The Truth About VS Pool Pumps

 I think that there are a lot of myths associated with the pool industry like a saltwater pool is not a chlorine pool. Another one that I often hear is that a Variable Speed (VS) pump does not save you any money nor are they very effective.

The pool pump can be the highest energy hog in your house, passing your Air Conditioner and Refrigerator just by the sheer amount of hours it runs each day. If you have a 1 ½ or 2 HP pump installed and you run it 8 hours per day, not to get into complicated conversions of kWh (Kilowatt Hours) and how you are charged each month by your Electric Company, just imagine it as having 20-100 watt light bulbs on every hour. That is a lot of electricity each day and if your bill is tiered by usage, meaning the more you use the more you are charged, your bill can get very high very quickly. On average a pool pump in the Summer will be about 40% of your total electricity bill.

So the best way to save money is to cut into your monthly electricity bill and that is exactly what a VS pump does. Simply put, your standard pump runs at 3450 RPM (Rotations Per Minute) which is about 1800-2000 watts. A VS Pump can be set to different RPM and at every lower RPM, the total wattage used is lowered. So just lowering the VS Pump down to 2100 RPM, cuts the watts down to 685 watts. At 2100 RPM the water will appear to flow just as strong as a standard pump running at 3450 RPM. Cut it down even lower to 1800 RPM and you are down to 165 watts. So instead of having 20-100 watt light bulbs running you only have a little over one light bulb running each hour. So it is hard to optically see the VS pump energy savings but if you look at the drop in your electricity bill each month you will see the savings reflected there. 

One thing you may notice is that the pool doesn’t stay as clean with a VS pump and that leads you to believe that the pump isn’t working as well as your old single-speed pump. That is just one drawback of not running your pump at the full 3450 RPM. One way to address this is by running a short higher speed RPM for 2-3 hours (2,800-3,000 RPM). That way the surface debris can be pushed into the skimmer leaving the pool cleaner each day. 

Many consumers balk at the higher price tag of a VS pump but that is due for the most part to the “Drive” on the top of the VS motor (some are now internal). This drive allows the pump to run at a different speed and this is the brain of the pump. Many have a controller also mounted to the pump and this acts as the timer for the VS pump. These extra components are what cause the price of the VS pump to be more expensive than a standard single-speed pump. It’s not the manufacturers charging more just to make more money, but that these pumps cost more to the manufacturer and this of course translates into a higher price tag for you. 

A VS pump will save you money. It runs much quieter as well and lasts longer than a standard single-speed pump. The truth is a VS pump is a greater investment that will save you 80% on your electricity bill and pay for itself in 2 years. 

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Jacuzzi JMC16 1 One Year Later

 I’ve had the JMC16 on this pool now for over a year and it is doing an amazing job of reducing the dirt that is entering the pool filter. It is doing an amazing job of preventing anything I put in the skimmer from also entering the filter. I tested it with a scoop of DE, a scoop of Cal Hypo, and some baking soda even and all of it is trapped in the Multicyclone. There of course is an issue and that is that it works too well.

The parent company WaterCo was supposed to make a bypass for this device so that you could bypass the Multicyclone and add say D.E. to recharge your D.E filter. It was invented for the Australian pool market and they have sand filters & cartridge filters over there and not D.E. filters. That part never came to market but I have a photo f it and a crude diagram of how to add it to your setup here in this Google Drive folder: https://drive.google.com/drive/folders/1tsm2-BgLpMp8gfOy9s925q9Ib6OleR7M?usp=sharing

Here is more about the JMC16:

The Jacuzzi JMC16 Multicyclone reduces pool filter cleaning by spinning out debris before it reaches your pool filter system. This is considered a pre-filter and it will complement any pool filtration system. Imagine 80% less dirt getting to your pool filter and that sums up the JMC16.

There are a few things to note about installing a Pre-filter. It does require some space above your pool pump and if you have a wall or the equipment is behind a structure be aware that it may stick up higher than your pool filter. That is just a note for aesthetics and does not affect the pool equipment in any other way. These are great for new construction because they can be added in easily but just be aware that you have to make sure your current equipment pad can accommodate the JMC16.

For those with sand and cartridge filters, the JMC16 pre-filtration system is a real game-changer! Imagine again 80% of the dirt that would enter the filter being essentially trapped before it ever enters the filter. This means that for a sand filter you will not be backwashing the pool nearly as often and for a cartridge filter, you will do fewer filter cleanings since the cartridges will essentially stay clean longer. If you live in an area where dirt in your pool is an issue having one installed would be a smart idea. 

