Has anyone used the new Pentair Intelliconnect or the Hayward VS Omni Pump?

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J

JeromeM

0
May 22, 2014
69
Claremont, ON
Quick Background:

Before Sept 2017 we had a simple setup
  • Sand Filter
  • Single speed pump
  • Raypak heater
  • Hayward Aquarite SWG
  • Intermatec mechanical timer with fire switch.

It was easy, during the week I would run the pool from 7pm to 7am since our Hydro is 1/2 price overnight and on weekends I would just override the timer and run it all the time. The timer had the fireman switch that turned the heater off prior to the pump shutting off, super easy.

Sept 2017 I had full pool renovation
  • All new plumbing
  • Pentair Sand Dollar Filter
  • Pentair Super Flo VS Pump
  • Raypak 2100 heater
  • 2 x Aqualamp color changing LED lights.
  • Pretty simple pool only 1 suction line from the skimmer and 2 returns, no Spa or waterfalls.

Since it was too cold to run the pool we only started it up this year and it's been on for 3 weeks now and I'm finding it really annoying since there's no inter-operability. I can set a program for the pump on the pump itself however no heater control and since I don't want it to overheat I just have the heater off and manually have to turn it on. I find myself at the equipment pad far too often.

Bottom line, I need some kind of BASIC pool automation for decent price and below are the options I see. The other options like OmniLogic or IntelliTouch are closer to $3-$4000 CDN and while they do a lot of stuff it seems a bit overkill for my needs.

Options:

Pentair Intelliconnect

  • It's Cheap in my mind, $600CDN
  • Install is easy not a big sub-panel like most automation systems and comes with Wifi for almost the price of Wifi add-on for more systems
  • It controls the pump without issue since it's also a Pentair
  • Might control the SWG (at the basic level it will turn it on and off, might not see salt level but that's not a big deal)
  • I thought it would control the heater even just turn it on/off however there's no mention at all on controlling a heater in the manual, kinda weird for a new product to not do that.
  • Can use one of the relays to control the lights

Hayward Tri-Star VS 900 Omni

  • It's hard to get a price, dealers don't even know much about it but was told ~$2000CDN
  • I could sell my current pump that's only been used for 1 month but won't get much for it so it's a bit of a waste that way
  • Install looks really easy, includes everything and also no big sub-panel's needed to install
  • It seems REALLY slick, I could have went with this option if it was available last year, of course only new as of 2018
  • It controls the pump without issue
  • Controls the SWG without issue
  • Controls Heater without issue not just on/off but controls temperature too
  • Can use one of the relays to control the lights

So, what would you do? I'm leaning towards the Hayward VS Omni pump since it will 100% control everything even if it's redundant. Maybe I can get $500 for my Super Flo VS making the Hayward option not too bad perhaps?

Thanks,
Jerome
 
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kadavis said:
https://www.jandy.com/en/products/pumps/variable-speed/iqpump01, there is also this from Jandy. The Pentair Intelliconnect is brand new just came out late spring and there isn't a lot of reviews yet, but I don't believe it will run the Superflo vs as it would a Intelliflo pump. IntelliConnect™️ - Control and Monitoring App - Pentair
Click to expand...

Wow I never even noticed there's no mention of SuperFlo VS control, to be honest I bought the IntelliConnect from my pool store, the one that installed all my equipment :O so you would think they should know.

If they will accept my return of it as it's unopened I will buy the Hayward Omni Pump.
 
Well today I returned the IntelliConnect and ordered the Tristar VS Omni 900, the install manual looks great it has an option to fully control the Raypak heater, the Aquarite SWG and of course the pump so this will work out great. At ~$700 more than the equivalent non-omni pump if someone has no automation at all this is an awesome option.

I will post my reviews on it once I have it installed and setup.
 
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JeromeM said:
Well today I returned the IntelliConnect and ordered the Tristar VS Omni 900, the install manual looks great it has an option to fully control the Raypak heater, the Aquarite SWG and of course the pump so this will work out great. At ~$700 more than the equivalent non-omni pump if someone has no automation at all this is an awesome option.

I will post my reviews on it once I have it installed and setup.
Click to expand...

Jerome,

My PB said I needed to upgrade to the OmniLogic as the Omni VS couldn’t work with the SWG. Thinking they might just want me to pay for the more expensive unit I did some research and found this on Hayward’s website (https://www.haywardnet.com/contactu...*&SubCategory=&Sub2Category=*&pagenum=29#q672)

[h=3]Can I control my salt chlorine generator with VS Omni?[/h]You can control the on/off of a salt chlorinator with a VS Omni Smart Relay, but cannot control the chlorine percentages with VS Omni.


Sounds like you may have more information on this?
 
Jeffnhelen said:
Jerome,

My PB said I needed to upgrade to the OmniLogic as the Omni VS couldn’t work with the SWG. Thinking they might just want me to pay for the more expensive unit I did some research and found this on Hayward’s website (https://www.haywardnet.com/contactu...*&SubCategory=&Sub2Category=*&pagenum=29#q672)

[h=3]Can I control my salt chlorine generator with VS Omni?[/h]You can control the on/off of a salt chlorinator with a VS Omni Smart Relay, but cannot control the chlorine percentages with VS Omni.


Sounds like you may have more information on this?
Click to expand...

Ok this is good to know, I had reached out to them but never heard back. I'll set it up that way with a relay to just turn it on/off, I don't really change the % duty cycle ever or often so that's fine with me.
 
