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I have read discussions here on inground pools. Any advise on regulating my gas pool heater would be appreciated. Which method is more economical-to set the temp. and leave it or to raise the temp. as we plan to use the pool?
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Ernie,
I have a very biased opinion here, to me it shouldn't be a question of economics. Do you want a pool to look at or one in which to swim?
Last year I was told by the manufacturer of my gas heater, to expect to pay $1 per hour when it's in use. I'm in Ontario and hope to swim until the middle of October. Once the nights warm up, the solar blanket will keep the water warm enough. Right now, I keep the pool "simmering" at 90*F and we've used it daily since May 5th. I can expect to pay approx. $700 -$900 to the gas company this summer- maybe that's why they keep sending me flowers!!
The heater will raise the temperature about 1*F per hour; so using it occasionally is going to cost you too. You'll use less chemicals this way though. Our neighbors keep their pool at 65*F,but rarely use it for more than minutes at a time. To each his own!
Have fun,
Beatrix
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There's always solar panels if you don't mind waiting for the sun. Larger ititial investment, I had a quote of $6000. Here in North Carolina, our season is longer than others, we cool our pools down in the summer!
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Solar panels are great, but again, you can only swim when the weather cooperates. Not many would get as much use out of a pool as we do ours, it was in the high thirties and rainy here today, but my kids were still in there. I sat this one out! The cost of heating is relative to how much use you get out of it.
Beatrix
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Beatrix, You must be the popular Mom on the block.That sounds like a hot tub to me, at 90 degrees! Do you have problems balancing your chemicals at that tempaerature.? All kidding aside, we are mainly week-end users.The dollar an hour guideline is helpful though. We like to keep the pool around 80 degrees when in use, right now it cools to about 70. For your sake I hope that the evenings stay warm soon!
Thank you,
EW
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Beatrix - You realize then that it is probably not prudent to spend additional money on insulation or energy improvements for your house. But then again, being way up north, you may actually have a heating bill that is larger than $900.
To be honest, I preferr to "cool off" in my pool. If I had to pay an additional $900 annually, I'd never open it.
-Rob
*While we are talking about pools let me ask an odd question.After an 8 year abscence, we are installing a pool again this summer. A used Kayak unit, but in great shape. Anyways, everyone is pushing bacquacil, and other treatments, purifiers, etc.I have at my disposal (free) and I know they work for DRINKING WATER, so why not in a pool, a UV disinfecting unit, and an ozonator, and a jacuzzi pump (induces air - improves aerobic decomposition of organics). Has anyone used any of these in a pool? As I see it, the UV unit, and the ozonator could very well eliminate the need for chlorine, bacquacil, algecide, etc. Used with the sand filter of course.I am willing to experiment so share theories if you must, but lets hope this doesn't turn into hot and cold water freezing.-Rob
*Rob,I can't understand why anyone would spend the big bucks to put in a pool and then not be able to use and enjoy it at will. We have probably used ours more this spring than most people will all season. When our kids get older, we won't keep it this warm, actually, I swim laps everyday and would prefer it cooler. I'll let it cool down in the summer when we need to cool off. If you divide the $900 (and that's the high estimate) over the number of weeks that we plan to use the pool, it sounds much better. I'll post the actual cost in the fall. Sorry, but I can still have an energy efficient home and a warm pool. It may sound hypocritical, but I'll only heat up the neighborhood with the pool, not my house! :)Beatrix
*Ernie,Yes, I am and no I don't. There's always a handful of friends here. You avoid problems by diligently testing the water daily. Hottubs are usually around 104*F and they too can be balanced. They turn green on you quicker than a pool will though.Beatrix
*I understand your point. And obviously income has something to do with it. $900 would increase the initial cost of this complete installation by 50%. Now, if I had a $20,000 inground, that's a different story. I just realized that you're in Canada. So our $20,000 pool would cost you $30,000. You're $900 worth of gas is only $450 to me, so I guess it ain't as bad as it sounds.-Rob
*Rob: There are hot-tub UV/ozonators and there are pool-sized UV/ozonators (several sizes, in fact). Check which you've got available for free. The much smaller hot-tub size won't put a dent in the all the stuff which gets in / grows in a pool.They are (when properly sized) a very nice way to go although capital cost is high. You don't get the chlorine smell and bleaching. Put the sand filter BEFORE the ozonator. Ozone is a disinfectant and you don't want it nuking the aerobic bacteria that set up housekeeping on your sand filter - you get a lot of your degradation in the sand filter that way. -David
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Beatrix, Your estimate only covers gas, with chemicals and electricity, what an expensive summer your in for! Do you run your pump around the clock?
EW
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EW,
Right now, the pump is on constantly, in the summer I'll put it on the timer.
I'm sure that my "other" costs would be similar to yours. Everyone has something that they indulge in; cars, trucks, whatever, well this is my own little "Puerta Backyarda"!
Beatrix
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Ok, so I have left the pool at 84 and my wife uses it every day now. But I'm finding that the heater is on less than I thought it would be. Just saw the "puerta backyarda" note; you are right.
Does anyone here use bromine- pros and cons to it??
EW
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I heard bromine stings the eyes more but have never tried it.
I plumbed my pool into the earth loop of my geothermal heat pump. Now I get free heat in the pool whenever I am air conditioning the house.
I like my pool over 85 deg. too. Any tricks to keeping the pool healthy at the upper temps?
*My research last year into bromine showed that it would cost somewhere between $200 and $300 more than chlorine each year. It's also more "finicky", that is, more difficult to keep balanced. We used it in a hottub in our last house and could never get used to the smell. Because of this, the tub sits empty in the basement here. The only "pro" that I know of is that it doesn't turn blonde hair green, as prolonged exposure to chlorine will.As far as I know, the only trick to keeping a warm pool healthy is diligence in checking and balancing the chemicals. The home tester kits are OK, but I have my water computer analyzed every two weeks. I learned the hard way with my first pool to really listen to the experts. Lastly, keep a large, visible sign near the pool that says-"We don't swim in your toilet, so please don't p** in our pool"--I think this is the real clincher!Beatrix-now at 88F
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As to the original question it's probably better to leave heater on if you are going to swim at least every other day. If you're just swimming Sat and Sunday maybe not. If you heat constantly a solar blanket will help a lot with heat loss (a big hassle but saves $$).
The cost here to operate a 400,000 BTU heater is around $2.25 an hour.
Ozone water treatment works great but will not totally replace chlorine. It will reduce chlorine consumption as well as chloramines that cause eye irritation.
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I found bromine to be less irritating in my hot tub than chlorine. It smells a little different than chlorine, not better or worse IMO. With a hot tub, the increased cost is minimal. But as Beatrix points out, in a pool, it adds up. -David
*David,Just curious, is your hot tub indoor or out? This one was in the basement in the last house, but hopefully will be outside here someday. I wonder if the smell of bromine would be much less bothersome outside?Beatrix
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I have read discussions here on inground pools. Any advise on regulating my gas pool heater would be appreciated. Which method is more economical-to set the temp. and leave it or to raise the temp. as we plan to use the pool?
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Ron,
I'm nearing the time to replace my old central a/c units and think you're idea of using the pool water as a source for a heat pump sounds like a good idea. What brand equipment did you use? What kind of climate are you in? I'm in the Chicago area. Thanks, John