Another note of caution since it will trap just about everything down to 5 microns you will not be able to put any dry chemicals into the pool skimmer with the JMC16 attached. No baking soda, soda ash, bags of shock, granular Cyanuric Acid, and D.E. as mentioned above. Keep that in mind so that you add all of your dry chemicals directly to your pool. 

Here are some of the highlights of the product:

Spins out debris as tiny as 5 microns before it reaches your pool filter

Essential for suction side pool cleaners

No moving parts

Never negatively affects water flow - even when full of debris

Reduces filter cleaning

Extends all filtration maintenance cycles - at least 4 times longer

Simple installation - requires no additional equipment pad space

Installs directly to your existing pool pump

2-Year Warranty

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Robots and Automation are Taking Over Your Swimming Pool!

There are of course Automated pool systems that let you control your pool & spa, heater, lights, and more with a touch of the button. In the last few years, this has moved over to phone apps and if you are driving home from say 50 miles away, you can get on your phone (while not driving) and with the app put your pool in the spa mode, turn on the heater to 100 degrees and have the pool and spa light on so that when you get home you can just go right into your spa. This was thought to be the height of automation.

But it gets much better. I used InteliChem in my example in the recording, but there is the RolaChem and a few other devices that can automatically adjust the pool’s pH and chlorine levels. Of course, you still have to fill up the buckets with chlorine and acid, but once set up if the pH were to get to 7.8 these devices would activate and pump acid into the pool to lower the pH. This makes for very easy pool chemistry. A saltwater generator does something similar but it of course cannot adjust the chlorine for you or the pH but it does introduce chlorine into the pool for you.

Next, you have some of the best swimming pool cleaner options in my opinion a robotic pool cleaner. These robots will scrub your pool in some cases to the tile line and leave your pool cleaner than it has ever been. The example using an app to turn on your spa on the way home, in the same situation with the cleaner in the pool and if it is a connected model like the Polaris alpha iQ+ you can use that same app to turn on the cleaner so that when you get home and get in the spa you can also jump into a clean pool. Some robots will allow you to set a weekly run cycle as well. There are just so many improvements in these cleaners over the years making robotic pool cleaners a great choice.

I would be remiss if I failed to mention that the Smart Water monitors are something that has shown vast improvement over the years. Although the readings are somewhat limited they do test the primary factors in a pool. The Sutro will test for Free Chlorine, pH, Alkalinity, and water temperature. The Water Guru will test for FC, pH, water temperature, and flow. The Fluidra BlueRiiot will test ORP, pH, Salinity, and Temp. These are not bad and with the primary factors, you can get a good idea if the pool is safe to swim in at the least. 

As technology evolves there is no doubt all of these categories will show vast improvement. There is just no turning back the clock on these things and one day there may be a completely autonomous pool experience controlled by an intelligent center that will be able to take full control over every aspect of your pool care.

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BWT BC40 Leaf Vacuum - Compact Yet Effective!

 The BWT BC40 is pretty compact, okay it is outright tiny. I didn’t think this thing would work at all. I’m being honest here. It works amazingly well. To my surprise. It does lack in size but makes up for it in suction power. 

A few things that I would have liked, are swivel wheels, a larger base, and maybe a finer mesh bag. You kinda have to move it and tilt it in the pool and since it is so small you can’t move it around super fast. I wanted to start with these nit-picky points because other than that I can’t any other fault this little leaf vacuum. 

Order the BWT BC40: https://bit.ly/3cb1RRc

The fact that the battery chamber is sealed and that it is rechargeable is great. It is also backed by a 1-year warranty which means the battery seal is probably really good. It has a 2000 mAh battery that will give this cleaner a 75-minute run time. I am using it without charging it to see the actual runtime but if it gets anything over 1-hour that is pretty awesome. The fact that it is cordless of course allows for easy maneuvering in a pool or spa. It only ways about 2 lbs. making it light as well as compact. 

There is a market for a little leaf vac like this. Can you skim a pool faster with a leaf rake? Maybe but in so doing you will also be stirring up all the debris and then having to wait for it to settle. I’ve been using this thing to spot clean pools and it works well on the pool steps. It is so compact that it can even vacuum some top steps in a pool and for a water feature this would be ideal.

I’ve tested many of these battery-operated leaf vacs and they can be very handy indeed. As far as durability it is a single molded plastic body which should lend to durability. The brushes and wheels will probably wear out but for occasional use for leaf debris, you should get plenty of use out of it. Who is this vacuum for? A pool owner would rather vacuum up leaf debris vs using a leaf rake or manually vacuuming the pool. 

