Gas Heaters & run times

[bingusboy]

I'm new to the pool thing, so here goes. I have a gas heater, but I want to put a timer on the pump, because I run it 24/7. But, how do I regulate the heater?

[thepoolman1]

Your heater will only fire when the pump is moving water through it. If you are going to use the heater to maintain a certain temperature you will have to figure out how many hours of run each day will do that. Start with at least six. It would be best to put an insulating cover on the pool if you need to maintain a particular temperature. This will result in less heat loss, meaning less cost to keep the heater on.