i have a question about the width of the spillway on our raised spa. Our spa is going to be raised 12" and our pb says the max width they recommend for the spillway is 5'. I wanted a wider spillway for a more dramatic effect but something about to much volume of water for the pump to handle is limiting the size per the pb. Are there alternatives to make a wider spillway? Dedicated pump?
Spa spillway width?
- Thread starter Bhebert449
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i have a question about the width of the spillway on our raised spa. Our spa is going to be raised 12" and our pb says the max width they recommend for the spillway is 5'. I wanted a wider spillway for a more dramatic effect but something about to much volume of water for the pump to handle is limiting the size per the pb. Are there alternatives to make a wider spillway? Dedicated pump?
A dedicated pump would definitely work but will not be cheap. You should also think about the people sitting in the spa when the spillway is running - that's a lot of water that will be flowing past them.
Have you thought about splitting the spillway into 2? Basically put a little raised piece in the middle maybe 12" wide. That way you could extend the overall width of the feature but keep within the flow limits your PB recommends?
Have you thought about splitting the spillway into 2? Basically put a little raised piece in the middle maybe 12" wide. That way you could extend the overall width of the feature but keep within the flow limits your PB recommends?
The spillway would only flow when it is recirculating with the pool. When on spa mode it would not flow over the spillway. Here is a pic of the effect I am going for
There's really no limit on the width, but the wider you go, the more pressure you'll need to make the water "spill" over the edge as opposed to "trickle" over (as in the pic above).
Thanks. What is the best way to increase pressure? My plan calls for a single 2 hp to run the pool, spa and 2 gushers. When in pool mode the valves will be set to recirculate the spa and pool as well as power the gushers. When in spa mode, all flow will be diverted to the spa and pool and gushers will not circulate. Do I need a larger pump? Should I run the gushers off a dedicated small booster pump?
Pressure can be increased a few different ways ... using a dedicated pump for the spa, running a single pump at a higher speed, or using different combinations of pipes and valves. You'd have to work with the person plumbing your pool to see what would be needed to get the exact "spillover effect" you are after. As long as you're not trying to re-create Niagra Falls, it's certainly doable.
Esloser
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I would also think about getting a separate pump for the “gushers”. Are those similar to the deck jets in the picture above. That way you can run them while you main pump is running the spa. I wouldn’t have thought if that but my PB brought it to my attention.
You don't want pressure, you want volume and for that it would require a waterfall pump like the Pentair AFP-180.
A 2hp pump is a high head pump that will cavitate with high flow rates and little to no back pressure.
A 2hp pump is a high head pump that will cavitate with high flow rates and little to no back pressure.
Can you run a separate pump and still recirculate the spa with the pool through the filter and salt cell?
So just a larger pump to run the pool/spa correct? We have a 2hp whisperflow in our plan. Maybe a small booster pump to run the sun bench gushers and a larger pump to run the pool and spa? What sizes do they come in? Should we go with a variable speed?
A variable speed pump would be ideal. You could even have two of them and use the water feature pump to supplement the spillway if you desired. I like the Pentair Intelliflo XFs. The are only a small amount more than the standard versions but flow a good amount more water.
With VS pumps you can really dial in the flow for each feature you are looking to run.
I will never recommend a booster pump for anything...you want flow, not pressure.
With VS pumps you can really dial in the flow for each feature you are looking to run.
I will never recommend a booster pump for anything...you want flow, not pressure.
Yeah, I agree you want flow ... but it ain't gonna flow by itself. It's gotta have pressure behind it. I agree, a separateVS pump would be a good choice
The pumps I'm referring to will flow close to 200 gpm with less than 10 feet of head at just a few PSI. A typical pool pump will cavitate, be extremely loud and horribly inefficient since it is operating way outside of it's performance curve.
Yes you can but you will limit yourself to what you can do. You won't be able to have water features going with the spa on.
There VS pumps are 3hp uprated
There VS pumps are 3hp uprated
I would strongly encourage you to take his advice. Trust me I learned the hard way :/. My set up finally works but is more complicated than it should be and requires extra actuators.
oh and my spillway is just shy of 6 ft in length at the top and it's a tiered rock spillway. It runs off a 3hp VSP and can just trickle down or gush water