Hello folks. I figured this was probably the most applicable section of the forum to ask this. When I first planned my pool, I hired a well respected local pool forensics/inspector, Rick English. In our discussion about pumps, he stated that a very small pump running around the clock was better than a large one running for a few hours per day. His point was with a small pump, filtration and chlorination was constantly happening as opposed to water stagnating for long periods with the large pump. Obviously, a large pump would be needed for vacuuming and spa jets, so multiple pumps would be necessary. I don't recall the pool size he mentioned, but he said an engineer friend of his was getting excellent results running a 1/4 hp pump.
With my 32K gallon pool, that means I would need a little over 22 gpm flow. I've been considering a 1/15 hp Waterways pond pump 3410020-1E. It's rated at 40 gpm with no head but still flows at 22 as long as pressure doesn't exceed 6 psi at the filter - that's IF I'm interpreting the chart right. I plan to replace the cartridge filter with a 60 sf Pentair DE filter. With a smaller pump, I would expect lower back pressure at the filter due to lower flow, providing I keep the filter cleaned. I have a second DE filter and am considering using the lesser restricted DE filter for small pump use (I already figured out an automatic controller circuit for turning on the larger pump for the pool heater, but that's for another discussion).
Does anyone here run a <1 hp pump 24/7?
This looks like the right group of folks who would know. Thanks in advance.
With my 32K gallon pool, that means I would need a little over 22 gpm flow. I've been considering a 1/15 hp Waterways pond pump 3410020-1E. It's rated at 40 gpm with no head but still flows at 22 as long as pressure doesn't exceed 6 psi at the filter - that's IF I'm interpreting the chart right. I plan to replace the cartridge filter with a 60 sf Pentair DE filter. With a smaller pump, I would expect lower back pressure at the filter due to lower flow, providing I keep the filter cleaned. I have a second DE filter and am considering using the lesser restricted DE filter for small pump use (I already figured out an automatic controller circuit for turning on the larger pump for the pool heater, but that's for another discussion).
Does anyone here run a <1 hp pump 24/7?
This looks like the right group of folks who would know. Thanks in advance.
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