Hello everyone. I am chad and from nw ohio. I have had a couple of intex easy set pools and this spring gotten a metal frame pool. Its a 10' round by 30" deep. Same size as the easy set ones but kept having air ring leaking on me. My 2 boys 3 and 6 love the pool and i keep trying to make it better for them. I have had no issues with chlorine or ph with the pool and shock it every week or 2. Never had any algae issues or otherwise with pool. I have just recently fabricated a water fountain for the pool and its great. I am running the 1000 gph intex rx1000 pump. When i run the fountain i have to shut valve off of the return fully for it to work. I am curious as to how big of a pump i would need to run to get the fountain at same time as return as i like to keep the water moving. I included a couple of pics for the layout of the pump and fountain. Any questions let me know. Thank you for any advice and suggestions.
New to forums and unsure where this goes...
- Thread starter Chad1979
- Start date
Hello and Welcome to TFP!!
Congrats on the pool. It's great to hear the kiddos love it. I like how you did the hard plumb and got it all fitted together. Thanks for the pics. It's difficult to find pieces to get the odd sized Intex married to the standard plumbing sizes. Can you tell us what size rubber couplers you used on the return side and at the pump?
On to your question. I would think that a 1/2 hp pump should be enough to do what you want. It should be able to give you the pressures you need without going overboard. If you look at Craigslist or Letgo or similar you can probably find something that'll work without breaking the bank.
Congrats on the pool. It's great to hear the kiddos love it. I like how you did the hard plumb and got it all fitted together. Thanks for the pics. It's difficult to find pieces to get the odd sized Intex married to the standard plumbing sizes. Can you tell us what size rubber couplers you used on the return side and at the pump?
On to your question. I would think that a 1/2 hp pump should be enough to do what you want. It should be able to give you the pressures you need without going overboard. If you look at Craigslist or Letgo or similar you can probably find something that'll work without breaking the bank.
Thank you!
The rubber couplers are 1 1/2 " to 1 1/4" with hose clamps included. The pvc is all 1 1/2".I spent about 50 bucks on the pvc and ball valves for it. Took me about an hour to measure cut amd dry fit it together and another 30 to glue. I had never done anything before with pvc so i was pretty excited with how it turned out. Plan to hard plumb intake side of pump as well but waiting to find the correct pump filter before doing that side.
So would an intex 2500 gph be sufficient looking to stay cartridge filter yet as im not sure on if we will go bigger pool in future or not and dont want to commit to sand and then have that be too small in future.
The rubber couplers are 1 1/2 " to 1 1/4" with hose clamps included. The pvc is all 1 1/2".I spent about 50 bucks on the pvc and ball valves for it. Took me about an hour to measure cut amd dry fit it together and another 30 to glue. I had never done anything before with pvc so i was pretty excited with how it turned out. Plan to hard plumb intake side of pump as well but waiting to find the correct pump filter before doing that side.
So would an intex 2500 gph be sufficient looking to stay cartridge filter yet as im not sure on if we will go bigger pool in future or not and dont want to commit to sand and then have that be too small in future.
Looks like you'll spend nearly as much on the 2500gph cartridge filter as you will on a 2800gph sand filter/pump. I can't recommend getting away from the cartridge filter more... The sand filter is far superior and so much easier to clean (backwash), and you can run a pretty big pool on 2800gph.
For comparison purposes, I'm running a 1200gph baby size sand filter on an 18x9x52 and on week 3 it's surprisingly doing a fine job even if I think it's too little for the through wall skimmer. It does have to be backwashed more frequently than I'd like and I have a 2600gph with a monster sand filter that I'm just waiting for the equipment to stop stinking to hook up in tandem with the 1200gph. At that point I'll have more than enough filtration and water movement. I tend to want to go a little overboard on filtration though, and I have both systems so I'll just use them.
Amazon.com : Intex Krystal Clear Sand Filter Pump for Above Ground Pools, 12-inch with GFCI and Intex Deluxe Wall Mount Surface Skimmer : Garden & Outdoor
Amazon.com : Intex Krystal Clear Sand Filter Pump for Above Ground Pools, 12-inch with GFCI and Intex Deluxe Wall Mount Surface Skimmer : Garden & Outdoor
www.amazon.com
For comparison purposes, I'm running a 1200gph baby size sand filter on an 18x9x52 and on week 3 it's surprisingly doing a fine job even if I think it's too little for the through wall skimmer. It does have to be backwashed more frequently than I'd like and I have a 2600gph with a monster sand filter that I'm just waiting for the equipment to stop stinking to hook up in tandem with the 1200gph. At that point I'll have more than enough filtration and water movement. I tend to want to go a little overboard on filtration though, and I have both systems so I'll just use them.
I don't know about the 2500 honestly. If you like the fountain at 1000gph (17gpm), then double that would be right around the size of the 2500. The pump is probably rated at 2500gph (41gpm) at no pressure. It lists a running rate of 1900gph (31gpm).
Thanks for the info. Question about the sand filter. How much does the sand media run typically?
I like the fountain at the current pumps full flow which is about 3 to 4 feet into the pool. But with the current pump, the return has to be fully closed. I would like to be able to run the return flow open and then be able to open or close the fountain to desired height. I had added the 2 ball valves to the system as i had planned on needing both to shut off the fountain when not wanted to use it vs what i have to do now with shutting off the return valve. As well as to make it easier to change or clean the filter
The 1200gph baby filter took half a bag of sand, which cost $12.xx/bag at Ace Hardware. The larger one that I have (16" 2600gph) will probably take ~1.5 bags.
Bear in mind that your fountain is aerating, and therefore is going to make your pH rise. Only run it when you really need it, unless for some reason you need to raise your pH.
Wobblerlorri
Bronze Supporter
- Apr 16, 2019
- 2,010
- Pool Size
- 4024
- Surface
- Vinyl
- Chlorine
- Liquid Chlorine
We got our sand at the local pool store. $7.99 for a 50 lb bag. DO NOT buy Quikrete sand at Home Depot!! It isn't #20 grade sand -- it is #20/#40 grade mixed, and the #40 sand tends to get blown out of the filter into the pool.
Thanks for the help. I run the fountain only when kids are in pool or in evening if im outside for the pleasant sound, which is usually on weekends and only for a couple hours at a time. I'll do some more looking to figure out what to do about upgrading the pump. Not sure if it'll happen this season yet or next spring. This is a great place and I'm glad to have stumbled into this place. Plenty to learn here.
