Technical Pool Repair

Possible Patent Infringement regarding Variable Speed Pumps

2012-01-28T12:50:00.000-08:00

Pentair asks for an injunction that aims to force Hayward to stop selling the EcoStar.

Pentair Pool Products, manufacturer of the IntelliFlo and the IntelliPro lines of variable speed and variable flow pumps, in association with Danfoss Drives--the makers of their variable frequency drives, filed a motion on August 31, 2011 requesting an injunction that would stop Hayward, manufacturer of the EcoStar from selling their EcoStar pump.

Pentair & Danfoss (collectively referred to as Pentair in the brief) maintains that Hayward's EcoStar is in violation of three of Pentair's patents. In a preliminary hearing, the court found probable merit in Pentair's claims regarding patent infringement. At the same time, the court failed to see that any possible infringement would result in irreparable harm to Pentair. And, furthermore, in weighing matters of public interest in the matter, the court leaned slightly towards favoring Hayward.

As matters stand now, the preliminary injunction was denied on January 23, 2010, so Hayward, for the time being, can continue to sell and show its EcoStar product, but now the case moves to trial. Stay tuned.

A brief of the preliminary hearing can be found here.

Putting People First

2012-01-22T22:18:00.000-08:00

I write a lot about tech stuff in this blog, but I was reminded recently about something more important than the minutia of technology: people.

Last week I was very impressed by a group of people that I meet with monthly. A long time member of my United Pool Association chapter (UPA #31) was recently diagnosed with cancer. He has made the decision to fight it and want to have his route to come back to. Unfortunately, he will likely not be able to work for at least 4 to 6 weeks while recovering from surgery and treatment. Since he has no employees there is no one in his company to cover his pools. So last Monday, he came to our chapter with an unusual request: help cover his pools while he undergoes cancer treatment. Without exception, everyone stepped up to cover his pools without pay. This was a shining moment for our chapter.

Pool Heater Chemistry

2012-01-19T20:59:00.000-08:00

This blog post is about the chemistry of combustion, not the chemistry of the pool and spa water that is being heated.

Combustion:

Pool and spa heaters burn either natural gas—typically methane (CH₄) or propane (C₃H₈). Since both of these fuels are made up of the same basic stuff—carbon and hydrogen, just in different proportions, the combustion reactions are going to be similar. For the sake of simplicity, I will just focus on the combustion of natural gas.

Ideally, the combustion reaction is as follows:

CH₄ + 2 O₂ → CO₂ + 2 H₂O (ΔH = −891 kJ/mol (at standard conditions))

In other words, the combustion (i.e. oxidation) of natural gas yields carbon dioxide, water vapor, and a lot of heat.

Water vapor—a common byproduct and its disposal problem:

As noted above, one very common byproducts of combustion is water vapor: Put your hand a foot our two above a heater that is running and it will feel wet from the hot exhaust. If the heater’s combustion chamber and exhaust vent are hot enough, this water will remain vaporized long enough to exit the heater.

Interestingly, one of the key reasons that double wall vent pipe is recommended is not that it keeps the outside of the pipe cooler and thus safer, but that it keeps the inside hotter. A hot inner pipe improves its natural drafting ability due to the fact that hot air rises. The double wall pipe acts as insulation and the exhaust hot. The hot exhaust keeps the water in vapor form as it travels through the vent pipe. If you choose to use single wall vent pipe instead, the exhaust will lose its heat through the single wall pipe. As a result the exhaust will cool and the water vapor inside will condense while still in the pipe. This condensation explains why single wall vent pipe rusts more than double wall pipe.

Low gas volume—a first obstacle to water vapor disposal:

If the volume of gas available to the heater is insufficient to provide for the minimum requirements, the heater may still light, but if it does, it will not burn as hot as it should. As a result, some of the water vapor in the exhaust will cool enough to condense before it rises completely out of the heater. This results in excessive rust-causing moisture remaining in the heater. Low gas pressure also produces an excessively yellow flame that emits a black soot that will stick to and eventually build up on the heat exchanger. Over several months or years, this soot will eventually block the exit of the exhaust. It will also trap excess heat in the heater causing it to become more efficient than it was designed to be. This efficiency is not as good as it sounds as the heater is destroying itself in the process (more on this later).

Excessive water flow—a second obstacle to water vapor disposal:

Heaters are designed with a specific water flow in mind and have automatic valves that control the flow of water through the heater. Some of the better heaters will have two types of these valves. One type of valve is spring operated and is designed to produce a consistent flow of pool water through the heater despite the heater being used with a variety of pump sizes and with different amounts of restrictions due to the filter.

In addition to the pressure operated valve, there is often a thermally controlled valve that is designed to provide a constant heat exchanger temperature. If this thermally controlled valve malfunctions (or is not part of a particular heater’s design—it is absent from the Series One Laars, the Laars Lite, and the new Universal Forced Draft Hayward (UFD)), then the temperature of the heat exchanger will vary as the water heats up. If the initial water temperature is low, so too will be the temperature of the heat exchanger. And, if the heat exchanger is too cool, the water vapor from the combustion will condense on it and “rain” back into the heater. If you see a rusted burner tray on a Laars, this is probably the cause. Hayward claims that their new UFD heater is built so well, that this condensate “rain” will occur, but will not damage anything.

