the pool plumbing. Spillover is redundant for freeze protection.
 
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mas985 said:
Why would you need spillover mode to prevent freezing? Spa mode takes care of the spa plumbing, pool mode, the pool plumbing. Spillover is redundant for freeze protection.
Click to expand...
Every time it switches from pool mode to spa mode the spa drains 1/4 inch. Over an 8 hour period in freeze protection the actuators move 16 times which would drain 4 inches from the spa.
 
I see. But is that a big issue if the next run cycle includes a spillover mode?


Also, are you sure you even need automatic freeze protection.

The Physics of Freezing and Freeze Protection

Recently, there have been a lot of questions from those living in moderate climates about using automatic freeze protection or running pumps to prevent freezing and what a pool owner should do when temperatures drop so I thought it might be useful to have a thread which dealt with the issue from...
www.troublefreepool.com www.troublefreepool.com
 
The problem is that spillway mode isn’t an option for freeze protection how it is currently set up. We do need freeze protection as it can get to low single digits where we live.
 
I experienced this last winter as well with my Jandy equipment. On nights below freezing, I would wake up to exposed plaster in the spa due to the freeze protection running all night. If we were below freezing for an extended period, the spa jets would be out of the water and water would get everywhere when freeze protection cycled to them. I wish Jandy would time the valves during freeze protection so we wouldn't lose so much water.
 
dphanes said:
The problem is that spillway mode isn’t an option for freeze protection how it is currently set up. We do need freeze protection as it can get to low single digits where we live.
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As I explained above, the spillway does not need to be protected from freezing. The plumbing is protected with the spa and pool modes. No other mode is required to protect the plumbing. Is the concern that the plaster is exposed?

Also, I did not mean to imply that you didn't need to protect the equipment from freezing. My point is that there are many ways to protect equipment from freezing as is explained in the post I linked to. IMHO, running the pump is not a very reliable way to protect plumbing from freezing. Just ask any of the members from TX. There are much better other ways.

The Physics of Freezing and Freeze Protection

Recently, there have been a lot of questions from those living in moderate climates about using automatic freeze protection or running pumps to prevent freezing and what a pool owner should do when temperatures drop so I thought it might be useful to have a thread which dealt with the issue from...
www.troublefreepool.com www.troublefreepool.com

We freeze only occasionally and usually, never below 15F so I don't bother with any freeze protection. If we did get much below 15F and for longer than 8 hours, I would just drain the pad equipment. That is very easy to do (open filter vent, then pump lid) and it is the most effective option. Adding a tarp is extra protection. Plus you don't really need to run the pump when it gets that cold.
 
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With the Jandy aqualink system, once freeze protection is active are you totally locked out of the system? Could I add spa to the freeze protect menu after it is in freeze protection mode because temp has fallen below the temp that activates freeze protection.
 
dphanes said:
With the Jandy aqualink system, once freeze protection is active are you totally locked out of the system? Could I add spa to the freeze protect menu after it is in freeze protection mode because temp has fallen below the temp that activates freeze protection.
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Not sure what you mean by this but both the spa and pool should already be in the freeze protection mode. All features should be part of timing schedule. So each will activate in series.

However, one thing you could do is to change the cam on the return actuator so there is always some water being returned to the spa when in pool mode. That way, the spa will always be topped off when in pool mode.
 

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@mas985 Just curious as down in south TX we don’t enter into freeze protection much. On iAquaLink settings there is a function called Plockout. I have it enabled. This shuts down the pump when moving between Pool and Spa mode. Is this feature overridden in Freeze Protection mode which is why the OP is losing water?
 
This is an interesting thread. My Jandy Aqualink system is set so that freeze protection is set for spillway only.

I would like to modify it so that it sequences to spa then pool then spa etc and since I have 2” plumbing lower the temp. In Georgia I imagine I only need it to turn on at 28 degrees vs the current 38 degrees which has it running pretty frequently.

Finally with a VSP lower the RPM to 1500 from 2500. This needs to be a slow move not gushing.

Where would I accomplish this.
 
You need to login to the web interface of your Jandy system. once in, click System Setup, then Freeze Protection, then from there you can put an X beside each device you want on freeze protection. You can also change the temp from this screen. I have an X beside "Filter Pump" and "Spa" in my freeze protection screen. The systems switches back and forth between the spa and pool set this way. This also causes the original issue this thread is talking about. My spa water level drops due to this cycling between pool and spa. I think its because the return JVA is switching faster than the suction JVA causing the returns to switch back to the pool for a few seconds while the suction is still on the spa therefore dropping the spa water level. Every morning when we wake up after a night of freezing temps, the water level has dropped over a foot in the spa.

For the VSP speeds, click on System Setup, then VSP Setup, Then Speed Setup below the table of pumps, then select the pump you need to change then click Next, then make your changes and click save.

hope this helps.


If anyone reading this has any ideas on how to keep the Spa from draining during freeze protection, I would appreciate it!
 
mas985 said:
However, one thing you could do is to change the cam on the return actuator so there is always some water being returned to the spa when in pool mode. That way, the spa will always be topped off when in pool mode.
Click to expand...
I had suggested this earlier. It will prevent the spa from draining when in freeze protection.

