3 Tips to Reduce Energy Consumption of Pool Pumps

Your pool pump is an essential part of your pool system – it circulates water in the pool to keep chemicals mixed in properly as well as passes water through the filtration system to remove dirt and keep the pool clean. Pumps use electricity, hence operation drives up your energy bills. However, a few simple tips can help you to reduce the pump's level of consumption without affecting the cleanliness of your pool. Learn how in the paragraphs below.

1. Get a multi-speed pump

Variable speed pumps can considerably reduce consumption of electricity. You can run your pump at lower speeds, which utilizes less power and reduces overall consumption, even if they are run for longer periods than single-speed pumps. Running a low-speed pump for longer allows you to maintain a cleaner pool with less algal growth since water remains agitated for longer. You can either have two-speed pumps which have just two speeds or variable-speed pumps which can be adjusted to different speeds. Some models include a timer which allows you to program running speeds depending on your requirements.

2. Reduce pump size

Many homeowners install larger pumps than their pool actually needs thinking that it's the best way to guarantee a cleaner pool. However, this only piles upon your energy bill without giving incremental benefits. There are many factors used to determine the right pump size, including pool volume, required turnover rate, pump's hydraulic characteristics and total dynamic head among others. You will need a professional to help you determine the best size of pump, particularly if you have an irregularly-shaped pool. However, installing the smallest size possible to maintain acceptable cleanliness levels is pivotal to reducing your energy consumption.

3. Reduce pump operation times

Another erroneous belief is that running your pump is important to keep chemicals mixed into the water. Generally, provided the pump is agitated at the time of addition, chemicals will stay mixed in the water even if the pump doesn't run at all – just like salt or sugar remains mixed in food after addition.

You can take up manual skimming or vacuuming to remove dirt and debris and hence reduce the number of times you need to circulate water for filtration purposes. Talk to your local pool supplies stores about chemicals that can keep algal growth at bay, so that you're also not pumping to keep water agitated just to reduce growth of algae on pool walls. Regular cleaning of pool walls can also remove traces of algae.

Reduce your pumping time to about six hours a day to start with. If you notice the water clouding up, increase the time by a half hour until you get the cleanliness level you want and maintain that filtration time. If you have a problem with debris e.g. if you live in a windy area around many trees, consider getting a timer which allows you to run the pump for short periods of time throughout the day instead of running the full six hours and then leaving the pool to gather dirt the rest of the time.

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