Lowering Pump Speed and Run Time to "Just Enough"

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J

JackthesE

Member
Jul 15, 2021
12
Orange County, CA
I've owned my pool since 1977 (yep, 45 years!), and back then, I had a single speed 3HP pump running 8 hours a day, based on advice from neighbors. The pool only has about 16,000 gallons, but the pump, filter and heater were sized for the attached spa. I replaced all the equipment 10 years ago with Pentair equipment: variable speed 3HP pump, new filter and heater, and an Intellichlor IC40.

On a quest to see just how much pump runtime is really needed, I began to lower the pump RPM and the daily runtime. Max speed of the pump is 3450 rpm, but I run it at 2600 rpm, fast enough to keep my Zodiac MX happy. At this speed, the pump only uses 980 Watts if the filter is clean. I'm currently running the pump for only 2-1/2 hours/day, with the chlorinator set to 60%. It's summertime here in Orange County, CA, and the water always looks clear, there is no algae, and it tests just fine at Leslies. The Zodiac seems to gobble up everything each day. Yes, the pool is lightly used, and my landscape plants were chosen to minimize debris. The pump flow curve suggests I'm getting just over one water turnover per day, as recommended in the WiKi at this website.

But this seem grossly less than the conventional wisdom out there. Has anyone else explored doing this? My motivation was just to be as green as I could be on this, nothing more.
 
JackthesE said:
I'm getting just over one water turnover per day,
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Jack,

You only need to run your pump long enough to make the chlorine your pool needs each day. The idea that you must turn over x amount of water per day is a myth. You can run it much longer if you want, but it is not necessary.

You do need to run fast enough to turn on your SWCG and to run your cleaner. In my case I can run at 1200 RPM, which turns on my SWCG and skims the pool well. If I had a heater, I'd have to run at 1500 to 1800 RPM. I use a robot cleaner, so I don't have to run the pump at all for that to work.

Thanks,

Jim R.
 
The pump only need to be run long enough to produce the required FC per day, run the vacuum and keep the pool crystal clear. The rpm needed will be dependent on what your vacuum and skimmer needs to adequately keep the pool clean.

The issue with only 2.5 hours of runtime at 60% is that you're only getting .7 ppm of chlorine daily from your SWG. That is nowhere near enough.
 
I'll also add in that it can also be beneficial to run your pump longer, IF you're in an area where you might need it to run in order to clear debris/leaves from your pools surface (via the skimmer(s)) or floor (via the main drain(s)), but if your pool is clear of Crud, then yeah, it really only needs to be run to to keep your chlorine levels appropriate based on your SWG, -or- when you want to heat your pool and warm water coming in via your return(s).
 
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