ecopump or variable speed and timer questions

[kkdurrani]

Hi,

I am newbee to the pools & pool pumps. I have 14,000 gallon fiber glass pool. it has not been used for a year and it is been empty. I have reworked it and filled with water. now went to turn on the motor. It trips the circuit break after 3 sec. I decided to go with new EE pump. after doing research and reading on this site come to conclusion to go with ecopump ep-4 (2 speed variable pump) . The energy costs in my area are $.14/KWh to 0.16 KWh for tier1 and tier II (can go up to .31 if go beyond)
now my question would be is it right decision to with ecopump ep-4? or go with variable speed?
do I need timer for these pumps? The current timer is on 110 would that work? any suggestion as I need to make decision soon

do the 2 speed pump also work for spa?

Regards,
KD

 

[Bama Rambler]

Welcome to TFP.

Do you have an attached spa?
If so, what size and how many jets?
Do you have any other water features?
What size is your existing pump?

Since the EP-4 is 240 volt it won't work on a 120 volt timer.
The ecopump is simply a 2-speed pump and therefore you'll need either a 2-speed timer or a 3-way switch.

 

[kkdurrani]

Thanks for taking time to reply. Yes. There is spa. Not sure how many jets. The current pump is 1hp pentair whisperflo. Is there way to figure out how many jets? The current motor is serving spa and pool.

 

[Bama Rambler]

You should be able to see the jets clear enough to count them in the spa.

Have you thought about just replacing the motor with a 2-speed model and keeping the wet end? That way you wouldn't have to do any plumbing.

 

[kkdurrani]

There are 4 jets (appearence as holes).
I have not only thought about pool only. I would like to have the motor fulfil the spa as well. The current motor is 1HP so I thought ep-4 is better suited since it is 1 HP 1.3 variable HP. it also says rated HP as 1 and true HP as 1.6. The plumbing is already in place for both spa and pool. The same motor is serving both spa and pool . There is lever that is used to divert the motor to pool and spa.
do I need to redo the plumbing? what about the current plubming is that no good?

Karim

 

[Bama Rambler]

If you change the brand and/or model of the pump you'll have to change the plumbing at the pump to fit up to the new pump. That's what I meant by "you won't have to do any plumbing". If you just change the motor on the existing pump to a 2-speed it will still run the pool and spa just like it does now on high and it gives you the ability to run the pool circulation on low speed which will save a significant amount on your electric cost.

 

[kkdurrani]

yeah if that saves money that would nice. Do you have any 2 speed pumps in mind to replace current pentair whisperflo? I found EP-4 ecopump. I have searched on google as everyone else come up with some pentair model. I like what is been said about ecopump ep-4 on this forum but it is pricey. I like the 3 year warranty.

 

[Bama Rambler]

As I said, I would just replace the motor and keep the wet end in place. No need replacing the whole pump.

 

[kkdurrani]

Hi Dave it might sound easy to you. Not for me. Replacing single speed broken motor with 2 speed? The guys I am talking to wont even know what I am talking about. Or they are acting to mint money.