Hello,
With a new purchased pool pump and a new pool heater (still returnable) still in box at pool shop waiting for pickup... me and a trusted installer has discovered a "radical" new solution. Since we also need pool shed heating and a future hot water tank for a pool shed shower.....
...."Why not use a boiler?"
We did the math, and the efficiency would be the same (give or take) for the pool. The boiler is more efficient (160F primary exchanger loop, forced-air operation like the top-efficiency pool pumps, etc), and all the pool chemical wear and tear occurs on a much more inexpensively replaceable off-the-shelf heat exchanger. No pool water goes into the boiler, just to the heat exchanger between primary 160F water and the pool plumbing. Even with the extra heat exchanger interim step, the bottom-line efficiency would end up being roughly the same, given we also need to heat the pool shed too in cold weather! (Better natgas instead of electric...)
Anyone using a general-purpose boiler to do:
-- Pool heating
-- Shower hot water
-- Room heating
The boiler is actually cheaper than doing all 3 separately. And the installer really knows what they are talking about; as an expert in doing all this (having already done this before).
The boiler we are now considering is a variable boiler capable of throttling from ~10K BTU thru 199K BTU, and automatically shutting off when there's no thermal demands. It fires up when there's water flow, and fires harder on bigger demand, all automatically depending on heating demands. (Only showering, only heating room, or only heating pool, whether maintaining it heat or rapidly increasing its temp, or all three, etc), and costs only 25% more than the pool heater we bought. Tons of mature boilers out there with efficiency comparable to pool heaters. Ultimate pool-heating efficiency is roughly the same, assuming fully-thermally-insulated 160F closed primary loop, and a good off-the-stock exchanger unit for the pool heating.
Anyone here using a general-purpose boiler instead of a pool heater, to heat their pool?
With a new purchased pool pump and a new pool heater (still returnable) still in box at pool shop waiting for pickup... me and a trusted installer has discovered a "radical" new solution. Since we also need pool shed heating and a future hot water tank for a pool shed shower.....
...."Why not use a boiler?"
We did the math, and the efficiency would be the same (give or take) for the pool. The boiler is more efficient (160F primary exchanger loop, forced-air operation like the top-efficiency pool pumps, etc), and all the pool chemical wear and tear occurs on a much more inexpensively replaceable off-the-shelf heat exchanger. No pool water goes into the boiler, just to the heat exchanger between primary 160F water and the pool plumbing. Even with the extra heat exchanger interim step, the bottom-line efficiency would end up being roughly the same, given we also need to heat the pool shed too in cold weather! (Better natgas instead of electric...)
Anyone using a general-purpose boiler to do:
-- Pool heating
-- Shower hot water
-- Room heating
The boiler is actually cheaper than doing all 3 separately. And the installer really knows what they are talking about; as an expert in doing all this (having already done this before).
The boiler we are now considering is a variable boiler capable of throttling from ~10K BTU thru 199K BTU, and automatically shutting off when there's no thermal demands. It fires up when there's water flow, and fires harder on bigger demand, all automatically depending on heating demands. (Only showering, only heating room, or only heating pool, whether maintaining it heat or rapidly increasing its temp, or all three, etc), and costs only 25% more than the pool heater we bought. Tons of mature boilers out there with efficiency comparable to pool heaters. Ultimate pool-heating efficiency is roughly the same, assuming fully-thermally-insulated 160F closed primary loop, and a good off-the-stock exchanger unit for the pool heating.
Anyone here using a general-purpose boiler instead of a pool heater, to heat their pool?