I just recently moved into a new home with a pool and upgraded the system t the B&D 2hp as well. I’m waiting to get my flow meter so I can really see what’s going on with my system. I basically have the recommended setting for .81 cents a day but I have no idea what my actual GPM is the the 2hp and head resistance etc. I also bought a fibropool heater so I know that’s added some more resistance as well.

I am in Florida, with slightly higher electrical costs. In Summer, with 46,680 gallon filtration I’m at $.95 a day and winter I’ll be at $.79 a day based on how many watts the pump states it’s using. My min is 1100 RPM due to a waterfall feature. 2hrs 0500-0700 3000 RPM ~10,080 gal 7hrs 0700-1400 1100 RPM ~11,760 gal 3hrs 1400-1700 2800 RPM ~13,680 gal 6hrs 1700-2300 1250 RPM ~11,160 gal

@@qwerther44 Most areas in Florida have half price electricity during off peak hours from 11pm-6am. Best to adjust your program so at least half your high rpm sessions are at night (cheaper) and half during midday (greater chemical demand).

if you have a inverter pool heat pump, you should run the high speed when its hotter outside.

I am happy you found this information helpful. Thanks for commenting.

I have a consulting package for new pool installations which would be ideal for your situation: www.swimmingpoolsteve.com/pages/question4.html

The cost of that pump looks to be $829 right now. With $36.60 in savings per month as for this example, that means 22.6 months of operation in order to have saved the entire purchase price of the pump. But that is not a fair comparison as you need to buy a single speed pump so your $829 should be a lower number, being the difference between a single speed and comparable variable speed pump.

Oversized is ok to an extent but you can end up with a pump that is dangerously powerful. A suction pipe in a pool should not exceed 6fps of water velocity. In 2" pvc that is about 65 GPM. But a 2.7 or 3hp pump can move double that amount pretty easily. The pump should really be sized to the system such that if you ran it at full speed it would not make your suction lines exceed 6fps. For filtration pumps unless you have a floor cleaning system, massage jets or waterfalls you probably do not need anywhere near 3hp for just a filtration pump.

I have a floor cleaning system. At least I think I do. At any given time there are about four pop-up sprinkler heads that agitate the pool floor. Should I get the 3HP pump in this case? Pool has 2” pipe.

@@VamosMessi10 Choosing the correct pump size depends on knowing the pool volume, number of return jets and skimmers, vacuum system, filter size and type, water features.

I think this brand has a 5 year warranty so I suppose that might represent the potential minimum service life. Most pumps in this class of pump from Hayward and Pentair have 60 days, 1 year or possibly 3 years. So half the price with a longer warranty...I mean I can understand why pool owners are taking a chance on these.

The cost difference between variable and single speed is not all that much but yes you might be hard pressed to get rid of equipment that is still in working order. Then again, as per this example you would be saving every month. Whether it takes you a long time to save $3000 or a short time to save $3000 you are still saving. That is the extra money, and the VS pump does not cost $3000 so for sure you are ahead. There are a lot of variables to consider. If you ran your pump 24/7 as some pool owners do then you would recover costs at 3x the rate also. What if you program your high speed operation which uses the most power to run at night when variable electricity rates are lowest...in this case we can get the savings gap to be even wider and save you more money. $36.60 in savings every month, so after one season of use (5 months for your schedule) you have saved $183. The pump cost right now looks to be $829 so 4.5 seasons for you to recover the entire purchase price of the new pump in savings. If you could buy a new car that would pay for itself entirely just in fuel savings in only 4.5 seasons doesn't that sound good? But to your point, this is a question with a moving goalpost and every pool will be unique in how much they can (or can not) save with a new variable speed pump.