BWT is the new parent company of Kokido and this was formally their battery-powered leaf vacuum. The BWT version will soon be available stateside but until then you can purchase the Kokido version – it is just a different color but functions the same.

Kokido version on Amazon: https://ebay.to/3yMvAZR

As far as build quality Kokido has been around for a long time and is improving.  Kokido 30-YEARS EXPERIENCE: 30 Years Pool Cleaning Excellence: Kokido patent vacuum technology has been the epitome of pool cleaning excellence for 30 years

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Vinyl Pool Do's and Don'ts

 A vinyl pool in-ground or above-ground is quite different from your traditional plaster or concrete pool. The differences don’t stop on the actual vinyl material but on many different levels including which chemicals to use in the pool, how to clean a vinyl pool to which automatic cleaner is safe to use.

A vinyl pool’s surface is a piece of plastic. Unlike a plaster pool which is cement, a vinyl pool can be easily stained by chemicals. You can stain a plaster pool with chemicals but it is much more resistant than a vinyl surface. This means that you cannot put Cal-Hypo, Trichlor, or any other granular chlorine directly onto the vinyl surface. Liquid chlorine is safe and so are Cal Hypo Tablets in the skimmer and cal hypo directly in the pool skimmer. Caution is the key word here and just think whenever you add anything, Will this stain the surface?”

Since the vinyl pool surface is a piece of plastic it will have a lower acid demand. This means that the pH in the pool will tend to drift down and not up. This means you should have Soda Ash or 20 Mule Team Borax on hand to raise the pH in the pool. Baking Soda is good but will raise the Alkalinity a lot more than the pH, so I would not use it to raise the pH in a pool. You will rarely need to add any Muriatic Acid to lower the pH which is a good thing but keep an eye on the pH as again it will tend to drift down and not up. The water in a vinyl pool can become very corrosive and your eyes may burn and your skin may itch if the pH drops below 7.0 on the scale.

Since you are dealing with a piece of plastic, be aware that you can easily tear the vinyl liner and the replacement cost can be quite expensive. Do not use any brushes with stainless steel bristles or any older leaf rakes with the metal frame exposed. You also want to use a wheeled vacuum with caution. A brush vac is a better option. Think, “Will using this rip the liner?” Be careful with certain pool toys or any object with sharp edges, Hot Wheel Cars, Toy Guns, and the like should not be in a vinyl pool. 

An automatic cleaner is a great idea for a vinyl pool. The bouncing type cleaner works best in my opinion. So the Zodiac Ranger would be my first choice for a cleaner. You can also use a Hayward Navigator with Vinyl shoes on or the Pentair Lil’ Rebel. But those last two won’t clean the walls effectively. A robotic pool cleaner is also a great option and there are many cleaners made specifically for vinyl pools. 

The bottom line is that you have to be very conscious of what you put into a vinyl pool, what you use to clean it, and always be thinking of the surface to prevent stains and tears. Vinyl is a great pool surface type and if you follow these cations your liner will last for many years to come. 

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PAL EVENGLOW PCR-2Z Two Zone Controller!

The PAL EVENGLOW light system is shown here for a pool and spa retrofit and the PAL Light 64-PCR-2Z-65 PAL 65W Multi Color Dual Zone Rem Ctrl Transformer 24VDC is a great upgrade to the original system. This upgrade kit will allow you to control two zones independently like a pool and spa light combo. You can have one color or programmed show in the pool and a separate one in the spa. 

PAL EVENGLOW PCR-2Z Dual Zone Controller Horizon # 57-330-1360:

 https://www.horizonparts.com/store/main.aspx?p=ItemDetailStyles&item=57-330-1360

PAL Lighting – over 30 years of experience in aquatic lighting and are the leaders in the state of the art engineering and manufacturing. The EvenGlow lights are designed of course for new builds but are also made to retrofit into your existing pool and spa niche. There are millions of standard incandescent lights right now in pools and spas across the country and the PAL EvenGlow lights would be a perfect upgrade. The Dual Zone control option will just take this system to the next level. You can order a new PAL system with the PCR-2Z PAL 65W Multi Color Dual Zone Rem Ctrl Transformer 24VDC or upgrade your existing Pal light system.

