Pentair EasyTouch4 with Calimar VS Pump

[w392598]

I currently have Pentair EasyTouch4 and a single speed Pentair pump. The Panel controls everything. I'm looking to move to a variable speed pump and will likely try a non-Pentair version to save some money and get additional flow (likely the Calimar 3HP VS Pump). The main goal is to save some electricity which is running me about $100 per month. I'm thinking i can set this up in one of two ways:

1. Wire directly from breaker to pump (likely preferred way). Leave the rest of the system aligned to controller.
2. Wire from EasyTouch to pump but set up EasyTouch to be on all the time. The pump controller would manage the time.

While the automation system is nice, i'm not sure how necessary it is. What am i missing?

Thanks in advance.

 

[HermanTX]

I currently have Pentair EasyTouch4 and a single speed Pentair pump. The Panel controls everything. I'm looking to move to a variable speed pump and will likely try a non-Pentair version to save some money and get additional flow (likely the Calimar 3HP VS Pump). The main goal is to save some electricity which is running me about $100 per month. I'm thinking i can set this up in one of two ways:

1. Wire directly from breaker to pump (likely preferred way). Leave the rest of the system aligned to controller.
2. Wire from EasyTouch to pump but set up EasyTouch to be on all the time. The pump controller would manage the time.

While the automation system is nice, i'm not sure how necessary it is. What am i missing?

Thanks in advance.

You show that you have a booster pump for cleaner. If that is controlled by automation then it will look to ensure that pump is turned on and at proper speed.
If you power your 3rd party pump via the automation system and do NOT have a RS485 control cable to control it then the automation will just treat it as on/off device. So your schedule times and pump speeds will need to set on the pump directly.
Just ensure you have the proper speed to support your booster pump. Also run the pump from automation as on 24/7 and let the schedule on the pump dictate speed and times of operation.
Similarly, your automation which is controlling the heater will not start it unless the pump is on. You normally need to have higher flow when running your heater so again you need to coordinate what you set on the pump meets the requirement of other device you want to operate.