Question in regards to pool plumbing

[DennisP]

Well, just figured out the rest of the plumbing on the pad and picked up the majority of what I need... Doing PVC hardline isn't cheap when you are talking about dozens of elbows, lots of couplers, etc, etc... Luckily I only have a single Jandy 3-way valve (I am still amazed at the almost identical flow rates for the 1.5-2" valve vs the 2-2.5" valve at <70GPM). I just have to decide on the check valves (Jandys are nice and sexy, the problem is that there are complaints of the actual Jandy valve on Amazon having the spring and pivot rust) and I am done...

I am going to start plumbing things on the pad tomorrow... I only have 2 additional unions (one for suction line and one for return line where they come up after the shutoff valves), other than the half ones at the pump, the filter and the flanges at the heater. Other than that it will all be hardlined with no adjustability... I only have to order a couple of specialty fittings (like the 2" CPVC stuff) and then the only thing left is the plumbing out to the pool, which is all 10ft sections of PVC...

[DennisP]

Well, got everything built in the last three days, let it sit overnight and did a full system test using 1.5" flex hoses run to my 650gal hot tub as a water source... I ended up using all 2" fittings everywhere with the 1.5" connections at the pump... I also went with Jandy 3-way and check valves along with NDSPro ball valves/flap check valve for the heater backup protection...

Everything tests out great!

I noticed about 9.5psi of backpressure at the Sta-Rite System3 cartridge filter with the Dynamo 1.5hp pump on high... I also noticed that once I switched in the heater it basically added about 2psi of backpressure...

With the Dynamo on low it showed about 2psi of backpressure...

My Jandy Lite2 millivolt 250k btu heater worked great too... Started right up and heated the water great... I noticed that the 2psi of backpressure on low was enough to allow it to operate so I will have to check it once the entire system is plumbed in with 2" out to the pool and see if it still has the same pressures... I doubt it will... But in either case I will adjust the pressure switch to make sure it only comes on once the pump is on high... (I even considered a small 120v relay installed in the pump that would kickoff only when it was on high tied into the firemans switch loop as well, but we will see how it goes)

My water feed with check and ball valve worked great as well...

I let the entire system run on high dumping the first couple hundred gallons of water to flush out all the piping and the filter/heater/etc...

In the end I am just happy I have no leaks anywhere and everything works as expected... Now to get the skid steer here and get the pool built!!!

[CarlD]

Great pool plumbing! Now all you need is a pool!

J/K--great job. One caveat: I would make sure your ball valves are easily replaceable, either with quick-connects or threaded fittings. Ball valves DO fail and need to be replaced, so now's the time to make that job easier.

[DennisP]

HAHA!

Yeah, I know, cart before the horse... Sorry, just trying to get as much done as possible when I can...

I also ordered the dual main drains, so that means I either have to modify the pad plumbing to account for the extra line for main drains, or put in a valve at the pool and switch there... Decisions, decisions...

[DennisP]

Ok, time for pics:

http://www.darklogic.net/backyard-20...808_194535.jpg
http://www.darklogic.net/backyard-20...808_194542.jpg
http://www.darklogic.net/backyard-20...808_194555.jpg
http://www.darklogic.net/backyard-20...808_194612.jpg
http://www.darklogic.net/backyard-20...808_194622.jpg

I could have had the heater a little closer to the wall of the garage, but I do like the way it all worked out... I could always move it back a little, but that would require a me to extend a couple of connections... ie, it isn't worth it right now... I may also put the heater outdoor vent on it I got (picked it up for a steal at $27) and with that I would rather have it a little away from the garage... That way the top of the heater wouldn't get hot like it does now...

[DennisP]

Forgot to mention, yeah there are unions at the top of the stand pipes and they are threaded into male PVC connections just below grade, so it is a simple matter of exposing the lower threaded connections, unscrewing the stand pipes and doing what I need to...

I plan on doing that at the pool as well...

[BigDave]

... that means I either have to modify the pad plumbing to account for the extra line for main drains, or put in a valve at the pool and switch there...

It's probably best to keep all the operations in the same place - if you can. It looks pretty tight on the pad. Nice work.

[DennisP]

Thanks, BigDave!

Yeah, even if I do the main drain integration out at the pool to begin with, I will by next season have it plumbed at the pad as well...

I forgot to mention that the area below the manifold by the heater is where the booster pump will sit if I go that route, and the area right between the heater and the existing pump in the back is perfect for a 15 gallon chlorine tank... I figure a Stenner 10GPD adjustable pump along with a 15 gallon 14" dia x 25" high round tank will pretty much take care of that pad for me...

If I go that route I will remove the water feed at the bottom of the main manifold, put a tee in with 2 90 degree elbows and then feed the chlorine in there as well as the water feed... My only concern is that the check valve could be sitting in a heavy chlorine concentrated solution, even though I checked with NPD and they stated that it would be fine in that application. Then again, it is only about $10 worth of valves/unions/fittings to replace that whole assembly, so it isn't a big deal...


Then again, for "no issues" I could always do a tapped fitting solvent-welded to the side of one of the tees or elbows and not have to worry about it... That is one of the major advantages of PVC, if you know what you are doing you can solvent-weld it pretty good without compromising the pipe...

[DennisP]

Well, just got done doing the accounting on the PVC pipe/fittings/spa flex hose/ball valves/etc...

Let's just say I got great pricing on most things locally (thank you Menards), including 50ft of 1.5" Spa Flex hose for $70 and my grand total without solvents/primers is right at $520. That is not including tax either. With the Jandy 3-way valve and CPVC and schedule 80 elbows, along with the large ball/check combo and the Jandy check valve, along with the gate valve/adapters/plumbing to hook up to the water spigot it is more like $675.

I already calculated out how much it is going to cost to add the 2-way diverter valve for the skimmer/main drain and it comes in at roughly $100 (includes a Jandy 2"/2.5" 3-way valve, 3 unions, 2 ball valves and some 90s and a male adapter). I should be able to get it to fit in the same space I have the first input at. I am also going to modify the existing input with a union on the riser so if I ever need to switch to a single input without the main drain I can easily. I know, busy work/expense, but I have saved my bacon in the past doing things just as "frivolous" and finding that it was ideal for something that came up, so for the extra 5 minutes of time and $9 for a union I figure it is worth it.

I must say I was a little surprised at how quickly most of it added up. Even though I have to admit the amount of time involved was massive compared to what I expected. I can see how this becomes an art form quickly for those that can think 3-dimensionally, and I can also see how in a lot of cases if the person doing the plumbing cant' think like that, it is a disaster.

What I still don't get is how expensive this stuff is when you have a pool installed. I mean the quotes I got when I called earlier this year were OUTRAGEOUS. Granted, I have $4500 worth of equipment and plumbing overall (on a new installations billing I am certain it would come out to at least that, if not more), but there is no way I could ever justify paying someone $10-14k for both the installation and equipment. Now I already had the electrical all installed and a simple rewire from 240v to 120v along with a breaker change to a GFCI was all that was needed, but still, it seems unreal for that kind of cost for what you end up with.

In the end I do believe the total cost of equipment and plumbing for the pad is right at $1900-2000 or so (I did get some killer deals, but there was a lot of work too), with all of it being either brand new, or slightly used good enough to consider as new. And I won't have to redo anything if I decide to go in-ground at some point. I can just tap into where the lines run in the yard and reuse everything I have.