Here is more about the Pal light system:

If you have a regular 400-watt pool light and a 100-watt spa light and you run your pool and spa light for 4 hours one night, that is 2000 watts of electricity. Replace those with the PAL EvenGlow LED pool and spa light and since they generate only 37 watts every hour after 4 hours that is only 148 watts and a savings of 1,852 watts. I should also mention that these lights are backed by a 3-year warranty and are rated for 50,000 hours of use. So if you use these lights 4 hours a night they should last around 34 years!

The PAL EvenGlow lights will be available at your local Leslie’s Pool Supplies Retail outlet and you can have them expertly installed by Leslie’s Installation Specialist.

Here is some more about these amazing lights:

Unique lens optics creates an EvenGlow effect in the pool

No more harsh LED or Incandescent light

No more hot LED laser-like beams across the pool

Reduce shadowing and hot spots

Three-year warranty (with professional install)

Proprietary Color Touch light control

Latest in RF and WiFi technology

Infinite color selection 

Dimmability

Reliable constant output power supplies

Industry-best warranty rate

Easy retrofit to existing niches

Fits any standard 8” wet niche

Frosted lens design for EvenGlow Effect

30 watts power draw at 12vdc (12” Pool Light)

7 watts power draw at 12vdc (Smal Spa Light)

RGB with Color Touch Technology

Cool White coming soon for commercial

Stainless Escutcheon fitted with light

Replaceable hook at bottom of the light

UL Listed

The PAL EvenGlow lights are the total upgrade package for your pool and spa. I wouldn’t hesitate to go with these lights if you are thinking about upgrading your pool and spa light and the Dual Zone upgrade is a must-have.  

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Every Chlorine Type Has a By-product

 Every Chlorine has some type of by-product. By-products are in everything really and it is no different in the pool chemicals we use to add chlorine or sanitize our pools.

Liquid Chlorine (Sodium hypochlorite) – by-product is salt (Sodium)

17 ppm per 10,000 gallons of water with 1 gallon of liquid chlorine

Liquid Chlorine or Bleach is the tried and true standard chemical of choice for most pool service professionals. It is easy to use and relatively inexpensive and it has the least side effects of any of the chlorine you can choose from. It is usually sold in 12.5% active chlorine per gallon with Bleach coming in at about half that strength at 6.5%. It will raise the pH slightly, but it does not contain any Stabilizer or Conditioner making it ideal for all pool types. This means that when you add a gallon of liquid chlorine and your Conditioner level (CYA) is 50 ppm it will stay at 50 ppm even if you add 20 gallons of liquid chlorine.

Pros:

Fastest acting of all chlorine types

Will not raise your CYA level

Safe for all pool types

Easy to use

Cons:

Breaks down by the Sun’s UV Rays so your pool needs a CYA level of 30-50 ppm

Short shelf life so rotate stock or buy fresh chlorine when needed

Half-life is about 90 days

The gallons can be heavy compared to a bag of shock

Cal Hypo (Calcium hypochlorite) Calcium 

8 ppm of calcium is added to 10,000 gallons of water per 1 lbs. of Cal Hypo

Cal Hypo is very popular and there are several reasons why it is widely used in the industry. It is easy to carry and comes in different strengths 60-75% active chlorine. One of the major side effects is that it contains calcium, so over time it will raise your pool’s calcium hardness. Not an issue if you live in an area with soft water but I caution against the use in areas with hard water. It also has a high pH of around 12 so it will raise the pH in a pool if you use a significant amount each week. It can also make the pool cloudy if you pour a bag directly in. A very powerful form of shock.

Pros:

Strong and easy to use

Does not contain a Conditioner so it will not raise the pool’s CYA levels

Cal Hypo Tablets dissolve slowly over a week and don’t raise the pool’s CYA level

Safe for all pool surface types but use caution with a vinyl liner

Cons:

Raises Calcium Harness in a pool

Raises the pH in a pool

Clouds up the pool water if poured directly in

Dichlor (Dichloroisocyanuric acid) adds about 50% CYA to the pool water per weight of the dichlor added. Example: If you add 10 lbs of Dichlor to your pool you are also adding 5 lbs. of Cyunaric Acid to the water.

Dichlor is a very popular form of chlorine and the granular form makes it very easy to measure and use in a pool. It is pH neutral which means it will not raise or lower the pool pH in any significant way. It does contain Cyanuric Acid (CYA), about 50%-65% by weight. So, if you add 10 lbs. of Dichlor to a pool you are also adding about 6 lbs. of CYA. Over time this will increase the pool’s CYA levels. A little Dichlor goes a long way making this an ideal chemical to carry on your truck if you service pools. Just don’t overuse it because of the high amount of Conditioner in the product. It is usually about 62% active chlorine by weight.

