Newbie Pump RPM & Programming Questions

[parkinsmith]

Another newbie question. About pump RPM's

I am trying to get some education about my pump and pump speeds. The pool builder did all of the pre-programming and set up. I have a Hayward tri star variable speed pump, and it is set up to be controlled by pro logic automation.

All I was shown how to do was adjust the pump, speed up or down through the pro logic automation panel. The speed is displayed by percentage, such as 80%, 50%, etc. It also seems there are only a few percentages to select from on the automation. Here are my questions, some photos are attached.

1. How do I know what the RPMs are that corresponds with each of the percentages that are displayed through automation 80% equals what in RPMs etc.? ( I did look at my pump control panel however, the digital display screen is blank and does not display any numbers)
2. I am looking for education on how to set up a pump run time schedule at various pump speeds. I would like to keep water flowing all the time running 24/7. What are good RPM's for different times of day on a 24/7 schedule for late spring & HOT Texas summer.
3. Is it bad for a pump to run it 24/7?

I am located in central Texas. I have a 15 K gallon pool and run a salt system for chlorination. Grateful for any insight from the group.

 

[ajw22]

1. How do I know what the RPMs are that corresponds with each of the percentages that are displayed through automation 80% equals what in RPMs etc.? ( I did look at my pump control panel however, the digital display screen is blank and does not display any numbers)

100% RPM is 3450. Thus 50% RPM is 1725. You can calculate the RPM using 3450x%RPM.

2. I am looking for education on how to set up a pump run time schedule at various pump speeds. I would like to keep water flowing all the time running 24/7. What are good RPM's for different times of day on a 24/7 schedule for late spring & HOT Texas summer.

From your signature it looks like you have a SWG and no heater. If that is the case you need to do some experimentation and determine what is the minimum % that does not give you a LOW FLOW message. Then add 5% as your minimum speed to run your pump and generate chlorine.

3. Is it bad for a pump to run it 24/7?

No.

 

[Jimrahbe]

PS,

Not sure it really matters, but full speed is 3450, so I would assume that 80% would be about 2760 RPM.

The whole point about running a VS pump is that you want to run it as slow as possible (% or RPM) and still get the job done.

Since you have a SWCG, the slowest speed/% that you ever want to run needs to be fast enough to turn on your SWCG's flow switch. Lower the speed/% until the low flow light comes on then increase it a little to keep the flow light green.

Running that speed 24/7 may be all you need, if your skimmers work well. If not you can add a speed that makes your skimmers work better. You might need a speed to get your heater to work.

There is no one size fits all.. You will need to experiment with your pool and see what works best for you.

I have three salt water pools that all run 24/7, most of the time at 1200 RPM (35%), but I do not have a heater. I've been doing this for over 10 years without any issues.

Thanks,

Jim R,

 

[parkinsmith]

100% RPM is 3450. Thus 50% RPM is 1725. You can calculate the RPM using 3450x%RPM.



From your signature it looks like you have a SWG and no heater. If that is the case you need to do some experimentation and determine what is the minimum % that does not give you a LOW FLOW message. Then add 5% as your minimum speed to run your pump and generate chlorine.



No.

Thanks for the info . I do have a heater but have not really used it yet .

 

[parkinsmith]

PS,

Not sure it really matters, but full speed is 3450, so I would assume that 80% would be about 2760 RPM.

The whole point about running a VS pump is that you want to run it as slow as possible (% or RPM) and still get the job done.

Since you have a SWCG, the slowest speed/% that you ever want to run needs to be fast enough to turn on your SWCG's flow switch. Lower the speed/% until the low flow light comes on then increase it a little to keep the flow light green.

Running that speed 24/7 may be all you need, if your skimmers work well. If not you can add a speed that makes your skimmers work better. You might need a speed to get your heater to work.

There is no one size fits all.. You will need to experiment with your pool and see what works best for you.

I have three salt water pools that all run 24/7, most of the time at 1200 RPM (35%), but I do not have a heater. I've been doing this for over 10 years without any issues.

Thanks,

Jim R,

Thanks Jim ! FYI I do have a heater , have not used it much , How does this effect the pumo settings ?

 

[ajw22]

Thanks for the info . I do have a heater but have not really used it yet .

The heater needs more flow then the SWG. You need to set the ProLogic system so it increases pump speed when the heater is on.

 

[Jimrahbe]

PS,

The more 'stuff' that is in between the pump and where the water goes back to the pool, the more effort it takes to push the water through. More effort requires a faster speed. It does not matter if the heater is on or off, as long as it is in the water flow path, it will require more pump speed to get the same flow. I run at about 1200, most people with a heater have to run at 1500 RPM or more to get the SWCG to work.

Thanks,

Jim R.

 

[parkinsmith]

Thanks Jim ! FYI I do have a heater , have not used it much , How does this effect the pumo settings ?

Thank You !

 

[BoHpool]

Outdoor pool. No automation. I ended up at 2300 RPM running 24 hrs a day. When I open the pool at 8 AM I run the 'cleaning speed' for 60 minutes and again when I close at 10 PM. It's been working ok. There is more floating debris than when running a single-speed pump 24/7 but the water clarity is amazing still. When I tried 2200 RPM the water started to get cloudy that's why 2300 RPM is my setting.

 

[1poolman1]

Thank You !

Is that "Pentair Auto Chlorine Feeder" an inline or offline tablet feeder. If so, please don't use it. They cause damage to pool equipment, especially the last item in the system before them, your very expensive heater. If you are going to use tablets put them in a floating chlorinator in the pool.

 

[parkinsmith]

Is that "Pentair Auto Chlorine Feeder" an inline or offline tablet feeder. If so, please don't use it. They cause damage to pool equipment, especially the last item in the system before them, your very expensive heater. If you are going to use tablets put them in a floating chlorinator in the pool.

Thanks . I do not use that thing, hate it ! I use salt and in the winter when needed liquid

 

[parkinsmith]

Outdoor pool. No automation. I ended up at 2300 RPM running 24 hrs a day. When I open the pool at 8 AM I run the 'cleaning speed' for 60 minutes and again when I close at 10 PM. It's been working ok. There is more floating debris than when running a single-speed pump 24/7 but the water clarity is amazing still. When I tried 2200 RPM the water started to get cloudy that's why 2300 RPM is my setting.

Thanks for the info , what do you mean by cleaning speed ?