So I made this little heater at the beginning of the year and I'm pretty proud of it, so I thought I'd share. I live near WashDC, and we have colder nights (low-60s) and yet this thing was able to maintain mid-80's temps in a 12' dia Intex pool. I actually bought the 12' pool as opposed to the 15' specifically so I could heat it easier. I calculate that this costs me $2 to run for 24 hours. I don't run it often, just when we think we'll need it. It takes about 36 hours to get the pool warmed up from a mid-to-low 70's water temp.
It's basically a 1500w bucket heater that cost me $35. I then hooked it up to an 1800W thermo-switch set to 88 degrees. I put the wiring in a waterproof ammo box. I used PVC boards (1" x 2") to build a hangar and then have a velcro strap to attach it to one of the side poles. I used PVC as I thought it would be more moisture resistant than wood. I'd seen others use these types of heaters by hanging them from a board stretched across the pool. What I didn't like about that design is that I was afraid it was going to tear my cover. I have a black solar cover that keeps the leaves out and also adds a lot of heat. Also, I wanted something I could easily pull out and then just rest up against the side of the pool. An 8ft board didn't seem like it was that easy to move.
I ran some 12/2 underground rated wiring to the pool and made an outlet box for it to all plug in to (some earlier photos show an extension cord I used for testing). My wiring is only about 4" below ground as I'll pull it up each year.
My thermo switch died the other day, so now I just plug and unplug as needed.
Pretty happy with this set up. We've gotten a lot more use out of the pool because of it. We'd have packed it away by now if not for the heater. They're predicting another mid-70's week next week and I think that will be our last hurrah.
Next year, I'm considering trying to 'pack' the heating element in a PVC pipe and run it in-line with the return from the filter.
It's basically a 1500w bucket heater that cost me $35. I then hooked it up to an 1800W thermo-switch set to 88 degrees. I put the wiring in a waterproof ammo box. I used PVC boards (1" x 2") to build a hangar and then have a velcro strap to attach it to one of the side poles. I used PVC as I thought it would be more moisture resistant than wood. I'd seen others use these types of heaters by hanging them from a board stretched across the pool. What I didn't like about that design is that I was afraid it was going to tear my cover. I have a black solar cover that keeps the leaves out and also adds a lot of heat. Also, I wanted something I could easily pull out and then just rest up against the side of the pool. An 8ft board didn't seem like it was that easy to move.
I ran some 12/2 underground rated wiring to the pool and made an outlet box for it to all plug in to (some earlier photos show an extension cord I used for testing). My wiring is only about 4" below ground as I'll pull it up each year.
My thermo switch died the other day, so now I just plug and unplug as needed.
Pretty happy with this set up. We've gotten a lot more use out of the pool because of it. We'd have packed it away by now if not for the heater. They're predicting another mid-70's week next week and I think that will be our last hurrah.
Next year, I'm considering trying to 'pack' the heating element in a PVC pipe and run it in-line with the return from the filter.