Pros:

Easy to use and powerful

pH neutral

Safe for all surface types

Long the shelf life of 2-3 years

Cons:

Adds Conditioner to the pool

Expensive so not practical in most applications

Tri-Chlor or Trichloroisocyanuric Acid ( Trichloro-S-Triazinetrione) adds about 50% of Cyanuric Acid to the water by Trichlor tablet weight

comes in three forms. The familiar 3” tablets that slowly dissolve in your pool, a very fine powder shock and a granular form. About 50% of the Tri-Chlor by weight is Conditioner. So, a 50 lbs. bucket of tablets is about 25 lbs. of CYA. If you overuse tablets your pool’s CYA level can go up rapidly. Trichlor tablets are usually 95% to 99% active chlorine. Tri-Chlor tablets have a very low pH of 2-3 so they will lower the pH in your pool. The tablets contain acid in the form of Cyanuric Acid so if one falls into the pool it is likely to stain the surface by burning it.

The powder form of Tri-Chlor shock is a good mix of both power and less Conditioner per pound. It is fast-acting but has a strong chemical smell so use caution when using it. It is less pure than the tablet form and is usually 65%-70% active chlorine.  I use it on my route and find it to be effective in shocking a pool.

Tri-Chlor granular is very powerful stuff. It is the Tri-Chlor Tablet grounded up in granular form and is 99% active chlorine. Use with extreme caution as the Conditioner in the granular can stain the plaster. The CYA in the tablet is acid and if you let it pile up on the pool surface it will stain the plaster as if you dropped a 3” Tablet into the pool. Never add this to the skimmer and if you do use it for Black or Mustard algae make sure it is evenly dispersed on the pool surface. Not for use in Vinyl, Fiberglass, or color plaster pools.

Pros:

Very strong and slow dissolving in tablet form so it releases chlorine all week long

Easy to use 

Cons:

Can stain the pool surface

Contains 50% CYA by weight

Expensive in today’s inflationary environment

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BWT Cosmy the Bot 250 a Cleaner with Real Style!

BWT (Aquabot) Cosmy the Bot is a flashback in a way and a nod to the earlier compact robotic cleaners that put Aquabot on the map a decade ago. There is a huge market for robotic cleaners like the Cosmy the Bot 250 that weigh only 12.5 lbs and come with just enough features to keep it in the mid-priced range a little more than a premium suction side cleaner but much less expensive than other premium robotic cleaners with more bells and whistles.

To order a Cosmy the Bot 250 please email BWT directly: info@bwtpool.us

or call 833-469-2782

Although the messy split between the brand's names a few years ago looks like something straight out of Marvel's multiverse of madness. You had one company Aquabot with two internal companies, Aqua Products, and Aquatron. When Fluidra purchased Zodiac Pool Products the European Union forced the break up of Aqaubot (Aqua Products and Aquatron). Aquatrons parent company BWt owns the rights to the Aqaubot name in the USA with Fluidra keeping the Aqua Products branding. Confusing I know but all this to say the BWT is making these compact robotic pool cleaners again and the Cosmy 250 is just one of them.

This is not to say the Cosmy 250 is skimpy on features. It comes with a dual-layer fine debris canister that is quite large and also features gigantic debris opening on the bottom. The front scrubbing brush will loosen up dirt and debris on the pool floors and walls and this cleaner is designed to climb the pool walls to the waterline.

It comes back with a 2-year bumper-to-bumper warranty and the 250 version also includes a nice caddy cart for transport and storage. It sports 59 ft or 18 meters of cable so this is great for a small, medium, and large pool. It also has Bluetooth control with the BWT Cosmy app and you can schedule a programmed weekly run time as well as set the daily cleaning run time to 1, 1.5, and 2.5 hours. In short, this small compact cleaner that weighs less than 13 lbs comes packed with many great features. 

The most interesting feature is not exactly mechanical but the fact that you can change the cleaner's color with the BWT Color Kits sold separately. Choose between the original color of Lagoon or any of these available colors:

Cobalt

Apple

Lemon

Lavender

Flamingo

Red Cherry

Apricot

So a cleaner with style is great but can it clean a pool? The answer is yes. The Cosmy 250 does a great job cleaning a pool and features internal programming that allows it to move in two directions in the pool thus keeping the cord from tangling. One thing missing is the cord swivel and that is purely an engineer's decision since the cleaner is too light for the swivel to operate correctly. But with the programmed back and forth motion the cable should not get tangled in the pool. Not only does the Cosmy 250 look great but it works great too. 

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