I chatted back and forth with Hayward support and they said with the VS Omni it's best to treat the SWG as a separate component and not to waste a relay for the SWG to just turn it on/off. He suggests since it's got the flow switch just let it do it's thing. For me that's ok, I much rather have pump/heater/light control so I'm good.
 

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He suggests since it's got the flow switch just let it do it's thing.
Click to expand...

That statement is very concerning. The flow switch on a SWCG is a secondary safety device. Removing power to the unit whenever the pump is not on is the primary safety device.

A fail close on the flow switch can result in the SWCG exploding.

I would not recommend relying solely on the flow switch.

Take care.
 
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mknauss said:
That statement is very concerning. The flow switch on a SWCG is a secondary safety device. Removing power to the unit whenever the pump is not on is the primary safety device.

A fail close on the flow switch can result in the SWCG exploding.

I would not recommend relying solely on the flow switch.

Take care.
Click to expand...

Yeah I hear you, here's what I asked: "Ok so there is no down sides or potential issues to the cell with just using the flow-switch to turn it on/off? Was worried about damage but if not that's good." and they replied: "There is absolutely no issue, as long as your AquaRite has a flow switch."

But you are right, the absolute safest thing to do would be to power on/off the SWG to prevent any future issues. Those Cell's are not cheap.
 
mknauss said:
From https://hayward-pool-assets.com/assets/documents/pools/pdf/manuals/AquaRite-AQR-Operation-Installation.pdf?fromCDN=true

"Wire the Aqua Rite to the LOAD SIDE of the filter pump timer. It is very important that the Aqua Rite is powered only when the pump is running."
Click to expand...

Yeah, not sure it's the same when using the VS Omni because it won't really turn the power on/off to the pump it will just reduce the RPM to 0 when not running.

So I think a relay will need to be used.
 
I reached out to Pentair. This will work with a superflo vs, need a relay for each speed vs it uses com cable for the jntelliflow pumps. My case I have main pump heater and a booster pump so only use two speed toggles for main pump. Boaster will be on off but ok as single speed. Heater update to firmware is coming they said and will be able to control temperature. Seems like this was not too successful due to lack of heater option. For the price makes sense for me to replace an old intermatic timer. Waiting for spring at this point. Anyone find it for less than $250?



JeromeM said:
Wow I never even noticed there's no mention of SuperFlo VS control, to be honest I bought the IntelliConnect from my pool store, the one that installed all my equipment :O so you would think they should know.

If they will accept my return of it as it's unopened I will buy the Hayward Omni Pump.
Click to expand...
 
Anyone have any update on the Intelliconnect? I've spent hours on the phone with Pentair and my pool supply and each time I get different compatibility answers. Trying to tie together a 1 year old Pentair Superflo VS, Pentair booster pump supporting a polaris, 1 year old Rheem heater, two lights if possible. Sounds like I need to run a fireman switch to the heater and that the Intelliconnect won't actually control the heater temp, just kick it up when it drops below a preset point and kick it off when it reaches that temp. I've been told I can connect the com port on the superflo to the intelliconnect but i've also been told I can't. If I can't, then why does the superflo have the COM port?
 
wisc4 - My pool guy just installed an intelliconnect with a superflow, and he was told he had to wire the pump to one of the relays not the com port. That being said, this was his first install of one, and he was getting all kinds of conflicting info from Pentairs tech support about that and the intellichlor wiring. As he wired it now, the pump is on one of the relays, so you can only control on/off, not the speed, and the intellichlor is controlled via it's com port. The app will give you salt level and water temp from the intellichlor too. Considering the price (it was only $300), I was happy with that since it gives me control of the intellichlor and my color light so I don't have to go flipping the switch 27 times to change colors. The other plus, is it sets the chlorine generation level to 0 if the pump is off, so no need for any separate relays/timeclocks.
 
wisc4 said:
Anyone have any update on the Intelliconnect? I've spent hours on the phone with Pentair and my pool supply and each time I get different compatibility answers. Trying to tie together a 1 year old Pentair Superflo VS, Pentair booster pump supporting a polaris, 1 year old Rheem heater, two lights if possible. Sounds like I need to run a fireman switch to the heater and that the Intelliconnect won't actually control the heater temp, just kick it up when it drops below a preset point and kick it off when it reaches that temp. I've been told I can connect the com port on the superflo to the intelliconnect but i've also been told I can't. If I can't, then why does the superflo have the COM port?
Click to expand...

some info on intelliconnect and need some help. intelliconnect will not work with a superflo vs, only intelliflo vs/vsf. next year they will have an automation product for the superflo. Reason it will not work ist that you would need a relay for each speed of the pump as the superflo just cant do what the intelliconnect can. It will work with any heater with a digital display, end of story, i dont care what anyone tells you. it will change temps up and down no problem. I have spent a lot of time on the phone with the lead automation people on this so trust me.
one thing i cant get straight yet, and i'm installing tmrw is whether or not the swg has to be wired to relay. the swg instructions say yes. the intelliconnect instructions say no. I spoke directly to pentair automation and they said no. they said since the pump is wired to the intelliconnecdt via low voltage as is the swg it will tell the swg to not produce when flow is low or off, as recognized via the rs low voltage lines. this way, and in my case, you can use the relays as flow dependent devices such as a uv generator and your pentair 5g light.
has anyone attempted this setup?
 
I can confirm the SWG (Intellichlor) does NOT need to be wired to a relay. If the pump is not running, the intelliconnect sets the chlorine output to 0 on the SWG via the RS485 connection (it doesn't power it off). It works this way even if the pump is wired to a relay instead of rs485.
 

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