PoolProblems Posted July 28, 2008 Report Share Posted July 28, 2008 Can everyone chime in with average monthly bill while running pump about 10 hrs a day and average single family home with central ac during summer months. I just received $353 bill (I am in NJ) for last month. This is our first year owning the pool. I would like to get an idea what every one is paying. P.S. I also have a booster pump for Polaris. Quote Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
rbdeli Posted July 28, 2008 Report Share Posted July 28, 2008 That's a great question, and I'm sure it varies on home size and location. For my 4,000 Square Foot him in Denver, my June bill was $351.00 with my pump running 24 hours a day, and despite relatively cool early summer weather. This also includes some useage of the pool heater. At any rate, this bill made my jaw drop because June's are relatively cool in Colorado. So, I decided to cut my pool pump time in half. I now run it 12 hours a day, and My July bill was $335.00, despite much hotter weather. The guy that opened my pool said that running the pump 24 hours a day would only make a $20 - $30 difference in my monthly bill. I don't believe him, especially after the energy rate increases. I would sure like to know exactly how much it does affect my bill. Anyone have any idea? Can everyone chime in with average monthly bill while running pump about 10 hrs a day and average single family home with central ac during summer months. I just received $353 bill (I am in NJ) for last month. This is our first year owning the pool. I would like to get an idea what every one is paying. P.S. I also have a booster pump for Polaris. Quote Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
jgushue Posted July 28, 2008 Report Share Posted July 28, 2008 That's a great question, and I'm sure it varies on home size and location. For my 4,000 Square Foot him in Denver, my June bill was $351.00 with my pump running 24 hours a day, and despite relatively cool early summer weather. This also includes some useage of the pool heater. At any rate, this bill made my jaw drop because June's are relatively cool in Colorado. So, I decided to cut my pool pump time in half. I now run it 12 hours a day, and My July bill was $335.00, despite much hotter weather. The guy that opened my pool said that running the pump 24 hours a day would only make a $20 - $30 difference in my monthly bill. I don't believe him, especially after the energy rate increases. I would sure like to know exactly how much it does affect my bill. Anyone have any idea? Can everyone chime in with average monthly bill while running pump about 10 hrs a day and average single family home with central ac during summer months. I just received $353 bill (I am in NJ) for last month. This is our first year owning the pool. I would like to get an idea what every one is paying. P.S. I also have a booster pump for Polaris. I have a 3800 sq ft home and I run my pool filter 10 hours a day. I also have a dual zone air/heat unit and I keep temp around 78 degrees in my home. Last electric bill was $556. My previous was $300 and before that $175....We are in South New Jersey and have had major heat waves....but my heart was shocked with the $500 dollar bill. Quote Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
USAFRET Posted July 29, 2008 Report Share Posted July 29, 2008 Comparing last years utility bill (same number of days and rates) to this years (same period late Jun to Jul) my electric bill increased about $50. I can only attribute that to running the pool filter and dedicated cleaner pump. I was running my filter 24/7 and my cleaner about 12 h/day. I have since learned that I should only run my DE filter about 12 hours/day and I have cut back the cleaner to 3 hours/day. My next billing cycle is late Jul to Aug so I have some weeks before I'll know what impact cutting my filter time in half has. But a neighbor with a salt water pool but a sand filter that runs 24/7 also had about the same increase - about $50/per month. We are located in southern Illinois and power is provided by AmerenIP Hope this helps some. Quote Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
lrodptl Posted July 29, 2008 Report Share Posted July 29, 2008 Comparing last years utility bill (same number of days and rates) to this years (same period late Jun to Jul) my electric bill increased about $50. I can only attribute that to running the pool filter and dedicated cleaner pump. I was running my filter 24/7 and my cleaner about 12 h/day. I have since learned that I should only run my DE filter about 12 hours/day and I have cut back the cleaner to 3 hours/day. My next billing cycle is late Jul to Aug so I have some weeks before I'll know what impact cutting my filter time in half has. But a neighbor with a salt water pool but a sand filter that runs 24/7 also had about the same increase - about $50/per month. We are located in southern Illinois and power is provided by AmerenIP Hope this helps some. In the past my electric bill would approximately triple from $100 in winter to about $275 a month in summer. I'm gonna scream at this next bill with the 35% or so rate increase. Quote Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
PoolProblems Posted July 29, 2008 Author Report Share Posted July 29, 2008 I guess we are all in same boat more or less. If you have a 4BR (3000 to 4000 sq ft) house and run filter for 10-12 hours, electric bill is going to be between $350 to $500. Good thing to know is people across the country are in same range. Quote Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
Casa de Melvin Posted July 29, 2008 Report Share Posted July 29, 2008 I'd like to offer my .02 worth and get opinions on my pump decision. I just finished putting a hot tub in a deck extension and keep the tub at 102. Tub has been up and running for a solid month now and shows about a 20.00 per month increase, I know it's the temperature of the sun here in Charlotte so not much of a load keeping it warm. E-Bill was 310.00 , 2700SqFt Spilt systems 2000 ton downstairs 2500 ton upstairs set temps are 73 up 74 down. My pump question/opinion search related to this thread is: I chose a Hayward 1hp 120v pump rated at 75GPM with 10 ft static head, Hayward Sand Filter full flow at 45 GPM I have estimated 35 ft of static head but won't know for sure until I get pressure readings but at the point the Hayward looks like it will develop 50GPM. I chose the 120V assuming it will use less power than the 220v. Opinions? Be civil to all; sociable to many; familiar with few; friend to one; enemy to none." -- Benjamin Franklin Quote Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