More than 84% efficient—a third obstacle to water vapor disposal:

Have you ever wondered why even some of the best heaters are “only” 84% efficient? Have you wondered why there is a major price jump upwards between these commonly used heaters and the rarely used “high efficiency” heaters? There is a good reason for this and it is all about the disposal of combustion water vapor.

As I said above, a heater’s exhaust needs to remain sufficiently hot for it to keep the combustion water vapor from condensing inside the heater. If the heater transfers more than 84% of its heat to the pool water, the exhaust becomes too cool to carry away this water as vapor. As a result, the water vapor from the combustion cools, condenses, and “rains” back into the heater. The condensing water (H₂O) combines with carbon monoxide (CO) to form carbonic acid (H₂CO₃). As a result, the condensate from a high efficiency heater has a pH that is typically in the 3.5 to 6.0 range.

Efficiency in excess of 84% can come about by design—as in the Laars Hi-E2—or due to an unintended blockage that occurs within a standard heater. Heaters like the Hi-E2 that are designed to be highly efficient are manufactured with stainless steel burners and combustion chamber components to withstand the acidic condensate. Additionally, they have condensate traps and neutralization basins. These basins utilize limestone to neutralize the acidity of the condensate so that it can safely be disposed.

Standard heaters can inadvertently become highly efficient as the result of low gas volume—measured as low pressure with a manometer. Insufficient gas volume produces a flame that emits soot. This soot sticks to the fins of the heat exchanger thereby blocking the passage of exhaust gases. In blocking the exhaust, the soot slows the flow of the exhaust allowing it extra time to transfer heat to the water—thereby resulting in a highly efficient heater. Unfortunately, heaters that become highly efficient in this manner are not designed to handle the acidic condensate. As a result, the acidic condensate attacks the metal components and results in excessive rust and corrosion. These unintended high efficient heaters have only a short life left before they destroy themselves.

Formaldehyde—an occasional nasty byproduct of combustion:

There is one particularly nasty byproduct of combustion that sometimes occurs: Formaldehyde (HCHO, also written H₂CO) is one of these. Typically, formaldehyde is a short lived byproduct that quickly oxidizes in the extreme heat of the combustion chamber to form carbon monoxide (CO) and water vapor (H₂0). The carbon monoxide (CO) then oxidizes into carbon dioxide (CO₂). Sometimes, however, if conditions are wrong—if the combustion chamber is not hot enough—the formaldehyde doesn’t get oxidized and exits the heater as a smelly, eye-irritating gas. This mostly happens on low NO_xheaters.

The reason for this is that low NO_x heaters have blowers that are designed to lower the temperature of combustion—thereby reducing the formation of oxides of nitrogen (NO_x) that are known to form in small quantities at certain temperatures. The fans lower the combustion temperature and thus lower the quantity of oxides of nitrogen (NO_x) that are produced. Occasionally, some of the gas orifices on these heaters become clogged with spider webs. When this happens, only a fraction of the intended gas actually gets to the burners. As a result, the temperature within the combustion chamber is reduced even further. At this lower temperature, the formaldehyde doesn’t oxidize as it normally does in the combustion chamber and exits the heater. This results in a heater that smells particularly foul and will cause eye irritation. This problem is particularly prone to occur on low NO_x style RayPak heaters. See my YouTube video of how to correct this problem.

Conclusion:

Understanding the chemistry of combustion can help when trouble-shooting a heater. The presence of rust—and its location—is a major clue never to be overlooked, so too are noxious formaldehyde odors and sizzling sounds caused by condensate “raining” down on the burners.

Heater Booms and Fails to Light--an unusual cause

2012-01-10T16:42:00.000-08:00

Hayward H-series Heater

A couple of weeks ago I ran across a Hayward H-series heater (atmospheric, not low NOx) that failed to light. It would go through its start-up sequence: It activated the spark igniter and opened the gas valve and then fail to light. A couple of times it lit with a boom and then just as quickly the flame went out.

Orifice blocked by spider web next
to open (good) orifice

Usually this indicates that spiders have built webs that block the tiny orifice that supplies gas to the burners. When the orifice for the burner that is under the igniter is clogged, the heater often fails to light. Occasionally, enough gas from the other burners will build up in a cloud and drift over towards the igniter. In this case, it lights with a boom.

Burner with openings blocked by rust

But today, that was not the problem. As the picture shows, rust deposits have built up on the burner and are blocking the openings. The rust was particularly bad on the burner that is under the igniter.

The rust came about because the heater is "condensing." This happens when condensation forms on the heat exchanger (located directly over the burners). The condensation then drips down onto the burners. You can often hear the effects of a condensing heater. It will sound like water being flicked onto a hot skillet.

The way to fix the problem is to replace both bypass valves in the inlet/outlet header. There is one bypass that operates on pressure and one that relates to temperature. Either could cause this problem and since it takes a good deal of labor to get in there, it is better to replace both. Then, after fixing the cause, fix the damage by replacing as many burners as necessary.

Using an Intelliflo pump with and AquaLogic or ProLogic Control System

2012-01-06T10:43:00.000-08:00

Even the newest versions of the Hayward / Goldline AquaLogic controller (2.85) are not setup to select different speeds on the Intelliflo Pump.

It is possible, however, to get the two to work together using the first generation Pentair IntelliComm.

Programing the Pump:

First, set up four distinct speeds on the pump. This is straight forward on the old style 4 X 160. If using a newer menu driven pump set up the speeds in the External Control menu.

