3 HP pump too much?

[jrs335]

I have a 16k gal pool with one skimmer & one main drain w/3 supply lines and one dedicated cleaner/vac line and Autopilot Digital salt water chlorinator. About 9 years ago pool maint person installed a Pentair Intelliflo VF part # 011012 which I believe is a 3 HP model and Pentair cartridge filter part # 160318 (200 sq ft 200 GPM). The filter housing is developing leaks and requires a new filter element, after looking at cost to replace these parts it might make more sense replacing the entire filter with possibly a new Pentair Quad DE filter. When trying to determine the correct size, the 60 sq ft seems like the proper model for my pool but the pump being 3 HP seems a bit much for this setup. Or is it possible that the Intellifo VF settings will adjust and run at a lower speed/flow.
Any suggestions would be helpful as I'd like to do this upgrade/repair once!

 

[Jimrahbe]

jrs,

Within reason, there is no such thing as too much HP in a variable speed pump... The pump only runs at the rpm (horsepower) that you tell it to run... Think of it this way... your car most likely has hundreds of horse power, but you don't have any problems driving it though a school zone, because you have an accelerator, not an on/off switch. While a 3 HP single speed pump might be too much for your pool, a 3 HP VS pump will work just fine.

Also, when it comes to filters, the bigger the better... I have the Pentair CCP-520 on my 17K pool because I want to go as long as possible between cleanings.. I suspect I could go an entire years between cleanings, but usually do it just twice a year.

Just so that I am clear.. I looked up your specific pump and it is a Variable "Flow" pump.. For all practical purposes, it is the same as a VS pump, but instead of running at a set speed it runs at a set rate of flow.. Your pump can be adjusted to run at any flow or multiple flows that you set.. Once set it will maintain that flow, but it will not figure out what is the best flow.. that is something you will have to do..

Thanks for posting,

Jim R.

 

[jrs335]

Thank you Jim, I was hoping for that answer! So the Pentair quad DE 60 sounds like it will work.

 

[gary300]

Thank you Jim, I was hoping for that answer! So the Pentair quad DE 60 sounds like it will work.

I have a Quad 60 on my 38000 gal pool and a VS pump. By using a robot to clean the pool (Triton Plus) and using hair nets in my 2 skimmers I can easily get a full year of running before I clean my filter. Last time I cleaned the filter, after one year it wasn't even that dirty and probably could have run longer before cleaning. By using a Robot instead of vacuuming, and using hairnets on the skimmers hardly any dirt even gets to the filter.

 

[jrs335]

Thanks for your help. This brings me to the next step, choosing the right filter. Since I will be replacing the Pentair cartridge filter (200 sq ft 200 GPM) my options are to replace with same model or a Quad 60 which I can purchase for 600, a Pentair or Hayward 200 sq ft cartridge filter for only 125 less. I understand that the DE Quad will achieve clearer water but what will be more efficient in terms of water turnover and pump energy usage and amount of maintenance? I'm in So Fla so this pool run all year and algae is always the enemy in our summers.

 

[Jimrahbe]

jrs.

If algae is your enemy, then a new filter will not make any difference... Algae is a chemical issue not a pump run time, or filter issue. If your chemicals are balanced you can run your filter/pump for as little as two or three hours a day and still not get algae..

You might want to take a read through our pools school...

Thanks for posting,

Jim R.

 

[jrs335]

jrs.

If algae is your enemy, then a new filter will not make any difference... Algae is a chemical issue not a pump run time, or filter issue. If your chemicals are balanced you can run your filter/pump for as little as two or three hours a day and still not get algae..

You might want to take a read through our pools school...

Thanks for posting,

Jim R.

Thanks Jim, I'll read up on all the references to DE vs filter types for my application.