@@Swimmingpoolsteve @seanhinch2206 To Sean (in event you're still contemplating, one year on...): I replaced a failed ~20 yo pump at the end of last season with a 1.5 hp B+D variable speed. Our season here is similar to yours, at most five months. I share an "if it ain't broke" mentality and likely would not have replaced the old pump if it continued working, particularly as a RoI calc for the expenditure would not be encouraging. However, two elements to consider that I've not seen discussed previously: (i) After seller discount and before tax, I paid $750 for the pump. The seller (PoolPartsToGo) also indicated the pump was eligible for "utility rebate." Initially, I disregarded this claim, figuring a $25-50 rebate wouldn't change my life. But subsequently a utility mailing prompted me to investigate further. Ho ho! They offered a $200 rebate on the pump!! I applied; they paid. For sure, that improves the financial perspective. (ii) Beyond financial savings, there can be real "quality of life" improvement. I ran the old pump 24/7. It was not quiet. We've a bedroom window within hearing distance of the pump and for those pleasant days when the house can be cooled by lake breeze rather than a/c, the noisy pump was an annoyance. The new pump is quiet at 2500 rpm and near silent at 1500 and below. Can't put a dollar sign on that, but it's a real--and immediate--benefit. To Steve: Very helpful analysis, nicely presented. Thanks! I've a ~25,000 gal pool. So far, have been using B+D's default auto settings, but "just for fun," used your observed 28 gpm @ 1000 rpm, as a straight-line factor for my setup. Yes, I understand my system is not yours and this is at best an approximation, but it suggests the default schedule might provide about 50,000 gal/day filtration--only two-thirds of what you recommend. Guess I need to get Blue-White's R-315 to be sure! Sometime you might talk more about (or point me to where you have) how more filtration can mean less chemical usage. E.g., if a target range of free chlorine is 2.0 -- 4.0 ppm, how is this level affected by the amount of filtration? I suppose more filtration means less material to be acted on by the chlorine and therefore, free chlorine falls more slowly. Or something like that... In any event, thanks again.

Unfortunately it is a little more complicated than simply making your schedule based on the pool volume period of course the pool volume is important but this is not enough information. You would need to know more about the filtration system, the number of pipes, the size of the pipes et cetera in order to make an informed decision on your filtration schedule. It's a very general rule you probably will want to run your pump 24 hours per day. Perhaps 3 hours at a higher RPM followed by 6 hours at a medium RPM. The reminder of the 24 hour day at a low RPM that generates 15 to 20 gallons per minute.

FYI I do provide this on my website for almost every video I make - you can find a page showing the comparison and cost / energy breakdown here: www.swimmingpoolsteve.com/pages/compare-savings3.html

@@Swimmingpoolsteve thanks I will check it. My dile is how to manage regular pump coneevted to isaver+ what is frequency invertor. I like to manage that by rs 485 protocol directly from chlorinator Zodiac iq

I have not tested a 2.7hp Hayward Tristar yet so not sure where you get this pump at 1000 rpm. Maybe the 1.5hp super pump I tested. But yes this 1.5hp Black + Decker pump seems to be pretty efficient in comparison with the other pumps I have tested.

@@Swimmingpoolsteve From your page on Hayward VS pumps: 1) Hayward TriStar 2.7 VS SP3206VSP Motor RPM = 1000 Curve A = 20 GPM Curve B = 12 GPM Curve C = 28 GPM” and 2) “Hayward TriStar VS 2.7 SP3206VSP Motor RPM = 1000 Average Power = 88.00 Watts Average Energy Factor = 13.38”. But perhaps I misread it somehow, or it was a different rig with different head.

Different test. One is my actual test lab test results. Another is published performance curves from the manufacturer. The one with curve A, B and C are published results from an energy commission audit. Might be energy star. The results are available online. I hope this helps to clear up some of these numbers.

This pump does use less power at low RPM than the Pentair Superflo. Interestingly the superflo appears to have a baseline power consumption much higher than this Black + Decker as well as the 230v Hayward Super Pump VS. I would estimate this is the control circuit to the drive and control pad. Not noticeable at medium and higher rpm...a drop in the bucket. But at the lowest possible rpm the control power is using more than the motor drive power, hence the Black + Decker (and the Hawward Super Pump VS) looking so much more flow efficient at low RPM.

You can adjust down the rpm precisely and see when the skimmers are running effectively. For my system that’s only 1900 rpm with the variable speed - the single speed in comparison is always going at the max rate of 3450 and waiting all that additional electricity. My VS pump NEVER goes above 2600 rpm which is what suction vacuum requires. And at every rpm the VS is more every efficient and nearly silent

Looks like this is a Blue Torrent pump.

My TDH is always based on the pump operating at maximum speed. Not a tdh for each speed. It's an attempt to just provide more information relative to the size and resistance of this plumbing configuration.