Strategy for setting up the speeds:

When using a variable speed pump with a control system, be aware that the controller will often call for more than one speed at a time. The IntelliComm resolves such conflicts by switching to the highest speed number (1-4). Depending upon how these are set, this may or may not actually be a faster speed. Indeed, in once case (if you follow my strategy below), it will not be a faster speed.

Speed 1 will be your default speed that comes on when the pump is turned on. Set this speed to an appropriate rate to operate the automatic pool cleaner (if one is present).

Speed 2 will be your low/economy speed. If both speed 1 and 2 are activated at the same time, the pump will run at the slower speed 2.

Speed 3 will be used to ensure that your heater has adequate flow should the heater come on while the pump is running in low speed (speed 2). If both speed 2 and 3 are activated at the same time, the pump will run at the faster speed 3.

Speed 4 will be used for the spa jets. This will ramp up the pump speed to its highest setting.

Programming the Controller

Setting up your time clocks:

When you set your timers, you will set the filter pump for the total time that you want the pump to run. This should be about 12 hours (8am-8pm).

Within those hours, you will set a time to run the low speed. You could go into the Configuration Menu and set it up as a two speed pump and use auxiliary 1 or 2, but I will assume that those are already being used for other things and are thus not available. The better alternative is to use Valve 3. I recommend programming Valve 3 to operate the low speed during the middle of the day. (I recommend 10am-7pm.) This way the pump only runs on high for 2 hours in the morning and 1 hour in the evening. During the peak usage of mid-day, the pump runs on low for 9 hours. Running the pump on low for 9 hours will use about the same amount of energy that it would to run it on high for 1 hour, but by running it on low, you have continuous filtration and chlorination when the sun is up and algae growth is more active. The longer run time for your chlorinator prevents dips and spikes in your chlorine level.

Wiring the IntelliComm

Wire the 240v power supply for the variable speed pump directly to a breaker. You do not want to use the filter pump relay for this. (It will be used to activate speed 1).

Power the IntelliComm with 110v (terminals 1&2). I recommend using the same breaker that powers the Aqualogic board.

Rewire the high voltage side of the filter pump relay to send 110v to terminals 3&4 of the IntelliComm. This will call for speed 1 (high speed).

Plug a valve actuator cord into the Valve 3 socket. Connect the black wire to terminal 5. Connect either the red wire or white wire to terminal 6. Use whichever one has power when Valve 3 is activated. This will activate your speed 2 (low speed).

Inside the heater connect one conductor or a two conductor thermostat cord to the low voltage ground side of the transformer and the other conductor to a place that has 24vac when the heater calls for heat. Connect this thermostat wire to terminals 7&8 of the IntelliComm. This will activate speed 3 (heater speed).

Splice into the wire going to either the suction valve or the return valve. If you would like to ensure a strong waterfall if the spillover feature is active, then splice into the wire for the return valve. Again, as before, you will connect the black wire to terminal 9 and connect either the red or white (whichever has power when the spa is on) to terminal 10. This will activate speed 4 (spa jets).

Finally, attach the yellow wire on the variable speed pump cord to terminal 11 and the green wire to terminal 12. Plug the other end of this cord into the data socket on the variable speed pump.

Using the system

Once it is programmed, you can forget that it has different speeds. Just use it as usual and the pump will switch to the appropriate speed without the user having to think about it.

Silicone Nitride Igniter

2012-01-06T10:28:00.000-08:00

I ran across an interesting problem earlier this week. I was working on a newer style Hayward UFD (Universal Forced Draft) heater.

It would try to light, then--after three attempts--it would fail and give an IF (Ignition Fail) error.

Many problems can cause this error:

A bad flame sensor
A bad ICB (Integrated Control Board)
A bad HSI (Hot Surface Igniter)

When there is first a call for heat, the ICB sends power to the HSI. If the current draw of the HSI is sufficiently out of range, the board will immediately trigger an IF error and the start up sequence will stop at that very point.
If the HSI passes this initial self check, then the fan will come on and hopefully activate a vacuum switch thereby proving to the ICB that the fan is working. At this point, the HSI will start heating up. If you measure the current draw of the HSI using a clamp-on amp meter that is placed around one of its wires, you will initially see it draw about 3 amps, then slowly draw less and less current until it is drawing a pulsating 1-1.5 amps (the needle will actually pulsate up and down).
The gas valve will then open for 4 seconds and the HSI should ignite the gas.

If the heater still fails to light it could be for several remaining reasons:

Spider webs could be blocking the flow of gas to the burners. It is quite common for a spider to build a web that will clog up the gas orifice that supplies gas to the burners. These must be unscrewed from the manifold for cleaning. Poking a hole in the spider web and pushing it back into the manifold with a wire is a short term solution at best and at worst, will result in a roll out hazard later on.
It is also possible that the heater fails to light because the gas valve isn't opening. Use a manometer on the manifold side of the gas valve to confirm that the gas valve opens and is supplying the proper amount of gas for combustion.
It is also possible that you STILL have a bad igniter. Even though the igniter passed its self test and even though it draws approximately the correct amount of current as shown using the clamp-on amp meter, and even though it gets hot the the touch, it may still not be getting hot enough to ignite the gas. I found this to be true earlier this week. The HSI that was in the heater was simply not getting hot enough. I checked the resistance of this igniter against that of a new igniter. The existing (and bad) igniter had about 37 ohms of resistance. The new (and good) igniter read had about 15-16 ohms of resistance.

