New to the forum and was looking for some advise & thoughts on my recent setup changes. I have been lurking here and on other sites gathering info for my recent pump upgrade. This has been a journey figuring out how to integrate a VSP into a 2002 Jandy RS4 automation system. I have been amazed at how many pool professionals, retail shops, and company reps are uneducated and or misinformed about automation, VSP, and how to make them work together.
Background on system: Inground plaster pool 21'x35' with spa elevated 2' above pool. Pump was a single speed Pentair Whisperflo 2hp, Purex Triton 4000 DE 48sqft filter, Puerex Triton MiniMax 400 heater, Hayward Navigator cleaner, Jandy RS4 w/ All Button Controller Jandy 24v control valves on intake and out for automated spa mode. Pool was completed in Jan. 2002 and I live Inland Southern California.
So the WhisperFlo was still running but beginning to leak water and it was time to upgrade to a quieter more energy efficient pump.
I was not looking to upgrade anything that did need to be since the system was operating, and I was content with the automation features of the Jandy RS4.
So I decided on the Hayward Ecostar 3400 VSP for its energy efficiency and ability to be controlled in "Relay Mode". Which would allow me to use my existing Jandy RS4 with a little creative wiring.
So here is what I did... Ecostar AC is wired to 220v Jandy RS4 pump relay, and the Ecostar controller is placed in "Relay Mode" This turns on the pump to relay mode speed 1 Speed 1 is my high speed filtration mode to run the navigator.
I previously had 3 aux relay wired to #1 Spa Blower, #2 Spa light, #3 Pool Light. I placed both my pool light and spa light on Aux relay #2 and this allowed relay #3 to be available to send an automation signal to the Ecostar.
So I ran the necessary 24v control wires from the Ecostar to Jandy relay #3. This allows me to select my low speed filtration mode from the Jandy while the Ecostar is operating.
I then spliced into my Jandy intake automation valve and ran the common and 1 switched 24v wire back to the Ecostar there by giving me an automation signal when the Jandy goes into spa mode to increase my Ecostar to high speed to run the spa effectively.
So currently my Ecostar is setup with 4 speeds being controlled by the Jandy RS4:
Speed 1: Pool Filter & Cleaner @ 2600 RPM 1,000 watts
Speed 2: Pool Filter Low @ 1750 RPM 350 watts
Speed 3: Spa Mode @ 3000 RPM 1500 watts
Speed 4: Not really used but programed to @ 3000 RPM in case spa is run with Aux#3 activated (duplicates spa speed)
This is all possible by placing the Ecostar in Relay Mode and then programing the speeds that I wish to use with the Ecostar when it receives the correct 24v input signal to one of the relay mode inputs.
I have set my RS4 to turn on the pump and run speed #1High for 2 hours daily, and then activate Aux#3 for another 4hours daily at speed #2 Low.
It seems to be working well, but I am new to the VSP and looking for advise on run times and best speeds to be efficient.
At Speed #1 2600 the Navigator and spa water fall seem to operate as the use to with the single speed pump and show the same 15 pounds on a clean DE gauge. At Speed #2 1750 the the Navigator does not move, but I have good flow through the surface skimmer nice flow from the water fall.... plus my heater pressure light illuminates and the heater runs.
I think I have done the best I can do with the hardware without any major upgrades and having the 3 speeds that I can select should give me the majority of the variable speed pump operations.
Looking for thoughts and advise on tweaking my speeds and run times from those of you with VSP pump experience, and any other advise on my setup.... did I miss anything?
Doug
Background on system: Inground plaster pool 21'x35' with spa elevated 2' above pool. Pump was a single speed Pentair Whisperflo 2hp, Purex Triton 4000 DE 48sqft filter, Puerex Triton MiniMax 400 heater, Hayward Navigator cleaner, Jandy RS4 w/ All Button Controller Jandy 24v control valves on intake and out for automated spa mode. Pool was completed in Jan. 2002 and I live Inland Southern California.
So the WhisperFlo was still running but beginning to leak water and it was time to upgrade to a quieter more energy efficient pump.
I was not looking to upgrade anything that did need to be since the system was operating, and I was content with the automation features of the Jandy RS4.
So I decided on the Hayward Ecostar 3400 VSP for its energy efficiency and ability to be controlled in "Relay Mode". Which would allow me to use my existing Jandy RS4 with a little creative wiring.
So here is what I did... Ecostar AC is wired to 220v Jandy RS4 pump relay, and the Ecostar controller is placed in "Relay Mode" This turns on the pump to relay mode speed 1 Speed 1 is my high speed filtration mode to run the navigator.
I previously had 3 aux relay wired to #1 Spa Blower, #2 Spa light, #3 Pool Light. I placed both my pool light and spa light on Aux relay #2 and this allowed relay #3 to be available to send an automation signal to the Ecostar.
So I ran the necessary 24v control wires from the Ecostar to Jandy relay #3. This allows me to select my low speed filtration mode from the Jandy while the Ecostar is operating.
I then spliced into my Jandy intake automation valve and ran the common and 1 switched 24v wire back to the Ecostar there by giving me an automation signal when the Jandy goes into spa mode to increase my Ecostar to high speed to run the spa effectively.
So currently my Ecostar is setup with 4 speeds being controlled by the Jandy RS4:
Speed 1: Pool Filter & Cleaner @ 2600 RPM 1,000 watts
Speed 2: Pool Filter Low @ 1750 RPM 350 watts
Speed 3: Spa Mode @ 3000 RPM 1500 watts
Speed 4: Not really used but programed to @ 3000 RPM in case spa is run with Aux#3 activated (duplicates spa speed)
This is all possible by placing the Ecostar in Relay Mode and then programing the speeds that I wish to use with the Ecostar when it receives the correct 24v input signal to one of the relay mode inputs.
I have set my RS4 to turn on the pump and run speed #1High for 2 hours daily, and then activate Aux#3 for another 4hours daily at speed #2 Low.
It seems to be working well, but I am new to the VSP and looking for advise on run times and best speeds to be efficient.
At Speed #1 2600 the Navigator and spa water fall seem to operate as the use to with the single speed pump and show the same 15 pounds on a clean DE gauge. At Speed #2 1750 the the Navigator does not move, but I have good flow through the surface skimmer nice flow from the water fall.... plus my heater pressure light illuminates and the heater runs.
I think I have done the best I can do with the hardware without any major upgrades and having the 3 speeds that I can select should give me the majority of the variable speed pump operations.
Looking for thoughts and advise on tweaking my speeds and run times from those of you with VSP pump experience, and any other advise on my setup.... did I miss anything?
Doug