Operating a pool comes with a higher cost than what pool owners anticipate, and most of the costs are hidden, as they are included in electricity bills every month. The following five updates are not environmentally friendly adjustments. They are about reducing long-term costs using devices that self-finance.
1. Switch to a variable-speed pool pump
Switching to a variable speed pool pump is the main answer for most pool owners to save money and energy. A correctly sized VSP will use up to 80% less electricity than a standard single-speed. This means these pumps can potentially pay for themselves in relative energy savings during their first two seasons of use.
They only operate at high-speed when it’s actually necessary – during demanding tasks like running a pool cleaner or manually vacuuming. Otherwise, the pump automatically drops down to half-speed or lower, depending on the model, and there it remains for the majority of the year. The key is matching the pump to your pool’s actual hydraulic requirements. Getting the right equipment from a knowledgeable supplier matters here – Shenton Pumps can help you match pump specifications to your pool’s flow rate demands rather than defaulting to an oversized unit.
2. Right-size the pump to your pool’s volume
Having a larger pump than necessary and turning it down not only burns unnecessary power but can also overload the motor, causing it to overheat, shortening its life, and voiding your warranty. Unnecessarily heavy filtration also means you will need to clean or replace your filter media more regularly.
3. Add a robotic cleaner to take the load off your circulation system
Many suction-side and pressure-side pool cleaners are powered by the main pool pump. So every time you use your cleaner, you require higher flow rates and more energy from your primary circulation equipment. A robotic pool cleaner removes the main drain blockage. It runs on its own motor and power source, completely separate from your filtering system. The practical result? Your main pump can run at the lowest, most efficient RPM while the robot removes the debris. Cleaning vs. Efficiency is not a choice you have to make. You get both. The cost of a quality robotic cleaner is real. But when you consider the reduced pump run hours at high speed, the payback is usually shorter than the initial cost indicates.
4. Use a thermal cover to reduce heating costs
Evaporation can lead to an approximate 70% heat loss from the pool. Heat lost through evaporation takes with it the energy from the pool water – meaning the heater/heat pump needs to work longer to replace the lost heat. A thermal pool cover (also known as a solar cover/blanket) is placed across the water’s surface when the pool is not in use and minimizes the effects of evaporation.
This may not be a high-tech pool upgrade, but the return on investment (ROI) is impressive. A good-quality thermal cover can reduce heating energy use by a significant amount over a season. Also, with reduced evaporation, less pool water is chemically treated. Lower chemical demand and savings is a secondary benefit that many pool owners are unaware of when working out the cover’s payback period.
5. Replace old lighting and add automated scheduling
Halogen pool lights are power-hungry and get hot, and very little of the energy they consume actually becomes light. LED pool lights use vastly less energy to produce comparable or better luminance, and they last a long time. Replacement bulbs are cheap, but you won’t need to buy many of them. The sheer reduction in electrical demand saves you money from day one, and if you’re heating your pool water to a comfortable temperature in the cooler months, you’ll appreciate that LEDs throw almost no heat into the water.
Even simpler than swapping out halogens for LEDs is adding a timer or automated control system to your pool’s lighting and its pump. When human nature and lifestyle tendencies are factored in, a pool that’s not in use could easily lose its lights on and its pump running for hours longer than necessary. Both have just become set it and forget it savings opportunities.
None of these upgrades require a complete pool renovation. Most can be implemented one at a time, starting with the highest-return item for your situation, which for most pool owners is the pool pump upgrade. The equipment pays for itself, and after that, every month of lower bills is straightforward return on a capital decision you’ve already made.