A little history of Hayward's Silicone Nitride Igniter:

Some years ago with the advent of Low NOx (low nitrous oxide) heaters, many manufacturers switched from using pilot lights to ignite the burners to using direct ignition from a red hot glowing hot surface igniter. These work much like the electric heating element does on a stove or toaster. Just like a toaster can light your toast on fire, these hot surface igniters can light gas on fire.

Hayward's first shift away from a pilot light was to use direct spark ignition of the main burners. They then switched to using the same type of fragile hot surface igniters Pentair, StaRite, and Jandy still use.

These fragile igniters are made of Silicone Carbide. This material is very brittle. Replacement ones come packaged in foam rubber to prevent breakage during transport--and many of them still break during shipping. Installing them is a bit like playing the game that old game called Operation--one careless move and the igniter is broken.

Hayward chose to address this problem by switching to a more robust igniter made of silicone nitride. During their technical training seminars they show Power Point slides where these igniters have been hammered through a 2x4. This strenght is impressive for those of us familiar with the fragile-as-glass silicone carbide igniters. Nevertheless, despite their strength, they still fail. And, when they do fail, they can fail in ways that show no visible signs of failure. Such failure makes troubleshooting a little harder at times.

California to enforce energy efficiency standards

2011-12-19T19:28:00.000-08:00

California has had Title 20 energy efficient laws since 2006, but only now is the legislature passing a law to enforce those standards.

Programming a Pentair EasyTouch controller to work with a Pentair IntelliFlow VS pump

2011-12-14T17:19:00.000-08:00

First, there are some things you should be aware of before you start programming:
• The Filter Pump button will only work in the Auto mode. It will not turn the pump on in either Service or Timeout mode. For those familiar with EasyTouch controllers and single speed pumps, this is unusual. For this reason, it is nice to set up an Auxiliary button to turn the variable speed pump on to a speed that is appropriate for vacuuming or running an auto cleaner. Your pool service person will need this.
• The pump will often be told conflicting directions as to what speed it should run at. For instance, a program may call for one speed and the heater may call for a different speed. If there is a conflict between two different speeds, the pump will always run at the higher speed.

Conceptual programming strategies:
• You will want to program the “Pool” to run at the slowest speed that you want the pool to run at. If you do this, you will not need to set up an additional “low speed” speed/schedule.
• You will want to set up a “Feature” (Feature 1—for instance) to run at a medium to high speed. At scheduled times during the day, this feature will ramp up the pump to a sufficient speed to operate an auto cleaner for a couple of hours a day. You will set the time for this in Schedules and the speed in the Intelliflo menu.

Programming Steps

To avoid confusion, start by assigning circuit names:

Label your auxiliaries (pool light, spa light, blower, etc.)
Name one auxiliary “Manual Clean.” (Use one that is not connected to a relay or one whose relay is not being used.) In a later step, you will assign a pump speed to this auxiliary that is appropriate for vacuuming. Later, (in Schedules) you will also set this up to operate as an “egg timer.” You or your service person will be able to select this speed (by pressing its Auxiliary button when in the Auto mode) the pump will then ramp up to a speed appropriate for vacuuming. This is very useful for service personnel. Since this will be set up as an “egg timer,” the pump will revert to its normal settings after the egg timer has expired.
Name one Feature circuit “High Speed.” Later, (in Schedules) you will program this to operate once or twice a day to ramp up the pump to run an auto cleaner.

Assign the circuit types:

Assign the Manual Clean the generic type. You will be tempted to assign it the “Master Cleaner” type. Resist this urge, as doing so will result in a delay before the pump ramps up to your desired speed.
Assign the “High Speed” the generic type.

Setup your Schedules:

Set a schedule for the “Pool” to run for about 12 hours a day. Remember that this will be your lowest (and most economical speed).
Set a schedule for the Feature Circuit that you have labeled “High Speed.” Set this to come on one to two hours once or twice a day. For small pools, one to two hours in the morning is enough. For larger pools or pools in windy areas, it may need to run twice a day (once in the morning and once in the evening). Your utility company prefers that you set this to run during off peak hours. This speed can either be programmed within the time set for the “Pool” speed (the lowest speed) or outside of that time. If it is programed within the “Pool” time, the conflict will be settled by the pump running at the higher speed that you labeled “High Speed.”
Set up the Auxiliary that you labeled “Manual Clean” to work as an egg timer. You do this in the Schedule menu. I recommend setting the count down time between 3 and 8 hours depending upon the size of the pool and usage. You pool service person can use this speed to ensure that the water filters after chemical additions or use this for vacuuming or other clean up purposes.

Assign the Speeds in the Intelliflo menu under Settings:

Assign the “Pool” speed the slowest setting that you want the pump to run (1200-1900 rpm). Make sure that this speed is sufficient to activate the flow switch on a chlorinator.
Assign “Manual Clean” and “High Speed” a medium speed that runs the auto cleaner at a good pace (2400-3100 rpm).
Assign the “Heater” a medium speed. Tying this speed to heater operation will ensure that the heater always has adequate flow, even if it happens to be turned on during a time in which the pump is running at a slower speed that would not otherwise give it enough flow.
Assign the “Spa” the highest speed (3100-3450 rpm). When the valves are switched from pool to spa, the pump will ramp up to this highest speed so that the jets will give the expected action.

Use your smart phone to operate your pool

2011-12-08T11:06:00.000-08:00

Zodiac (the makers of the Jandy Aqualink RS and PDA lines of control systems) is introducing an iAquaLink App in the first quarter of 2012 that will allow a pool owner the ability to control their pool equipment from their iPhone, iPad, or Android device.

