Need to a Replace My Electricity Eater

[thomearl]

Morning all, my first post here. Anyway, first time pool owner (3 mo) of an existing system, and we desperately want to replace our single speed pump due to high electric rates and costs. I have a complete Hayward system with what I believe is a 2HP single speed pump. A pool guy that came and did some work on the system told me it was a 3HP, but when I looked yesterday it had 2HP written on it. From reading here, it seems a variable speed would be the most energy efficient, but my questions are:

How reliable are VS pumps these days? I've seen a number of reviews about failures and don't want to have to buy a new pump in 3 years.

Would a 2 speed pump make more sense for my system? And are they more reliable?

If my system is Hayward, do I need to stick with that brand? Seems Pentair gets better marks on quality.

 

[JasonLion]

Welcome to TFP!

VS pumps are getting reasonably reliable, but are still not as reliable as single/dual speed pumps.

A two speed pump is a better choice if your electric rates are $0.15/kWh or lower.

If you want the automation system to be able to control the pump speed you need to get a pump of the same brand as the automation system.

 

[pooldv]

LOL at electricity eater, tis true! A 2 speed pump will save you a lot. And a VS pump will save you a little more on top of that. It is definitely easier to integrate automation with like branded components and sometimes not possible with different brands.

I am a big fan of my VS pump. For skimming, filtering and chlorine making it runs at 1100 rpm which draws 150 watts. For solar heating it runs at 1950 rpm at 500 watts. That is a lot less than the 1500+ watts that your current pump is probably drawing.

 

[thomearl]

Thanks for the responses. Sounds like VS is the way to go, my energy rate is definitely higher than .15/kWh. The family is looking forward to our first summer with the pool, but I don't want to come out of it with thoughts of filling it in due to utility costs!

 

[Divin Dave]

The VS pump is much more efficinet for sure. I would make a suggestion, to install a surge supressor for the pump too. The electronics dont like surges very much.

Thanks for the responses. Sounds like VS is the way to go, my energy rate is definitely higher than .15/kWh. The family is looking forward to our first summer with the pool, but I don't want to come out of it with thoughts of filling it in due to utility costs!