Question regarding swapping a single speed pump for a VS with Intellicenter automation.

[Mark McLeroy]

Hi All:
Please bear with me, I’m kinda new at this. I had a Pentair single speed Whisperflo 1.5HP pump last year and I am upgrading to a Pentair VS 3HP (Model #: 011028). I also have a Pentair Intellicenter for automation. The PB fabricated a 220V power cord for my single speed pump, and it of course plugs into a 220V receptacle. Since my single speed pump does not have a RS-485 port, the Intellicenter seemed to turn it on and off using a relay that turns power to the 220 receptacle on and off.
I would like to attempt swapping the single speed pump for the VS speed pump myself. I know that means removing the single speed pump from the Intellicenter and adding the VS. My question is if I remove the single speed pump from the Intellicenter is there a way to keep power to the 220 volt receptacle fulltime WITHOUT any rewiring.

 

[Jimrahbe]

Mark,

Your old single speed pump is getting its AC power from the Load side of your Pump/Filter relay. When you install your new VS pump, all you need to do is move the power going to your pump from the Load side of the relay, over to the Line side of the relay, and your pump will get constant AC power.

Note that you will have to assign pump speeds to all the circuits you want the pump to run, inside the IntelliCenter.

Thanks,

Jim R.

 

[Mark McLeroy]

Mark,

Your old single speed pump is getting its AC power from the Load side of your Pump/Filter relay. When you install your new VS pump, all you need to do is move the power going to your pump from the Load side of the relay, over to the Line side of the relay, and your pump will get constant AC power.

Note that you will have to assign pump speeds to all the circuits you want the pump to run, inside the IntelliCenter.

Thanks,

Jim R.

Thanks Jim.

Mark McLeroy

 

[1poolman1]

Turn off the, hopefully GFCI, breaker when doing the work. The NEC requires one be installed when a new pump or motor is installed and Pentair won't do warranty work if the proper (Siemans) brand isn't in place. They are now outrageously priced, but required.

 

[Mark McLeroy]

Turn off the, hopefully GFCI, breaker when doing the work. The NEC requires one be installed when a new pump or motor is installed and Pentair won't do warranty work if the proper (Siemans) brand isn't in place. They are now outrageously priced, but required.

Are you referring to the breaker in the Intellicenter that is powering the pump?

 

[1poolman1]

Are you referring to the breaker in the Intellicenter that is powering the pump?

Yes.

 

[Mark McLeroy]

Yes.

Yep. It's a GFCI breaker. I'll turn it off before I start the install.

 

[Mark McLeroy]

Alright, I'm almost there. I replaced the single speed pump with the Intelliflo. I did just as Jimrahbe siad and moved the 220V outlet wires to the line side of the Pump/Filter relay (after killing the circuit breaker) and all went well (no automatic defibrillator needed). I left the Intellichlor SWG on the load side of the Pump[/Filter relay. Went to the Intellicenter2 web portal and created some Feature Circuits for the pump speeds I want to use. I then removed the single speed pump and added the new Intelliflo pump (with all the circuits I created). I have not created any schedules yet. Now here is my problem. With the single speed pump I would open the app and I would have my 2 bodies showing (pool and spa). It I pressed pool and turned it on, the pump would start and the SWG came on. If I turned off the pool the pump and SWG would shut down. Now if I manually turn on the pool the SWG powers up but the pump does not start (this is very bad)!
Also, when I created the feature circuits I check the box that read "Show in features" just so I had quick access to them. If I have everything shut down and I go to features and start one of the speeds I created, the pump starts up but the SWG does not power up. I'm not sure what I'm missing, do schedules have to be created for all this to work? And most of all, how to I keep the SWG from coming on without the pump when I manually start the pool? I hope I was good at explaining the problem. LOL.

 

[Jimrahbe]

Mark,

The SWCG will power up anytime it "thinks" the pump is running and you are in the Pool or Spa mode. This should not happen often, and the flow switch should keep the cell off.

You need to understand how this works. You always want the Pool or Spa circuits on when the pump is going to run.

Here is a crude example.

Say you want the pump to run at 1200 RPM from 8 am until 9 am and then at 9 you want the pump speed to increase to 1500 RPM until 10 am.

Do not schedule this way...
Pool (1200 RPM) from 8 am unit 9 am. The pump will run at 1200 RPM and the SWCG will run because you are in the Pool mode..
Feature 1 (1500 RPM) from 9 am until 10 am. The pump will run at 1500, but the SWCG will not run as you are not in the Pool or Spa mode

Schedule this way.
Pool (1200 RPM) from 8 am unit 10 am. The pump will run at 1200 RPM until 9 when it will increase in speed to 1500 RPM until 10 am
Feature 1 (1500 RPM) from 9 am until 10 am. The SWCG will run the entire time as you are always in the pool mode.

When the pump sees two or more speeds it will always run the faster one.

One reason I run 24/7, is that I am making a little chlorine all the time and it means I never have to manually turn my pump on or off. If I want my pump to stop I just but the system into the Service mode. (That is what it is for)

If you don't want to run 24/7, just set the Pool Circuit to be on for the total amount of time you want the pump to run and set it to the lowest speed that will turn on the SWCG.

Thanks,

Jim R.

 

[Mark McLeroy]

Mark,

The SWCG will power up anytime it "thinks" the pump is running and you are in the Pool or Spa mode. This should not happen often, and the flow switch should keep the cell off.

You need to understand how this works. You always want the Pool or Spa circuits on when the pump is going to run.

Here is a crude example.

Say you want the pump to run at 1200 RPM from 8 am until 9 am and then at 9 you want the pump speed to increase to 1500 RPM until 10 am.

Do not schedule this way...
Pool (1200 RPM) from 8 am unit 9 am. The pump will run at 1200 RPM and the SWCG will run because you are in the Pool mode..
Feature 1 (1500 RPM) from 9 am until 10 am. The pump will run at 1500, but the SWCG will not run as you are not in the Pool or Spa mode

Schedule this way.
Pool (1200 RPM) from 8 am unit 10 am. The pump will run at 1200 RPM until 9 when it will increase in speed to 1500 RPM until 10 am
Feature 1 (1500 RPM) from 9 am until 10 am. The SWCG will run the entire time as you are always in the pool mode.

When the pump sees two or more speeds it will always run the faster one.

One reason I run 24/7, is that I am making a little chlorine all the time and it means I never have to manually turn my pump on or off. If I want my pump to stop I just but the system into the Service mode. (That is what it is for)

If you don't want to run 24/7, just set the Pool Circuit to be on for the total amount of time you want the pump to run and set it to the lowest speed that will turn on the SWCG.

Thanks,

Jim R.

Thanks Jim.. With your guidance my new VS pump is up and running and I have a solid understanding of Intellicenters circuits.