Use of the app requires installation of the appropriate iAquaLink Web Connect Device (there will be three to choose from). This device upgrades the power center so that it can communicate with a router (either hard wired or wirelessly).

$1,000 rebate for LA DWP customers

2011-05-17T17:41:00.000-07:00

Now until June 1, 2011 the Los Angeles Department of Water and Power is offering a $1,000 rebate for customers who install a variable speed pump. This is much higher than So Cal Edison's $200 rebate.

See Pentair's announcement for details, or go to the DWP website.

So Cal Edison increases rebates to $300

2010-09-02T23:18:00.001-07:00

For SCE (Southern California Edison) customers who purchase a qualifying variable speed pump between September 3, 2010 and the end of the year, the consumer rebate has been increased from $200 to $300.

This increase was announced in a September 2nd email by Larry Tabizon, Program Manager for SCE’s Home Energy Efficiency Rebate Program. Another email sent just a day earlier reported a $350 rebate, but it was later revised to $300.

The rebate application, according to Tabizon, is currently being updated to reflect this change.

Now is a great time to invest in a pump that will pay for itself in energy savings.

Pool motor efficiency

2010-01-21T12:08:00.001-08:00

A couple of years ago, Pentair introduced a motor to the pool industry that is a great improvement in efficiency as compared to what we have been calling “energy efficient” motors. This motor is referred to as a permanent magnet synchronous motor (PMSM) and it is used on their IntelliFlo line of pumps.
To truly appreciate why this style of motor is more efficient, one needs to understand what a power factor is.
First, all motors use magnets in order to turn a rotor. They work on the principle that opposites attract. Thus, the south pole is attracted to the north pole and vice versa. If you were to take a large horseshoe magnet and place a boy scout style compass in between its ends, the compass needle would spin to align itself with the horseshoe magnet’s magnetic field. If you could then reverse the polarity of the horseshoe magnet, the compass would spin 18o degrees and realign itself. If you could continuously reverse the polarity of the horseshoe magnet, the compass would keep spinning. This is the basic idea behind how a motor works.
So, how do you reverse the polarity of a magnet? One way is to use an alternating current to create an electromagnet. The following graph shows an alternating current. The current (and voltage) alternates from a maximum positive value down through zero to a minimum negative value and back up in a continual cycle according to the familiar sine wave pattern:

As the voltage and current alternate, so too does the polarity of the magnetic field. By using this type of continually reversing electromagnet, the compass needle (or rotor) will continuously spin inside the magnetic field.
An interesting thing happens when you pass an alternating current through a coil of wire that you use to create an electromagnet. The coil imposes a restriction upon the power. The voltage passes through faster than does the current. In other words, the current is said to “lag” behind the voltage. This means that the peak voltage no longer occurs in sync with the peak current. The peak current lags behind by a small amount of time. This lag is indicated by the phase angle φ in the following graph.

This is very significant. From Ohm’s law, recall that Power equals voltage times amps (P=EI). This means that at any given time, you are to multiply the voltage value in the above graph times the current value to calculate the power value. Notice that when voltage and current are both positive, the power will be positive too. Similarly, since a negative times a negative is also a positive value, when both the voltage and current are negative, the power will again be positive.
But when the current lags the voltage, there will be times when one will be positive and the other negative. In these cases, the power will be negative. (Since a positive times a negative is negative.) This can be seen in the above graph where the power sine wave dips below the zero line. In these cases, the motor is no longer converting electrical power into mechanical power to turn a pump, it is turning mechanical power into electrical power. It has for this period of time, become a generator and is trying to feed power back to your power company. Your power company doesn’t like this, nor do they pay you for it. It pollutes the power in the neighborhood by screwing up their nice sine wave power and you simply pay for power that you don’t use.
To counter this problem, motor companies build “energy efficient” motors that capture this power that induction motors try to stuff back down the power company’s lines and store it in a capacitor so it can be reused by the motor. This is a small advance in efficiency.
A giant step forward was taken with the permanent magnet synchronous motor. With this style of motor, you don’t use a coil to create an electromagnet. You use permanent magnets instead. Since there is no inductive electromagnet, there is no current lag. This means that the voltage and current stay in sync. Since they are in sync, they will either both be positive or both zero or both negative. There will never be a case in which one is positive and the other is negative. Because of this, their product (the power) will always be positive as well.
The bottom line: efficiency
An induction motor is around 20-30 % efficient. An “energy efficient” motor (with a capacitor) is around 40-65% efficient. A permanent magnet synchronous motor (PMSM) is around 90% efficient.
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So Cal Edison’s 2010 Incentive Program

2010-01-07T20:41:00.001-08:00

In 2010, Southern California Edison incentive program applies only to variable-speed pumps. (The two-speed incentive is now a thing of the past.) The program pays the home owner a $200 incentive and the participating retailer or contractor $100 when a variable speed pump is installed.

To participate in this program, pool retailers and contractors need to sign and mail a participation agreement to SCE.

Home owners just need to submit a rebate claim form along with a copy of their invoice to SCE.

Pool guys wash hands after using the restroom

2009-12-28T11:36:00.001-08:00

We had some people over for the holidays and after they left, my wife went to tidy up our guest bathroom. Before they arrived, she had put a new carefully folded Christmas towel on the rack. Although all of our guests used the bathroom at some point in the evening (some more than once), she discovered that neither that towel nor others on the washstand had been touched.

