Swimming pool pump
- Image by miscpix via Flickr
I have a 2hp pool pump fresh out of the box. I have it hooked up to my above ground pool, and it doesn’t seem to be giving me enough suction. There is plenty of water in the skimmer, and I have the hose plumbed at a downward angle to the pump. I have 25 feet of hose going from the skimmer to the pump and 5 feet of hose going to the sand filter, then 25 feet of hose from the filter to the return on the pool. Is that too much hose for the pump to give good suction? The pressure gauge on the filter pulses when the pump is on, and while the pump is full of water when I turn it on, after about 30 seconds the pump looks half full like it’s not getting enough water.
Where the skimmer is to where I would like the pump behind the deck is about 22 feet. So I need the full 25 feet of hose.
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3 Responses to “Swimming pool pump”
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The gauge is pulsing? Ok..I think I see why. and yeah…you likely aren’t getting enough water. Who recommended you get a 2HP pump and did you replumb your suction lines to a larger diameter pipe or not? If you’re using 1 1/4 inch plumbing ( that’s standard for an above ground pool) and trying to run a 2 HP pump on that, your suction will cavitate. In other words..the pump is asking for what the plumbing lines can’t deliver. Like trying to breathe through a straw.
I’m still a little leery of you using that 2Hp even if you did replumb the lines to at least 1 1/2, preferably 2 inch pipe. Your filter ( this is an above ground so I expect if it’s a sand filter, it’s no larger than a 19 inch or if it’s a cartridge, it’s likely no bigger than a 25 sq ft element) I’m pretty sure it won’t like the load.
You check to see the rate on the old pump? Sure it wasn’t at most a 1 1/2 Hp or most likely a 3/4 or 1 Hp?
The only other thing that may cause a pump to "pulse", especially if you’re looking at a new pump out of the box, is the wiring. Just about all pumps in that size range, are factory wired to 220 V. If you’re running it 110, you need to move the jumpers on the terminal block to the 110 setting. It’ll either be marked on the terminal block or if there is no jumper, look on the wiring diagram on the motor body . It’ll tell you which wires go to which spade post to change to 110 and then you connect your L1 and L2 to the load posts. Usually when you run a high wired motor on low volt, it’ll run half speed or it’ll kick out the breaker or both.
2Hp is overkill for most residential pools except when you have a huge head to deal with ( 10 feet elevation difference or more from pool surface to pump measured vertically, not horizontally) or you have a pool/spa combo where you’re using one pump to do both. That’s inground. I don’t think I ever saw anyone try to put a 2Hp on an above ground before. Interesting. If you have only the one standard above ground return, I wouldn’t want to be in the water in front of it. That’ll hurt.
How far is your pump from the pool? If it doesn’t need the full 25 feet of hose, I would use something shorter. The store I shop at sells hose in 3 feet sections. The hose from the pool to the pump is 6 feet, from the pump to the filter is three, then another six back to the pool. My equipment is only about 2 feet from the pool itself.
Try the shorter hose first – they aren’t that expensive – before returning/replacing the pump.
[...] Swimming pool pump | Sand Pool FilterJul 29, 2010 … Image by miscpix via Flickr I have a 2hp pool pump fresh out of the box. I have it hooked up to my above ground pool, and it doesn’t seem to … [...]