I run my pool pump about 6 hours a day as recommended by the builder. I think this is excessive from the calculations I have made from several websites which recommend 2 to 3 hours a day for my equipment. The pump is a Whisperflow WF26 @ 1.5 HP and plumbed with 2 inch PVC. The cartridge filter is a Pentair CC150 with 150 square feet of media and runs clean at 8psi. The pool is somewhere around 9500 gallons and is screened in to keep the creatures of Florida out. As far as "feet of head" I can only guess at 40 or so. I have had no problems with the pool but would like to save on the electric bill if at all possible. Can I get away with 3 hours or so?? Thanks in advance for any help.....Ross
I was told by my friend (who owns a service company that services several Las Vegas hotels) that you should run the pump one hour a day for every ten degrees of maximum temperature, with an eight your max. I think your water would get skanky real soon at two hours a day. Swimming pool water skankiness is far far easier to prevent than to cure.
July 15, 2002: Our Pool in Buffalo NY Theory and Care and Feeding of our 12,000 gallons of pool water which is 3-1/2 ft. deep: BEGINNER PAGE
ADD WATER [hose fills the pool at only one-half inch per hour]. Water level in the skimmer box should be 2/3 full plus whatever you are about to use for vacuuming and backwashing. Skimmer Box Level must not be below 1/2 or the pump will suck air thru the skimmer box, damaging the pump. Skimmer Box Level must not be full, or the skimmer can't skim the floating leaves off. Add water as needed for vacuuming to waste, backwashing, and rinsing, and to replace evaporation and splashed water. Hose water to fill the pool: At 11 Upper kitchen, it takes 30 seconds to fill a one-gallon pitcher with cold water. Hose delivery will be faster at the pool [at ground level without kitchen fixture]. Use 2 hoses without nozzles for filling. 12,000 gallons at only 2 gpm takes 6000 minutes divided by 60 minutes in an hour = 100 hours, to fill to 42 inches. But that's at a fill rate of only .42" per hour. Our average water depth is 3.5 feet. Walls are 4 feet tall. The capacity of a Circular shaped pool, which measures 24 feet in diameter with a depth of 3.5 feet of water , is approximately 11894.4 gallons.
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Manually clean the Pool: Use hand skimmer to remove leaves, etc.
In your swimsuit, whirlpool your bottom leaves to the center, to make vacuuming easy.
Empty skimmer basket. 5. Empty pump basket.
Vacuum to Waste never to Filter. Vacuuming requires a higher level of genius intelligence than usual. Find the skimmer box's insert adapter, vacuum hose, and brush head on extension handle. a. Hose dirt off the vacuum hose. Connect 30-foothose to brush head with extension handle, submerge vacuum brush head with vacuum hose attached. b. Turn pump on in Filter mode. Fill the floating vacuum hose to with fast return hose from filter [or slow garden hose] until air bubbles stop. This will take several minutes. You may encourage the air bubbles to move along by tipping the vacuum hose to allow the air bubbles to get pushed out the submerged brush head. c. Pump off. Quickly attach vacuum hose thru from pool to skimmer box insert adapter while keeping brush submerged. Pump on in Waste mode.
BACKWASH: Pump's SAND FILTER likes low 10 pounds pressure on the gauge. When pressure reaches over 10 pounds: operate BACKWASH for 2 minutes, RINSE for 1 minute, and FILTER. [Watch the clock or you will pump out your water to the bottom of the skimmer box and cause pump damage. The water cools the pump!]
POOL CHEMICALS: Do not mix chemicals. Choose the most suitable one for the dose.
Leaves, dirt, and sunshine reduce the chlorine level. 1. Avoid skin contact. 2. With filter running, and when swimming is over for the day, add to empty skimmer basket and run pump overnight. 3. Rinse hands, measuring devices, and bottle. Circulate liquid bleach 5 minutes or dissolve 5 oz. granular 10 minutes minimum.
Bad Water? If water is cloudy or green algae or "heavy bather load" or chlorine smell is present: a. If going swimming now add big 22 oz. scoop of granular Oxygen [sodium persulfate] to skimmer basket with pump running for 10 minutes or until return hose is clear. b. If after swimming time add shock dose to skimmer with pump running:
22 oz. granular chlorine for our 12,000 gallons. Also use shock dose of 22oz. weekly during 80-degree hot weather, and August algae season. Note August hose water may arrive with higher levels of chlorine, so it's always best to test.
Testing. If water is sparkling clear [object on the floor of the pool appears in focus], test the water at 18-inch depth with 5 yellow drops in chlorine tester. For an unstabilized pool: CHLORINE: Pool "hockey pucks" are EXPENSIVE STABILIZED CHLORINE: maintain
1.0 to 1.5 ppm chlorine. One 3" tablet per week or as needed to maintain proper chlorine levels. Dosage may vary depending upon water condition, bather load, time of day and geographical location.] When tester shows 1.0 ppm or less, just add a chlorine "hockey puck" tablet to an empty skimmer.] GRANULAR CHLORINE: If tester results are clear [with zero ppm], add routine chlorine dose with pump running: 5 oz granular chlorine for our 12,000 gallons. Maintain 0.6 to 1.0 ppm chlorine when using granular chlorine. CLOROX: If you are going swimming now you may use Regular dose of liquid Clorox: Add One quart (32 ounces) will raise the pool 1.0 ppm. There are 4 quarts in a gallon (128 oz.) CLOROX LIQUID BLEACH (5.25% sodium hypochlorite) (800) 242-7482 from product bulletin 224-83 FOR OUR 12,000 GALLON POOL Regular dose of Clorox: One quart (32 ounces) will raise the pool 1.0 ppm. Shock dose of Clorox: Two quarts (64 ounces) Cloudy Water/Algae dose of Clorox: One gallon (128 ounces) Bill's Note: Clorox is more expensive than granular chlorine. It works faster in the pool. It weighs more, so is less convenient. Read % ingredients when using other chlorine liquids. EXPERT Department: Never let your water be less than crystal clear. If pool is a not crystal clear, algae is beginning to cloud your water. Liquid acts faster than granular. Tester used with proper chlorine added will bring pool water to similar levels required for drinking water. Because of dirt it is not for drinking, of course. Pool chlorine tester may also be used for testing refilled fish tanks when removing chlorine.
PH Test [red drops] Skip it unless you have water trouble. ph range should be 7.2 to 7.6 (It usually stays in this range by itself.)
I had a sand filter of the 400 foot varity with my pool. My climate might be similar to yours, Phoenix. I stopped using the pool by late September. I would get the water high on CL and then run the pool 6-8 hours a week. I had one of the in-the-water Hayward's. Yep it would get dirty. I found that a daily run was less effective than a long one once a week. I would brush and skim the pool on during this once a week run. When the pump was done I would back flush the filter and wait another week. My pool was out side and if there was a storm then more run time was necessary.
Don't believe those rules of thumb. You can get away with what you can get away with. That is, give it a try for a few weeks, and see how it works.
In the winter in SE Florida I turn the pump and chlorine off altogether, and it takes some days or a week before I have to clean it up, IF you keep the pH on the low end. The low pH is critical. Stuff doesn't like to grow if you keep the pH on the low end of comfort and Langelier balance. High pH will get you algae and cloudiness in no time.
Thanks Rich, I already dropped it from 6 to 5 hours and I do add acid from time to time to keep the ph in range. The chlorine tends to run high and I think that is from the chlorinator running 6 hours. I'll test it this weekend and run a sample down to the pool store to double check... Thanks again, Ross
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