In anticipation of the summer high energy months, a few folks I know were talking about running their pumps every other day. That doesn't seem feasible to me - I know what mine looked at after a day without a pump. What do you guys think?
Run Pump Every Other Day?
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sounds like a bad idea... I would think cutting down the run time a little each day would be a more feasible option...
Also, how are they sanitizing/circulating chems without running the pump??
Also, how are they sanitizing/circulating chems without running the pump??
It would be better to reduce the run time by half and run every day, IMO. If you have a chlorinator of any type, you are asking for problems going a full day without chlorination. For the sanitizer to be truly effective, you need circulation.
Ideally you want to run the pump two or three times a day, assuming that is practical in your situation (your timer supports that, fits with time of day electrical rates, etc). Once a day is about the least frequent that works reasonably well.
Perhaps running your pump only at night when the rates are the cheapest (if you have that kind of billing) would give you acceptable costs while still maintaining good circulation.
Hmmm.. I usually only run my pump 10-12 hours a day Thurs-Sun. Should I do it daily even if we are not swimming?
jjdurrant said:
I vote "YES" on tha one, jj.
Also, you might want to think about reducing your run time to see how that goes.
We run 6 to 8 hrs per day, split half AM & half PM. Water is balanced and beautiful.
Ok.. Dam. I really need a timer. I assume a good freeze proof one is a couple hundred? Is there a particluar model you recommend?
Mine is next to the electrical panel in the garage and cost $24.00 from home depot. I think it may have been called a hot water heater timer. Can turn it on/off multiple times per day.
If you only need a basic on/off timer, I highly recommend the Intermatic T100 series. I got a T101 from my local independent hardware store for $45. It's a 40amp/2HP timer. Lowe's has the T103 in my area for $52.18. I picked up an extra set of trippers for $2.50 to run mine twice a day. Home Depot also appears to have a T100 series for $39.93 although they use their own part number so I can't tell exactly which one it is.
I would lessen the run time to no less than 6-8 hrs per day. Also check with your local power company to find out what the peak and non-peak kilowatt hours will be. And try to run your pump in the non-peak hours in the morning and late evening. I've already been doing this.
This is the rate schedule for those on Georgia Power (Southern Company)
SUMMER - June through September
Base Charge..$7.50
First 650 kWh...4.5991¢ per kWh
Next 350 kWh...7.6450¢ per kWh
Over 1000 kWh...7.8765¢ per kWh
ON-PEAK:
The On-Peak period is defined as the hours starting at 2:00 p.m. and ending at 7:00 p.m. Monday through Friday for the calendar months of June through September (Summer Months). The above hours on days in which the following holidays are observed shall be considered Off-Peak: Independence Day and Labor Day.
OFF-PEAK:
The Off-Peak period is defined as all hours not included above in the On-Peak period including all weekends and the calendar months of October through May (Winter Months).
This is the rate schedule for those on Georgia Power (Southern Company)
SUMMER - June through September
Base Charge..$7.50
First 650 kWh...4.5991¢ per kWh
Next 350 kWh...7.6450¢ per kWh
Over 1000 kWh...7.8765¢ per kWh
ON-PEAK:
The On-Peak period is defined as the hours starting at 2:00 p.m. and ending at 7:00 p.m. Monday through Friday for the calendar months of June through September (Summer Months). The above hours on days in which the following holidays are observed shall be considered Off-Peak: Independence Day and Labor Day.
OFF-PEAK:
The Off-Peak period is defined as all hours not included above in the On-Peak period including all weekends and the calendar months of October through May (Winter Months).
The rule of thumb, which has worked well for me, is to run your pump one hour for every 10 degrees of your average temperature. If it's in the 80's - 8 hrs, in the 90's = 9 hours.
I run my pump for a few hours in the morning, along with the pool cleaner to get any debris that has fallen in the pool overnight, and then I run the pump the rest of the time in the evening after the pool is in the shade. This allows the sanitizer (chlorine) the greatest amount of time to effectively kill pathogens in the water without being consumed by sunlight.
I run my pump for a few hours in the morning, along with the pool cleaner to get any debris that has fallen in the pool overnight, and then I run the pump the rest of the time in the evening after the pool is in the shade. This allows the sanitizer (chlorine) the greatest amount of time to effectively kill pathogens in the water without being consumed by sunlight.
I take it that those of you who are running mornings and nights do not have solar heaters? If I have a solar heater, I assume it is necessary to run when the sun is hottest, or late morning until 5pm.