Pool Pump Too Big

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chrsdmry

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May 5, 2009
16
Hello all and before i get to my question, i want to thank all of you for the great reading material and helpful knowledge that has helped me. Ok, on with the question.
I bought a pool last October (15 x 30 above ground x 52" high). I had it set up professionally when i bought the pool and added water to it immedialtley and closed it for the winter. The installers did put sand in the filter and I kept the filter outside during the winter wrapped in plastic. In the mean time i framed a deck around the pool and just finished the decking in April. I hard piped my pool with 1.5" all around with schedule 40 PVC. The pool water was clear until the cover had to be removed in March to start the decking and three days ago I shocked and put all the necessary chemicals in it. Right now all my chemicals are perfect. I have a chlorine generator (Aquatrol) that seems to be running fine with no problems and is currently at 3200ppm. Here is my problem. Being stupid when i bought the pool and not knowing anything about pumps, filters etc, i purchased what I thought was the best pump. It is a 2hp, 2 speed pump. For the last three days I have had this pump going 24 hours a day on high and it cleared the pool pretty quickly, but the problem i am having now is that when i had it on high speed, i was reading about 20 psi and now since i am scared to death on the electric bill, i switched it to low speed and it is only running at 5psi. My return is strong in the pool (not as strong as on high) but it is moving the water nicely. I am concerned about the psi of the filter, it is really low. Do you think I should change the pump to 1 hp? I hate to waste a good pump, but i am having a problem I think with the water still being a little cloudy and not sure if it needs more time or some of the posts here say running the pump on low is actually better so the filter can get more refined particals on low than high. I did add clarifier (Aquaclean) this morning to the pool and it didnt seem to help.
I apologize i dont have the chemicals to add here for your suggestions, but i am really more concerned about the pump size and wondering if the size of the pump has to do with the pool not getting clear.
Thanks and look forward to your comments.
Chris
 
No. YOu will be much better off running it on low, even 24/7 than if you were to switch to a 1 speed and run it 12 hours a day. The low speed uses about 1/3 the electricity of high speed, I think... if you do a google search (bottom left) of the forum for this topic, there have been analysis done to show the savings of 2 speeds vs. 1 speed.

I run my filter on low 24/7 and it barely makes a dent on the elec bill. I only run on high if I need to vacume.

YOu can run on low when clearing an algae bloom, you don't need to run it on high, for the purposes of filtration, you just want constant circulation when shocking. My PSI is about 3-4 on low, goes up to about 18 on high.
 
One more thing....with regard to the cloudy water...

You know you are done shocking your pool when:

You lose less than 1ppm of FC overnight;
your CC is .5 or less;
Your water is crystal.

If you don't meet those criteria, keep shocking.

Clarifiers are big pool store profit makers, and really aren't necessary...just adequate chlorine levels.

How are you testing your water?

Can you post a full set of test results?
 
Thank you very much for the response. I will get the chemical test done when i get home tonight and post it for you to see. I woke up this morning and checked on the pool and it is a little more clear, but not too much from yesterday. I shocked it again this morning and the pump is running on low 24/7 atleast until the pool is crystal and then I will set the timer. That is good about the psi, i thought maybe something was wrong since I was reading very low, but I guess that is normal. Appreciate the help and will update checmical tests when this evening. One note: I noticed that my SWG is at 3500 ppm, it looks like it went up since yesterday, I might have to drain or backwash a little bit to get the reading down to 3200ppm. It is producing chlorine, just may be a little too high according to the manual.

Thanks so much!
 
After shocking the pool this morning, I came home this evening and my pool is pretty clear, probably about 90% and much clearer. I did the testing and here are my results:

Hardness 0
Total Chlorine 3
Free Chlorine 3
PH 7.2
Alkalinity 120
CYNA 30

The hardness is a little concerning. I was thinking that the SWG would help the hardness, but I guess not. My level on the SWG is 3400, went down a 100 since yesterday. It is supposed to rain for the next two days, not sure if i should shock the water again or leave it alone and test the water again tomorrow. My pump is still running 24/7 and I think i will do that until the water is crystal clear. What do I use to bring up the hardness level? Is this why it is not 100% clear? My PSI is still the same at 5. Another question: Can i get Cynidic Acid in a liquid form? All i could find at Naamco is the powder stuff and it sucks trying to mix it with hot water and then pouring it in the pool. IF not, it is no big deal.
Thanks again for your help!
Chris
 
Chris,

CH is not all that important with vinyl lined pools, so don't worry about it being 0 at the moment. It's not contributing at all to your cloudiness issue.

I would go ahead and raise your FC back to shock level. You don't want algae regaining a foothold in the pool.

You can buy CYA (cyanuric acid) in liquid form at some pool stores, but it's more expensive than the granular version. Easiest way to dissolve it is to put it in a sock and then hang it in the skimmer or in front of a return.

You might want to bring your pH up a skosh to 7.6, too.
 
I agree with Mike. Also when you add more CYA the PH will drop a bit, so it would be good to boost that a little with some Borax or Washing Soda. :goodjob: If your water is still a tad cloudy I agree, up your FC again and keep that filter running. :wink: Be sure you follow the CYA chart when determining your appropriate FC levels, normal and shocking.
 
Excellent, thanks so much for the info. It is raining here in MA today and tomorrow. I did shock the pool again this morning and will be putting more CYA in the pool tonight to bring that level up more. I do have some PH increase (i got it when i bought the pool) and will be adding some tonight to bring that lever up a bit. Thanks for all your help, I would love to return the favor at some point, but since I am a newbie, I cant help now, but will when I become an expert! Ya right!
Thanks Again

Chris
 
chrsdmry said:
Excellent, thanks so much for the info. It is raining here in MA today and tomorrow. I did shock the pool again this morning and will be putting more CYA in the pool tonight to bring that level up more. I do have some PH increase (i got it when i bought the pool) and will be adding some tonight to bring that lever up a bit. Thanks for all your help, I would love to return the favor at some point, but since I am a newbie, I cant help now, but will when I become an expert! Ya right!
Thanks Again

Chris
Click to expand...
Chris,

I would suggest you leave your pH alone......it will probably rise on it's own.

You will be an expert in no time. We all started at exactly the same point.

Because I am driven on this subject, remember that shocking a pool is a process wherein you hold your chlorine level up constantly until......
1. Your pool water is sparkling
2. Your CC's are .5ppm or less
3. You can hold your FC overnight without losing more than 1ppm.

Think of it as a continuing process rather than a single dosage of chlorine.
 

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Everything looks great so far and havent had to add any chemicals as of yet and it has been raining for the past two days. I am checking on it tonight when i get home and see how it is. Every day it is getting more clear and looks great. I am going to post some pics on the picture section and let everyone see what I did as far as the decking. Thanks for all your help! :-D
 
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