Riverview Pool and Electrical Contractors Serving Tampa
Often in homes with a pool, the pool is the greatest household energy consumption. To lower costs, consider installing a variable speed pump in place of your old single speed pump. It can reduce energy expenditures by 50 to 90 percent, where a single speed pump runs constantly from 5 to 24 hours per day, wasting energy and your money.
Single Speed Pumps: The Old Standby Meets Its Match With the Variable Speed Pump
Because it runs continuously and has no flow rate adjustment, the single-speed pump constantly consumes energy. That energy consumption means higher energy bills. The problem is that a single-speed pump with its 1 to 2 horsepower motor runs ceaselessly with no reduction in revolutions per minute (rpm).
Conversely, the variable speed pump can make flow rate adjustments by reducing rpm, meaning a higher or reduced flow rate when necessary. The result is a reduction in energy usage and costs. This “intelligent” system provides greater long-term cost savings due to less water and power usage.
Calculating Variable Speed Pump Savings With the Pump Affinity Law
When you install a variable speed pump, you reduce motor speed and flow rate, resulting in reduced energy consumption. The Pump Affinity Law explains how the variable speed pump saves energy:
Speed = rpm (rotations per minute)
Flow = gpm (gallons per minute)
Power = W (watts)
The average single-speed pump has a fixed flow rate of 3,450 rpm, while the average pool holds 25,000 gallons of water with an average turnover rate of 24 hours.
Let’s assume that a single-speed pump takes 2,000 watts, operates at 3,450 rpm, and has a flow rate of 66 fpm:
(25,000 gallons / 66 gpm) / 60 minutes = 6.3 hours.
The single-speed pump can turn over the entire pool in 6.3 hours at this rate, which would consume 12,600-watt-hours per day:
6.4 hours x 2,000 watts = 12,600 watt-hours (12.6 kWh)
A variable speed pump can operate with a flow rate of 22 gpm while only taking 116 watts. It may take longer to turn over the pool’s water, but it saves energy and money:
(25,000 gallons / 22 gpm) / 60 minutes = 19 hours
19 hours x 116 watts = 2,200 watt hours, or 2.2 kWh consumed per day.
Source: https://www.nrel.gov/docs/fy12osti/54242.pdf
Get Your Variable Speed Pump Installed Today!
Among other brands, Hawkins Service Company specializes in the installation of Intelliflo and Whisperflo variable speed pumps.