None of our guests had washed their hands!

Failure to wash one’s hands is not all that uncommon among the general population. I see many men leave public restrooms at movie theatres, airports, and sports arenas without first washing their hands. It is such a common site that I generally don’t think much about it.

An unusual observation

Last year while attending the Western Pool and Spa show, I noticed something strange. Every single pool man that I saw in the restroom, over the course of the three day event, washed their hands before leaving.

Why would these pool men wash their hands 100% of the time, while in the general population, the rate is much less?

Then I recalled my CPO (Certified Pool Operator) training, and I began to reflect on how unique a pool guy’s expertise is. Pool guys know about both sanitization and filtration, and both of these are key.

Sanitization

In the CPO course we learned that E. coli is a strain of bacteria that lives naturally and harmlessly in the lower intestines of healthy humans. Problems arise, however, if E. coli gets ingested. Then, it is out of place in the entrance to our digestive system and causes problems such as diarrhea, nausea, and stomach cramps.

Now, some people might think that a well placed piece of toilet paper will keep the E. coli that is in human waste from contaminating one’s fingers. If their hands look clean they may figure they don’t need to wash them. But, to see why this logic is flawed, let’s look at another area of pool guy expertise.

Filtration

E. coli is a bacteria that is about 1 micron in diameter; this is incredibly tiny. It is so small that it can pass through even the finest DE pool filter that can only filter down to about 4 microns. It will also easily pass through a paper pool cartridge filter that can only filter to about 15 microns. Now, let us assume that toilet paper can filter as well as a paper cartridge filter (even though it probably is not this good). To a 1 micron E. coli bacteria, a 15 micron filter looks as wide open as an open garage door looks to a human. The bacteria just goes right through. I wonder if most doctors and nurses trained in sanitization, but in not filtration, even think about this.

The pool guy’s unique expertise

The pool guy’s unique combination of knowledge of sanitization combined with knowledge of filtration probably explains why all the pool guys at the convention washed their hands after using the restroom. As pool guys, we need to share our unique expertise with a wider audience. Public health depends upon it.

Here’s to a healthier 2010!

Case study: Variable speed on Jandy RS

2009-12-09T22:58:00.001-08:00

Yesterday I had a chance to install a variable speed pump on a pool that is controlled by a Jandy RS system. Now, this was an older system that uses the 52 pin board and was, therefore, not compatible with Jandy’s variable speed pump. While some of Jandy’s e-pumps come with an upgrade chip for the RS control system, the chip will not fit in a 52 pin board – it only fits in boards made within the last year or two. Thus, if I were to use Jandy’s e-pump, I would have to upgrade the board. This was too expensive.

Instead, I chose to use a Pentair Intelliflo VS3050. This is the pump that used to be called the Intelliflo 4 x 160. The VS in the name indicates Variable Speed (as opposed to their other pump that is variable flow). The 4 stood for 4 speeds and the 160 stood for the max gpm.

To use the VS3050 with the Jandy RS system I had to used Intellicom II. This is a major advance over the first generation Intellicom. This is a small cell phone size adapter that converts the 24 v relay outputs of the Jandy system to RS485 communication protocol that selects the pump speed.

The Pentair reps will tell you that the Intellicom requires the use of a separate auxiliary per speed. This isn’t quite true, and if you did it that way, it would be complicated for the customer to use.

Here is how I setup my install. I set the following speeds on the pump. (I set the speeds before connecting the controller):

Speed 1: I set this to a speed fast enough to operate the suction pool vacuum. Pressing the “Filter Pump” button on the Jandy activates this speed.

Speed 2: A super low speed for filtration, This is just fast enough to break the plane of the water with the skimmer wier. The “Low Speed” button on the Jandy activates this speed. (Turn on dip switch 2 to set “Aux 2” to “Low Speed.”) This is the only extra auxiliary that is necessary to use that is not used with a single speed pump.

Speed 3: A speed suited for the 400,000 BTU heater --somewhere close to 40 gpm. This is higher than the low speed setting. Imagine what would happen if the heater was turned on when the “Low Speed” was selected. The pressure switch would be marginal and the heater would not have the minimum flow that the heater required. To avoid this, I used the “Electric Heater” relay output on the top of the Jandy board near the actuator outputs to activate Speed 3. The Logic of the Intellicom is such that it always selects the higher of the speed number if more than one is selected. In other words, if both speed 2 (low speed) and speed 3 (heater speed) are selected, it will run at speed 3. This protects the heater. It is also fool proof. The customer can’t select the wrong speed.

Speed 4: This is a high speed for the spa jets. It is really cool how I activate this speed. I used the “spare aux” relay output located on the back of the RS control board. To get this relay output to activate when the spa is turned on, set dip switch 6 to “on". This way, any time the spa is switched on, the pump automatically goes to speed 4. The customer doesn’t have to do anything different. They just press the spa button as usual and the jets come on high.

Two good things about this installation:

First is saves energy. The customer should save around $900 per year.
Second, it is no more complicated for the customer than would be a two-speed pump. While the pump itself has more speeds and is more adjustable, all the complexity is kept in the background. It is very simple for the user.

May is National Water Safety Month

2009-12-02T21:28:00.001-08:00

Click for further information

Edison may end two-speed pump rebates

2009-11-14T20:40:00.001-08:00

Southern California Edison has been offering rebates for both two-speed pumps and variable speed pumps. Starting sometime in 2010, it may discontinue rebates for two-speed pumps, and issue them only for variable speed pumps.