tkalla2000 Posted July 30, 2008 Report Share Posted July 30, 2008 I have heard that wiring a pump 220V costs less to run than 110V because at 110V you are drawing twice the amperage you would at 220V Quote Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
Casa de Melvin Posted July 30, 2008 Report Share Posted July 30, 2008 I agree under the same load. Using the pump curve the 110 motor should be loaded about 85% which is in the excellent efficiency range for this motor. A 220 motor would only be loaded in the 65% range and drops off in efficiency. The load from the relatively small pump should not cause a huge amp draw on the 110/120 motor (20 max rated). This particular motor can only be wired to 110/120v (I also failed to mention it was free, tough to pass up free) If it turns out to use a large amount of power I will switch it out for a 220 pump I also forgot to mention that the pool is 14400 gallons so it should turn over in about 9 hours, the plan was to run 12-16 rest at night and start again in the morning unless the pool is in use then run when in use as well. Creditors have better memories than debtors. Benjamin Franklin Quote Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
hotspringer Posted August 16, 2008 Report Share Posted August 16, 2008 Do a search for a "KILL A WATT". You can wire or plug these inexpensive instruments into any socket or circuit and see exactly how much power is being used and it keeps a cumlitive total. Volts times amps equals watts. A "kilowatt hour" is a thousand watts for one hour (ten, one hundred watt bulbs burning one hour) It takes twice as much energy to START a motion than it does to continue it. A pump that starts often draws more current than one running longer periods. *Sizing* the pump to the job is VERY important. Pipe size vs. run and lift and how many elbows and how warm the water all play a part in installing any pump. I'm not in the pool business, but it's nearly axiomatic: Cheap products use smaller pumps which soak the customer with higher bills. WW Grainger has some great pump information online. Quote Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
jkusmier Posted August 16, 2008 Report Share Posted August 16, 2008 Rob, I appreciated your review of test kits/strips. I'm certainly not taking issue w/ it, but just thought I'd chime in and say (w/ equal parts pride and gratitude) that I now only test my water once/week (absent heavy rains). Thanks to everything I've learned here, the water in my 16x32 inground has been incredibly stable all season long. I've found that testing more often once/week is simply a waste of time, as well as the reagents in my Taylor K-2006. Quote Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
the_scum1 Posted August 19, 2008 Report Share Posted August 19, 2008 Well here in Texas my bill is about 500 for a 2300 sq ft house and run my pull pump 8 hrs a day. I keep the ac at about 77 degrees. The cost per kwh has increased dramatically this year. I blame the ac more than the pool. I'm not sure how everyones electricity is billed but we are deregulated so I have choices. I just locked in at 15.6 cents per kwh and lowered my bill about 100 dollars a month. My variable rate at my old company was up to 20 cents per KWH. Quote Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
wrabon Posted August 20, 2008 Report Share Posted August 20, 2008 In SC, my most recent bill was about $350 (3600 sq. ft., 2 story, brick home). It's been very hot here, and we keep our AC on 76 during the day when no one's at home. (Two AC units - one 3 1/2 ton and one 4 ton). Our pump runs 24/7 (on low) year round, because we have an SWG and we didn't install a timer when we put the pump in. However, we're considering having a time installed so that we can cut our run time in half to ensure that it's running the same time our SWG is generating, which is about 8 hrs/day right now due to the pool water temp. Does anyone have any thoughts on installing a pump timer and cutting the pump run time? I'm just worried about poor circulation with doing this, but right now my pump never stops and I'm worried about that, too. Quote Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
Sailing_Faith Posted August 20, 2008 Report Share Posted August 20, 2008 I just got my highest ever power bill... $212. I run my filter 18hours a day, and my Polaris booster for about 5 hours. Both are on a timer, and I really recommend having one if you don't. The differences between 110v and 220v will be nominal. While at 220v the motor will draw less current, Ohm's law still applies and the power will be the same for a given amount of work (with maybe a little less loss with 220v, as the transmission is more efficient). We also have a program with our power company called Good Sense Select. It monitors power use and charges different rates depending on the time of day. We turn off the pump when the power is most expensive, and in the cooler months we only run it for a few hours each day when power is cheapest.... about %20 the price of peak. Might want to look into this if it is available in your area. Quote Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
yanks1 Posted September 16, 2008 Report Share Posted September 16, 2008 Can everyone chime in with average monthly bill while running pump about 10 hrs a day and average single family home with central ac during summer months. I just received $353 bill (I am in NJ) for last month. This is our first year owning the pool. I would like to get an idea what every one is paying. P.S. I also have a booster pump for Polaris. I also live in NJ and this is 3rd summer w/our pool of the hoem we puchased. Our electric bill consistently jumps about $60-70. We know this cause our Central A/C is never on 1st 2 months or so of pool season (we live in the woods w/wetlands nearby on property). We run filter about 8 hours per day & the Polaris 360 booster pump about 10 hrs per week Quote Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
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