Finally have a contract for a pool this April. It will be small 10X20 vinyl inground. average depth 4.5 ft. approx 6500 gallons, 200 sqft surface area. My house faces east . Pool will be right along side the back of the house, it will get very little direct sun due to the house and trees at the back of the small lot. I will be using the same contractor as my last pool. he does excellent work and stands behind it. He will be using heyward products, 1hp varible speed pump , aqua rite scg, sand filter. He doesn't have alot of call for heaters here, and couldn't offer much advice on brands or type. I have a heat pump already for the house. I also have natural gas for hot water and fireplace. I'm looking for help with choosing a heater to extend the season, not for year round swimming as it gets pretty cold here from jan to march. I would have to have a gas person run about 30 ft of pipe to the heater and connect it if I went the gas route. Poolman will install the heater of my choice, I'm assuming the electrical subcontractor would connect a heatpump if I went that route. I'm looking for affordability and dependability. KWH cost is 11 cents. Natural gas is 1.24 per therm. TIA
heater advice
- Thread starter mymiataflys
- Start date
- May 23, 2015
- 25,730
- Pool Size
- 16000
- Surface
- Plaster
- Chlorine
- Salt Water Generator
- SWG Type
- Pentair Intellichlor IC-60
Whichever heater type you use, you absolutely need a bubble cover to retain heat added or else you’re just wasting gas or electricity.
I would go with gas as your installation costs should be minimal given a 30ft run. Figure $12-$15 per linear foot. Make sure your installer knows what they’re doing and is licensed to install gas. If you are going to run directly from the low pressure side of the gas meter, then you need to use larger diameter pipe than if you were to run higher pressure and use a regulator at the heater. Both methods are acceptable but since your run is so short, you can easily get away with low pressure/larger diameter feed line.
Get a Raypak gas heater. They are the most highly recommended brand here, they are very well designed and parts are cheaper for them. All of our gas heater experts and those that work in the industry recommend them. With your small pool volume, a 150kBTU/hr heater would raise your water temp by 1F in roughly 30mins. That’s probably sufficient. You could go up to 200kBTU/hour but that costs more.
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Also, if you design your pool with a main drain, then you can more efficiently heat the pool by drawing cold water from the MD and then returning it to the pool.
I would go with gas as your installation costs should be minimal given a 30ft run. Figure $12-$15 per linear foot. Make sure your installer knows what they’re doing and is licensed to install gas. If you are going to run directly from the low pressure side of the gas meter, then you need to use larger diameter pipe than if you were to run higher pressure and use a regulator at the heater. Both methods are acceptable but since your run is so short, you can easily get away with low pressure/larger diameter feed line.
Get a Raypak gas heater. They are the most highly recommended brand here, they are very well designed and parts are cheaper for them. All of our gas heater experts and those that work in the industry recommend them. With your small pool volume, a 150kBTU/hr heater would raise your water temp by 1F in roughly 30mins. That’s probably sufficient. You could go up to 200kBTU/hour but that costs more.
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Also, if you design your pool with a main drain, then you can more efficiently heat the pool by drawing cold water from the MD and then returning it to the pool.
Nectarologist
Well-known member
- Apr 3, 2015
- 642
- Pool Size
- 21000
- Surface
- Vinyl
- Chlorine
- Salt Water Generator
- SWG Type
- CircuPool RJ-45 Plus
Definitely go with gas. It will work great for extending your swimming season. I'm in NY so my window is probably 2 months shorter than yours but I heat the pool from mid May through September and it's great. I have a different take than JoyfulNoise (except the wasteful part). I don't own a solar cover and while you do lose heat overnight (and waste energy) it's a cost I'm willing to absorb for not having to take the cover off and put it on (or buy it). Plus when I'm not home but the kids are I don't want them or the sitter messing with a cover. My cost is about $1.10 per CCF (includes govt fees). Not sure what that comes to in therms but I have about 21k gallons that I keep at 86 and I haven't seen a bill over $140 than what it was without the pool heater. In mid July to mid August the heater barely kicks on. I'd go with gas and try it without the cover to see what your result it. You can add it but you might find it's not needed. In my area electricity is priced higher in the summer and gas is less in the summer than in the winter. I don't know the exact cost difference to generate the same amount of energy but I'm pretty sure gas is less expensive for me in the summer compared to electricity.
While you're getting the line run branch off for a grill. You'll never need to run to the store for a propane tank again. It will only take the pool excavator an extra 15 minutes to scrape a 2 ft deep trench for the gas line for a grill.
While you're getting the line run branch off for a grill. You'll never need to run to the store for a propane tank again. It will only take the pool excavator an extra 15 minutes to scrape a 2 ft deep trench for the gas line for a grill.
- Jun 7, 2017
- 10,000
- Pool Size
- 29000
- Surface
- Plaster
- Chlorine
- Salt Water Generator
- SWG Type
- Jandy Aquapure 1400
Thanks for the advice.
On another note, I want to thank all the people who have made this forum such a great place for info and advice. I began with the old forum in 03 and saved a lot of money maintaining my old pool with bottled bleach. I've watched this forum from time to time, and am amazed at how it has grown and the quality of it and the people who maintain it. Much like a church , the forum is only as good as the people who attend to it.
Thanks
On another note, I want to thank all the people who have made this forum such a great place for info and advice. I began with the old forum in 03 and saved a lot of money maintaining my old pool with bottled bleach. I've watched this forum from time to time, and am amazed at how it has grown and the quality of it and the people who maintain it. Much like a church , the forum is only as good as the people who attend to it.
Thanks