Pool Equipment Layout Advice

[jdbucksavage]

Obvious under construction disclaimers aside...

We put the pool in last fall, right before the close of the season and I asked them to temporarily plumb in the equipment since the final location of the pad and shed/pool house was not yet known.

Those questions have all been answered and I am getting ready to lift and shift the equipment over to the pad this coming week and I am struggling with how I want to lay it out when I replumb it all. I have everything I need, new everything so assume nothing is staying other than the two 1.5" coming from the skimmer and center drain and the one for the return. I plan on bolting down the Frog and the VS pump.

The Jandy filter's input/output, coupled with the input/output of the heat pump has been causing me the most trouble. The installer did not put a check value after the heat pump and before the Frog, which I will be doing and I have Blue-White FLOWREAD that needs to go between the filter and the heat pump which requires a fair length of straight run to function properly.

Are there any kind souls out there that have gone through this themselves and have some sage advice on how they would approach it so I can avoid a second replumbing due to there being a much better layout that my brain did not see and similarly will not allow me leave alone?

 

[ajw22]

Welcome to TFP.

Get rid of the Frog Mineral system and install a SWG. The Frog system adds metals to your pool that can stain your pool. IT does a lousy job of sanitizing your pool. Now is the time to install a SWG.

Alternative sanitizers and "chemical free" pools--The Truth!

Pool owners frequently seek out "Chemical Free" alternatives to pool water sanitization. Many claims in favor of these systems and methods have been made (usually by the manufacturers of such systems) often without adequate scientific proof of their efficacy. Let's take a look at them and see...

www.troublefreepool.com

Make sure you use all Schedule 40 fittings and no DWV fittings. Read PVC Repair - Further Reading

How are you going to flip around the suction and returns to point to your new pad?

 

[jdbucksavage]

Welcome to TFP.

Get rid of the Frog Mineral system and install a SWG. The Frog system adds metals to your pool that can stain your pool. IT does a lousy job of sanitizing your pool. Now is the time to install a SWG.

Alternative sanitizers and "chemical free" pools--The Truth!

Pool owners frequently seek out "Chemical Free" alternatives to pool water sanitization. Many claims in favor of these systems and methods have been made (usually by the manufacturers of such systems) often without adequate scientific proof of their efficacy. Let's take a look at them and see...

www.troublefreepool.com

Make sure you use all Schedule 40 fittings and no DWV fittings. Read PVC Repair - Further Reading

How are you going to flip around the suction and returns to point to your new pad?

I will look into the SWG later tonight. Regarding the suction and returns, they will be cut and new fittings installed. With respect to the fittings, yes, everything is sch 40 (or 80). Beyond the normal pool elbows and pipe, these are the fittings/couplers/valves I am using.

 

[ajw22]

Use all diverter valves rather than those ball valves.

Install a Heater Bypass - Further Reading

 

[jdbucksavage]

Use all diverter valves rather than those ball valves.

Install a Heater Bypass - Further Reading

I have diverters for where bypasses are advantageous. The ball valves are for a couple of places that a diverter did not make sense and I truly want to stop water flow which also serve as a removable coupler if necessary. I might not use them at all but have them on hand if necessary.

 

[jdbucksavage]

@ajw22 I ordered the Core Control 35 today and will be part of the installation, replacing the Frog. Thank you.

Any advice on the plumbing layout/equipment orientation from experience? All the the equipment seems to be designed to ensure the least optimal configuration, which would make a lot more sense if it was not all the same brand. The output from the pump is of course vertical and that running into filter is straight forward. However, the output of the filter is on the same side as the input and the orientation of the input/output of the heat pump, which are on the bottom-rear of the unit orients the controls for it awkwardly on an opposite corner. I have come up with multiple layouts and all of them have way more 90's in them than I would normally like to see. I may be overthinking the impact of the friction of all of the angles but since it is 1.5" plumbing to the pool, I was trying to optimize where I could.

 

[ajw22]

@ajw22 I ordered the Core Control 35 today and will be part of the installation, replacing the Frog. Thank you.

How many gallons in your pool?

We recommend a SWG be 2X your pool volume.

Any advice on the plumbing layout/equipment orientation from experience? All the the equipment seems to be designed to ensure the least optimal configuration, which would make a lot more sense if it was not all the same brand. The output from the pump is of course vertical and that running into filter is straight forward. However, the output of the filter is on the same side as the input and the orientation of the input/output of the heat pump, which are on the bottom-rear of the unit orients the controls for it awkwardly on an opposite corner. I have come up with multiple layouts and all of them have way more 90's in them than I would normally like to see. I may be overthinking the impact of the friction of all of the angles but since it is 1.5" plumbing to the pool, I was trying to optimize where I could.

I would use all 2” PVC at the equipment pad .

The friction of 90s do not matter much the way we run VS pumps slowly.

Do whatever for the best over layout. Life is full of compromises.

 

[jdbucksavage]

How many gallons in your pool?

We recommend a SWG be 2X your pool volume.


I would use all 2” PVC at the equipment pad .

The friction of 90s do not matter much the way we run VS pumps slowly.

Do whatever for the best over layout. Life is full of compromises.

Pool is ~16,500 so the 35 is right sized @ slightly more than 2x. Regarding the plumbing, you are advocating using 2" between the equipment with both the suction and return side being 1.5"? I certainly can, I would just have exchange the diverters, couplers, etc but I have not found anything that explained the value of doing so and quite a few sources, including threads on here, that suggested it would add little to no value. I certainly want to do so if there is a benefit to doing so since I am about to set this all up from scratch.

 

[ajw22]

2” pipe and fittings reduces the resistance in the part of the plumbing you can control.

If you want to squeeze every bit of efficiency into your plumbing then use 2” rather than 1.5”.

If you use 1.5” it will work fine, you will never know the difference, and it will be a bit less efficient.

You are the one that brought up optimizing where you can.

 

[ajw22]

Read Equipment Pad Best Practices - Further Reading

Your pump can push more than 50 GPM which makes 2” pipe preferable.