Running the filter round the clock vs a timer schedule

Started by Sam Whitaker · · 2 replies
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#1
Been going back and forth on this one all summer. Right now my sand filter just runs 24/7 from Memorial Day to Labor Day, water stays glass clear even with three kids doing cannonballs all day. But my buddy runs his on a timer, maybe 10-12 hours split morning and evening, says his stays fine too and his power bill is noticeably lower.

Mine's only 24ft round, about 13k gallons, so it's not like I need crazy turnover. Part of me thinks I'm just paying to run a pump so I don't have to think about it. Anybody actually tracked the difference in their electric bill switching from 24/7 to a timer, or is it a wash once you factor in how much longer you'd need to run it each cycle. Trying to decide if I'm being lazy or if there's a real reason to keep it going nonstop.

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#2
What's your pump, single speed or variable, Sam? Makes a real difference on whether cutting to 10-12 hours actually saves you much or just makes the same motor work harder in a shorter window.
#3
Chuck's right to ask about single vs variable speed but I'd also ask if that WiFi pump controller of yours actually has a schedule feature or if you're just flipping a switch, Sam. Mine's a variable speed on the app and I run it slower for longer stretches instead of full blast for a short window, uses way less power than people expect once you're not fighting the motor at full RPM the whole time. 13k gallons on 24/7 at full speed does sound like overkill regardless of what pump you've got though.