Meanwhile, other states are following California’s lead and are either considering or have already adopted energy-efficiency regulations similar to Title-20.

In my opinion, variable speed pumps are not ready for mainstream use. They are still too complicated and buggy in terms of nuisance alarms and the frequent need to reset the processor to clear such alarms.

I see a wide open need for a ultra-efficient motor that is as simple as a two-speed. So far it looks like Century New E Plus Centurion fits the bill. See my youtube video for an installation and energy saving calculations.

California implements VGB Act

2009-11-14T20:10:00.001-08:00

Shortly after the federal government passed the Virginia Graeme Baker Act, there was much confusion in the pool industry.

Prior to this point, pool contractors followed state and local building codes, not federal ones. Similarly, for the most part, local code enforcement agents enforced state and local ordinances, not federal Consumer Product Safety Commission standards.

What was one to do with this type of federal legislation? It would be a liability to ignore it, but it was also a bit of a financial gamble to quickly perform modifications that brought a pool into compliance with the federal act because, up to now, it was unclear as to how California would implement the federal act.

It was a possibility that California would require some more restrictive standard, as did some localities.

In California the Spa & Pool Education Council (SPEC) sponsored a bill to implement the federal act. Just days ago, Gov. Schwarzenegger signed AB 1020 into law.

Hopefully, this will now lead to some uniformity in local enforcement.

2009-01-24T00:33:00.000-08:00

California public pool requirements can be found here.

2008-12-22T10:29:00.000-08:00

The Virginia Graeme Baker Pool & Spa Safety Act (A112.19.8-2007) is now in effect. This is a new federal law that is designed to make pool drains safer. First off, it applies to all new drain covers sold -- commercial or residential. All approved covers will have "(ASME/ANSI A112.19.8-2007)" stamped on the exposed side of the cover. Secondly, the law also has more stringent criteria for commercial pools (this includes apartment, condominum, and home owner association pools). Basically the law requires some sort of back up safety device called a Safety Vacuum Release System (SVRS).

This back up device can be either a large "unblockable" drain, a second drain three feet or more away from the first drain, or it can be a SVRS device that senses a possible entrapment and either shuts off the pump or vents the suction line. There are several of these add-on SVRS devices. The Hayward Stratum both momentarilly shuts off the pump and vents the suction line to eliminate any residual suction. The VacAlert vents the line until it is manually reset, but the pump stays on (this could cause the pump to run dry). The Stingil and the Intelliflo VS=SVRS both shut off the pump if they sense an entrapment possibility.

There is much confusion regarding local implementation of this law. Local health and building departments have much latitude here. Be sure to contact them before making any expensive changes. Some localities such as Los Angeles County require you to drain the pool, so that they can inspect the cover and drain to make sure that it is compliant. Several proactive companies hired scuba divers to replace covers. These pools may now need to be drained and inspected.

Be sure to ask about inspection fees too. There is currently very little money dedicated to enforcement and localities are paying for it out of the inspection fees they charge.

Since enforcement will likely be hit and miss, much of compliance is left up to the property management company. Just as companies buy insurance to protect themselves against liability, an SVRS is also good liability insurance. The loss of a life in a pool that lacks this extra layer of protection would be disasterous in terms of the human loss and it could mean financial ruin for the property management companies and owners who are responsible.

SCE rebate form

2008-09-04T23:01:00.000-07:00

Here is a link for Southern California Edison's two-speed and variable-speed pump rebates: http://www.sce.com/NR/rdonlyres/61A34CB4-441C-47BC-8994-A5350C20BD6A/0/2008_HEERApplication.pdf

Controversy over Title 20 and 3/4 hp pumps

2008-09-04T07:04:00.000-07:00

The Independent Pool and Spa Service Association (IPSA) studied the effect of Title 20 on the use of 3/4 hp pumps. IPSA argues that this intermediate size of pump remains a practical and energy efficient option, and, as a result, should be exempt from the two-speed requirement.

Given IPSA's reluctance to embrace Title 20, their findings must be viewed with some suspicion. Nevertheless, the study makes an interesting and reasonable sounding claim. Theirs is a point that deserves further consideration and an independent study.

IPSA's study and conclusions can be found here: http://www.energy.ca.gov/appliances/2008rulemaking/2008-AAER-1B/public_comments/Residential_Pool_Pumps_and_Portable_Electric_Spas/IPSSA_Residential_Pool_Pump_Measure_Revision_TN-47889.PDF

Title 20 comments and replies

2008-07-30T23:04:00.000-07:00

The May 15, 2008 California Energy Commission Energy Efficiency workshop solicited comments from those working in the pool industry. Here is a summary of comments and replies compiled by PG&E.

http://www.energy.ca.gov/appliances/2008rulemaking/documents/2008-05-15_workshop/comments/PGE_Response_to_Comments_regarding_Pool_Pumps.pdf

Link to proposed revisions

2008-05-28T23:43:00.001-07:00

Here is a link to the proposed Title 20 revisions on the CEC website: http://www.energy.ca.gov/appliances/2008rulemaking/documents/2008-05-15_workshop/other/PGE_Proposal_Informaiton_Template_for_Residential_Pool_Pump_Measure_Revisions.pdf

Proposed revisions to Title 20

2008-05-28T23:06:00.000-07:00

At a May 15, 2008 California Energy Commission (CEC) workshop, representatives of Pacific Gas and Electric Company (PG&E) proposed some revisions the the wording of Title 20 as it applies to residential pool filtration pumps. The intent of these revisions is to clarify, given the benefit of multiple interpretations, the original motive behind the drafting of Title 20.

