Orlando Florida Heat Pump Efficiency (Schedule?)

[ehftwelve]

So I was wondering what would be the most efficient method of heating my pool (in the winter months).

At night, in Orlando, we typically reach LOW temps of 60 degrees (sometimes lower, but just for a few days).

My wife is insistent on heating the pool, and we can afford it... but I'd rather make sure we're heating it the most efficient way.

Target temp is 87. I have a Pentair UltraTemp 140. and a Pentair variable speed pump, all installed in 2018. Also have a Pentair IC40 SWG set at 10%.

Right now the pump runs approx 8-12 hours a day. In the winter days, that typically means the heater is on 100% of the time the pump is on (during the day), and then a lot of heat is lost at night.

Is it more efficient to run the pump/heater for only 8-12 hours a day or should I run the pump at a lower RPM 24 hours a day so that the heater can kick on when the pool needs to be heated and no heat is lost at night? Should mention we currently don't have a pool cover, but the pool company is supposed to (and I will make sure they do) provide us with one.

Pool is 300ish sq ft and about 8600 gallons.

 

[ajw22]

You need to figure out when to get the pool pump and heat pump running to get the pool up to 87 by the time your wife wants to swim in it. That will depend how much heat you lost overnight and so will vary. Then turn off the pump and heater when you are done swimming.

I don't think it more efficient to be heating the water overnight when not in use as long as your heater can overcome the nights temperature drop.

 

[ChuckTin]

The _most_ effective pool heater is probably Electric. The _most_ efficient (read cheapest generating heat) is probably a solar array on your roof.
Electric is quick and will heat now, probably pricey to install, and pricey to run.
Solar panels on your roof gets you cheap heat (sunlight is mostly free) but works best as close to the pool as possible and you have to trust that the installers do it right, your roof is oriented correctly, and the structure can take the load.
Sidebar: one of the first things we did (small inground pool) was to disconnect and remove the solar heating panels. They were huge and to far away from the pool to be that effective.

 

[mas985]

Is it more efficient to run the pump/heater for only 8-12 hours a day or should I run the pump at a lower RPM 24 hours a day so that the heater can kick on when the pool needs to be heated and no heat is lost at night? Should mention we currently don't have a pool cover, but the pool company is supposed to (and I will make sure they do) provide us with one.

First, you must have a cover otherwise you won't be able to maintain heat. Second, heat pump efficiency when heating increases with air temperature so you probably want to use the heater as much as possible in the warmest part of the day. Lower RPM will be slightly less efficient because heat loss increases with lower flow rates because the water out of the heater is warmer. So my suggestion would be to run the heat pump during the warmest part of the day and only for only those hours required to maintain temperature. Some experimentation might be necessary to determine how much run time is required each day to maintain temperature.

 

[sktn77a]

27 degrees might be asking a lot of a heatpump - they come in smaller sizes than gas heaters (only up to about 120,000 btu). I'd talk to a couple of pool heatpump companies and ask them, given the size of your pool and the temperatures you are dealing with, if their heatpumps will work.

 

[kairus00]

You need a cover, that's for sure. Run the heat pump during the warmest time of the day since that's when it will be the most efficient. You may have to run it overnight to keep the temperature where you want it, but you'll just have to see what works for your conditions.