New pool, pump question

[duraleigh]

Hi, Greg,

I think you're on the right track on all accounts. I agree with your pool calculation.....I just placed an imaginary rectangle over the body of the pool and used 4.5 for average death....16,000 gallons.

I no engineer but most pools have a THD around 40-50 it seems...yours should be no exception. A full rated .75hp pump would be perfectly adequate for your pool.

[mas985]

I agree with Dave, .75 HP full rated is more than enough. For a given pool design the THD drops with the pump HP so you will get plenty of flow and save on electrical costs.

My guess is your head loss for the .75 HP pump will be close to 40 ft while it would have been up near 60 ft for the 1.5 HP pump.

[PoolDesignnet]

I traced the pic of your pool and it looks like about 15,000 gal, and mabye a shade under. The beach entry has almost no water and I took that into account. 1hp uprated or 3/4 hp full rated is all this pool should need unless there is some other waterfeatures that we don't know about.

Also, 2 skimmers is overkill for this pool. And if I may suggest, the beach entry should be a beach step instead.

[GTakacs]

The beach entry has almost no water and I took that into account.

Based on my calculations the beach entry will hold around 260 gallons of water.

1hp uprated or 3/4 hp full rated is all this pool should need unless there is some other waterfeatures that we don't know about.

There will be a 12ft x 2 ft x 2 ft cascading waterfall but it will have its own pump (the designer added in a 1hp pump for that, don't ask if it's full rated or up rated, I do not know). They were going to run the waterfall off of the same pump as the pool but I said no!

Also, 2 skimmers is overkill for this pool. And if I may suggest, the beach entry should be a beach step instead.

This particular builder builds every pool with at least 2 skimmers, other than the cost, is there another drawback to having two skimmers? For the beach entry, my wife really wanted a true beach entry so that is what we're going with. They are installing a return (a 5th one) in the middle of the beach entry with a directional jet to move the water. I hope we won't regret it. I have read the possible problems with a beach entry I just hope that my builder is familiar with building one and will overcome them.

I haven't mentioned that I'm getting Pebble Tec for the pool including the beach entry and I will have a Levolor Water Level system isntalled to keep the water level constant.

[PoolDesignnet]

Hi,

I was concerned with the size of the beach entry. Looks like it will be about 10' into the pool. About 3' of that area will be dry. That leaves 7'. With the slope of 1' in 7' it will drop 12" in depth over the remaining length. There will be a drop-off at the end of that on the right side and two additional steps on the left. While it may look nice, it's not a very functional area. Just my 2 cents....

Pebble tec is the only way to go on a beach entry pool. You may even do that in a sandy beach color and the rest of the pool in blue or what ever color you have chosen.

[GTakacs]

I was concerned with the size of the beach entry. Looks like it will be about 10' into the pool. About 3' of that area will be dry. That leaves 7'. With the slope of 1' in 7' it will drop 12" in depth over the remaining length. There will be a drop-off at the end of that on the right side and two additional steps on the left. While it may look nice, it's not a very functional area. Just my 2 cents....

I am aware of the above issues, it is what the wife wants so this is what we're getting. We're paying a fortune for nothing essentially as far as swimming area goes. Your math is correct, we're doing a 1' in 7' drop down to 12" water level then two more steps at 10" each for a total depth of 42" at the shallow end (3.5 ft). I have an 18 month old son so I hope to get at least some use of the area for a little while.

Pebble tec is the only way to go on a beach entry pool. You may even do that in a sandy beach color and the rest of the pool in blue or what ever color you have chosen.

We'd love to get a separate color for the beach entry, unfortunately they're asking a $2000 surcharge for a second color, I think it's excessive. I will double check on these numbers, but for now I think we're going with a single color.