First, the PG&E team proposes that the wording be changed so that Title 20 explicitly includes replacement motors (as well as entire pumps). In my reading, the current wording already makes this clear, but some have argued that the wording is ambiguous.

Second, the PG&E proposal recognizes that the current two speed timer requirement is, in retrospect, misguided. As the proposed revisions make clear, a two speed timer should only be required when a two speed pump is used. The revisions acknowledge that there are approved cases where a two speed pump, and hence a two speed controler would not be used. For instance, a small single speed pump (of less than 1 hp) would require a timer capable of operating only the one speed pump that it is used with. Additionally, some pools can use multi-speed pumps. These pumps require a compatible multi speed capable controller. The proposed revisions reflect this real world nuance.

I applaud the proposed revisions. I believe that the clarification they would provide would prove useful in getting more contractors and homeowners to follow what I believe is best practice and conform to the intent of the law.

Title 20

2007-11-04T09:11:00.000-08:00

Here is the 411 on the new California Energy Commission (CEC) Title 20 Appliance Efficiency Regulations as they relate to the residential swimming pool industry. The relevant part of Title 20, for our industry is section 1605.3 (g). This section requires that new or replacement residential pool filtration pumps meet certain energy efficiency standards.

The regulation states:

(5) Residential Pool Pumps.
(A) Motor Efficiency. Pool pump motors manufactured on or after January 1, 2006
may not be split-phase or capacitor start – induction run type.
(B) Two-Speed Capability.
(i) Pump Motors. Pool pump motors with a capacity of 1 HP or more which are
manufactured on or after January 1, 2008, shall have the capability of
operating at two or more speeds with a low speed having a rotation rate that
is no more than one-half of the motor’s maximum rotation rate.
(ii) Pump Controls. Pool pump motor controls manufactured on or after
January 1, 2008 shall have the capability of operating the pool pump at least
two speeds. The default circulation speed shall be the lowest speed, with a
high speed override capability being for a temporary period not to exceed one
normal cycle.
http://www.energy.ca.gov/2007publications/CEC-400-2007-016/CEC-400-2007-016.PDF

Here is my interpretation of the regulation:

5(A) Beginning in January 2006, the CEC passed a regulation that pool motors sold in California must be energy efficient. This 2006 regulation prohibited the sale of the "standard" type of motor that was capacitor start / induction run. To meet CEC requirements, manufacturers moved to either capacitor start / capacitor run (CSCR) or permanent split-phase capacity (PSC) motors. These requirements resulted in motors that were approximately 10% more energy efficient.

5(B) (i) (a) When reading a regulation like this, traditionalists always looks for loopholes. The 1hp limitation looks like such a loophole. Unfortunately, it is not as big of a loophole as it might first appear. You see, 1hp means 1 total horsepower. Total horsepower is the product of the horsepower listed on the motor (HP) and the service factor (SF). Thus, a 3/4hp pump with a 1.5 SF (a full rated motor) has a total horsepower of .75 x 1.5 = 1.125. This means that a single-speed full rated 3/4 hp pump has more than one total horsepower. For this reason, given the new Title 20 regulations, a single-speed 3/4 hp pump will not be available as a filtration pump. The contractor must either downsize to less than one total hp or utilize a two-speed or multi-speed pump. Pentair's 1/2hp Wisperflow pump (WFE-2) has a total hp of 0.98, thereby allowing it to be utilized as a single-speed filtration pump.

(i) (b) Two-speed pool motors have long been promoted for their energy-saving benefits: The reasoning has been that if you cut the pump speed in half, the slower moving water faces less loss due to friction. This means that, with slower circulation, a greater percentage of energy goes into filtration and less is lost due to friction. Running a pump at half speed for twice as long circulates the same amount of water for about a quarter of the cost. This is why two-speed motors save energy.

Where does this leave us? Pool and spa filtration pumps greater than one total hp must have more than one speed. Not all two speed pumps are compliant. Pool pump manufacturers are moving quickly to produce two-speed pumps and multi-speed pumps that will be in compliance with the new Title 20 regulation. Pentair already has a line of multi-speed pumps that meets these requirements. Jandy has a number of two-speed pumps that are compliant. See my website for purchase information. Representatives of both Hayward and Jandy have both assured me that they too will be introducing compliant multi-speed pumps before the end of this year.

5 (B) (ii) Pump controls. The efficiency of two-speed or multi-speed pump is directly related to how it is setup and used. An efficient pump that is improperly setup will not save energy. To promote energy-savings, the CEC requires the use of a controlers. Gone are the days when a standard pool timers just turned a filtration pump on and off. The multi-speed requirement makes things more complicated. Depending upon individual pump design, a controller could be as simple as a two-function timer. Intermatic has a three circuit digital timer (model P1353ME)that can be used to control a two-speed pump, as well as one additional circuit. Some pumps such as the Intelliflo 4x160 require a propriatory controler--either the Intellicom (an interface used with other contolers) or an IntelliTouch system. Hopefully, the other manufacturers will make a multi-speed pump that does not require a proprietary interface or controler. Such a pump would be less costly to integrate with an existing control system. This would really be useful in the retrofit market.