 
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NCMike said:
You need to login to the web interface of your Jandy system. once in, click System Setup, then Freeze Protection, then from there you can put an X beside each device you want on freeze protection. You can also change the temp from this screen. I have an X beside "Filter Pump" and "Spa" in my freeze protection screen. The systems switches back and forth between the spa and pool set this way. This also causes the original issue this thread is talking about. My spa water level drops due to this cycling between pool and spa. I think its because the return JVA is switching faster than the suction JVA causing the returns to switch back to the pool for a few seconds while the suction is still on the spa therefore dropping the spa water level. Every morning when we wake up after a night of freezing temps, the water level has dropped over a foot in the spa.

For the VSP speeds, click on System Setup, then VSP Setup, Then Speed Setup below the table of pumps, then select the pump you need to change then click Next, then make your changes and click save.

hope this helps.


If anyone reading this has any ideas on how to keep the Spa from draining during freeze protection, I would appreciate it!
Click to expand...
Thanks. Found it. The lowest temp setting Jandy allows is 34 which is what I set it for which seems better than 38 for 2" plumbing is more than fine. I need to somehow change my Filter Pump to not = Spillover then I will be able to alternate between Pool and Spa and close my cover in the winter. The currently Filter Pump = Spillover so that is what it does for Freeze also.

The PB is supposed to be coming out as this is one of the final items on our punch list so I can actually use my auto cover to make the Spillover a "manual' mode and not the standard mode for the pool running. So it will run pool, spa and only spillover as a manual mode.
 
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mas985 said:
I had suggested this earlier. It will prevent the spa from draining when in freeze protection.

Click to expand...
I did see that. My concern though is I don’t want water trickling over the spillway 24/7 while we are not on freezing temps. And I wouldn’t want to adjust this just for nights where I think temps will dip below the freeze protect threshold. Thank you for the video though!
 
NCMike said:
You need to login to the web interface of your Jandy system. once in, click System Setup, then Freeze Protection, then from there you can put an X beside each device you want on freeze protection. You can also change the temp from this screen. I have an X beside "Filter Pump" and "Spa" in my freeze protection screen. The systems switches back and forth between the spa and pool set this way. This also causes the original issue this thread is talking about. My spa water level drops due to this cycling between pool and spa. I think its because the return JVA is switching faster than the suction JVA causing the returns to switch back to the pool for a few seconds while the suction is still on the spa therefore dropping the spa water level. Every morning when we wake up after a night of freezing temps, the water level has dropped over a foot in the spa.

For the VSP speeds, click on System Setup, then VSP Setup, Then Speed Setup below the table of pumps, then select the pump you need to change then click Next, then make your changes and click save.

hope this helps.


If anyone reading this has any ideas on how to keep the Spa from draining during freeze protection, I would appreciate it!
Click to expand...
I have added a check valve to try to stop spa from draining to pool but it still drains about 1/8 of an inch every cycle. Over an 8 hour period that would result in a 2 inch drop as it cycles from pool to spa for freeze protection.

To eliminate that I actually started “camming” the return actuator so that when the system is in “pool mode” most water returns to the pool but some also goes to the spa to top it off. That way when cycling between pool and spa mode the spa never drains during freeze protection.
 
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Were you able to "cam" the actuator in a way that only added enough water to the spa to replenish what was lost? I have trouble with calcium build up on my spa wall below the spill way if enough water is not flowing over it to clear the wall. My concern is if I "cam" the actuator to much that the water will trickle over the spill way and make the calcium buildup worse. I guess I just need to try it and see how it works. During the summer I have no issues with water loss from the spa. So I would have to "cam" the actuator only when temps are forecasted to drop below freezing which is not ideal.
 
Another option is to use the switch on the back of the actuator to fix the position of both valves. The suction valve should be set for mostly pool suction and a little spa suction while the return valve is mostly spa return and a little pool return. It will appear as though the pool is in spillover all the time but in reality, both spa and pool have water flowing through all the pipes.

With this solution, you won't have take apart the actuator and when temps rise, you just put the actuator switches in their normal positions.
 
NCMike said:
Were you able to "cam" the actuator in a way that only added enough water to the spa to replenish what was lost? I have trouble with calcium build up on my spa wall below the spill way if enough water is not flowing over it to clear the wall. My concern is if I "cam" the actuator to much that the water will trickle over the spill way and make the calcium buildup worse. I guess I just need to try it and see how it works. During the summer I have no issues with water loss from the spa. So I would have to "cam" the actuator only when temps are forecasted to drop below freezing which is not ideal.
Click to expand...
NCMike said:
Were you able to "cam" the actuator in a way that only added enough water to the spa to replenish what was lost? I have trouble with calcium build up on my spa wall below the spill way if enough water is not flowing over it to clear the wall. My concern is if I "cam" the actuator to much that the water will trickle over the spill way and make the calcium buildup worse. I guess I just need to try it and see how it works. During the summer I have no issues with water loss from the spa. So I would have to "cam" the actuator only when temps are forecasted to drop below freezing which is not ideal.
Click to expand...
I could not figure out a precise way to cam just to offset the water loss when it cycles so I took a different approach with the goal of having enough water flowing to actually make a waterfall. I cammed the actuator to push half the water through the pool returns and half through the spa return while in pool mode. I also upped the priming RPMs to 3,000. Those two things generated enough volume that a real water fall was coming over the spillway. I have found that once the real waterfall starts u can lower the RPMs and the waterfall will continue. Using 3000 rpm for priming and 2300 after prime.
 

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