Save On Swimming Pool Heater Costs

  

Simple First Steps

Heating a swimming pool can be an expensive business.  However, there are a number of measures you can take to minimize these costs without losing any enjoyment of your pool, and you could make a saving of 70% or more for very little expense.

Start with the circulating pump.  Folklore tells us that the larger the pump the better whereas the opposite is the reality.  A 0.75 hp pump will be perfectly adequate for an average size pool.  If your pump is bigger than this, especially if it is an old one, it is sensible to get a smaller pump to replace it.  

Secondly, examine the pipe layout.  The goal is to minimize resistance to flow wherever possible.  Shorter pipes with larger diameter, and fewer sharp corners, will mean less work (and less energy consumption) for the pump.  You can use flexible pipe to improve flow through corners, or at least replace any 90 degree bends with 45 degree ones.  A larger filter will also make a huge difference to flow.

If you take these measures you could see a saving of 40% straight away.

Now take a look at the circulation settings.  Many people leave their pool pumps running for hours and hours every day, when one hour is enough.  The main task of circulation is to mix the pool chemicals.  Once mixed they will remain suspended in the pool water without the need for further mixing.  

Remember that debris will either sink or float, and can be removed easily by vacuuming or skimming.  There should be no effect on algae formation, if the chemicals are doing their job.

It is also a good idea to have an accurate pump timer, and program it to work in lots of short bursts throughout the day.  One long pumping will waste energy, as we have seen above.

If you introduce all these measures you will save at least 70% off your present utility bills.  But there are still more things that you can do.

Lower Evaporation Wastage

Your pool loses almost all its heat into the air above it, or by evaporation.  It is easy to see that heat is lost to the air, but remember that any water that evaporates has already used energy when being heated or treated with chemicals.  Replacement water will cost all over again.

Pool covers are not beautiful but they do conserve the energy in your pool very efficiently.  Not only will they significantly reduce heat and evaporation losses but they will also reduce debris entering the pool.

These covers are made from a variety of materials, from solar bubble to insulated vinyl, and come in a range of prices from very to not so cheap.  It is possible to install devices to help cover and uncover the pool, probably well worth the cost in saving effort and preserving the cover.

The cover should be in place throughout the night, when most of the heat and evaporation losses occur.

Finally, if possible, put up a fence close to the pool to act as a windbreak and reduce evaporation losses still further.  

Solar Pool Heater

Solar energy is a great way to heat your pool for practically nothing.  It operates by pumping the pool water through a solar collector, where it is gently warmed and returned to the pool.  Since the pool already has a circulating pump it is easy to modify the system to include the solar part.  It really is free energy, if you design the system properly – which is very easy to do.

If cooling rather than heating your pool water is necessary in very hot weather, you can pump the water through the solar collectors during the night – it will cool the water quite well.

Making your own pool solar heating system is easy and straightforward, and we have found a really good quality instruction manual, available online, to help you.  The manual has a full guarantee, comes with plenty of step-by-step instructions, and is very clearly laid out.  

We believe it offers good value for money, and encourage you to give it a look – it could save you a ton of cash on your pool heating bills as soon as you get started.

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Everything You Should Know About Solar Water Heating

Many folks have heard of solar heating nowadays more folks are using it to heat their houses and pools and to save lots of cash on their energy bills. But even if somebody has heard of solar heating they may not be acquainted with the systems!

How Do Solar Heating Systems Work?

Most people consider passive solar heating to be the most cost-effective way of providing heat for a building. This is because the amount of solar energy that typically falls on a building in a day is more than enough to power and heat that same home for the day. When passive solar heating systems are used in a building’s actual design, it costs nearly nothing extra and results in a huge reduction in energy costs.

When a home has a passive solar heating system, the house itself basically becomes the collector for solar energy. Each surface of the home that’s exposed to the sun’s rays is picking up them. To adequately collect this daylight, a passive solar heating system needs south facing glass and thermal mass to take in, distribute and store the heat.

The commonest kind of passive solar heating system is known as a direct gain system. This system uses tangible living space as a solar collector daylight comes into a room, strikes thermal mass materials in the house and gets kept where it raises the room’s temperature!

What Types Of Solar Collectors Are Used For Solar Water Heating?

There are three types of solar collectors used in residential homes that are using solar water heating systems. A flat-plate collector is a waterproof, insulated box that has a dark absorber plate underneath a glass cover. Plates used when solar water heating pools typically do not have a cover on them.

Integral collector-storage systems, sometimes called batch systems, feature one or more black tubes or tanks that are contained in a glazed, insulated box. Cold water passes though the solar collector in this solar water heating system and the collector preheats the water. The water then filters into the conventional water heater and then to the home’s pipes.

And finally, another type of collector is called an evacuated-tube solar collector. These collectors have parallel rows of glass tubes that are transparent. Each individual tube has a glass “outer” tube and then a metal tube which is attached to a fin. The fin’s special coating absorbs energy and keeps heat in. This type of solar water heating collector is typically used for more commercial aspects.

There are also two main types of solar water heating or solar pool heating systems: direct circulation systems and indirect circulation systems. Direct circulation systems circulate water for the actual household through the collectors and then into the home. This type of system is used in climates where the temperature never falls below freezing. Indirect circulation systems actually circulate a non-freezing fluid through the collectors and then through a heat exchanger. This heats up the water and then filters it to the home.

Considering all the perks that go along with a solar water heating system it’s really no wonder people are converting.

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