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Is One Water Pump Enough?


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about to sign up for the below spa on the weekend, I can really only afford the lower grade opal.

http://www.sapphirespas.com.au/models/flor...orida_range.htm

Is the singal water puimp on the opal going to create enough flow pressure with a single 3hp pump with approx 31 water jets. It also has 19 air jets from a seperate blower.

The next model up (which is 4k aus more) has 3 X 3hp pumps which just seems excessive for only an extra 20 odd jets?

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about to sign up for the below spa on the weekend, I can really only afford the lower grade opal.

http://www.sapphirespas.com.au/models/flor...orida_range.htm

Is the singal water puimp on the opal going to create enough flow pressure with a single 3hp pump with approx 31 water jets. It also has 19 air jets from a seperate blower.

The next model up (which is 4k aus more) has 3 X 3hp pumps which just seems excessive for only an extra 20 odd jets?

Calculating flow rates for jets is possible however not worthwhile. The retailer is under an obligation legally and morally to deliver you a product which meets your reasonable expectations. Usually a company in Australia anyway has it worked out.

HTH

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about to sign up for the below spa on the weekend, I can really only afford the lower grade opal.

http://www.sapphirespas.com.au/models/flor...orida_range.htm

Is the singal water puimp on the opal going to create enough flow pressure with a single 3hp pump with approx 31 water jets. It also has 19 air jets from a seperate blower.

The next model up (which is 4k aus more) has 3 X 3hp pumps which just seems excessive for only an extra 20 odd jets?

There's only one way to know if one 3 HP pump is enough. And it has nothing to do with flow rates, Horse Power, Number of jets or anything. It has to do with how it feels to you. I have one 3 HP pump in my tub and it feels fabulous to me.

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There's only one way to know if one 3 HP pump is enough. And it has nothing to do with flow rates, Horse Power, Number of jets or anything. It has to do with how it feels to you. I have one 3 HP pump in my tub and it feels fabulous to me.

Roger it is quite possible to calculate the required flow rate and pump head for a given number of known jets. How do you think the spa is designed to begin with? The jet manufacturers provide this information if you look for it in their technical data sheets for each jet. Armed with this information you simply count up the jets and multiply the flow only the pressure is a constant based on the jet pressure.

From this information you then add your pipe looses and head of water and can mathematically model the jet and flow requirements. Added all together you derive a duty point for the pump then size the pump to suit (normally slightly oversize).

About this time last year I had a pool in Bali with issues of non performance. There were a myriad of problems including under sized and badly installed pipeworks. By applying the above I was able to correctly select and size the required pumps to make everything work correctly. However, I was being paid for this solution and for this question it is not worth the time and effort to calculate, besides not having sufficent information.

Please remember a pool is just an application of maths and the maths is the key to a successful pool (or spa) or a disaster.

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There's only one way to know if one 3 HP pump is enough. And it has nothing to do with flow rates, Horse Power, Number of jets or anything. It has to do with how it feels to you. I have one 3 HP pump in my tub and it feels fabulous to me.

I have three 3hp pumps on my spa. With all three pumps going at once it will create so much water movement that some splashes out of the spa during use. I seldom if ever use the spa using all the pumps at once. About 98% of the time I only operate my spa using one pump at a time. One 3hp pump can move lots of water. Like Roger put it, the only way you can tell for sure is to wet test it.

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Roger it is quite possible to calculate the required flow rate and pump head for a given number of known jets. How do you think the spa is designed to begin with? The jet manufacturers provide this information if you look for it in their technical data sheets for each jet. Armed with this information you simply count up the jets and multiply the flow only the pressure is a constant based on the jet pressure.

From this information you then add your pipe looses and head of water and can mathematically model the jet and flow requirements. Added all together you derive a duty point for the pump then size the pump to suit (normally slightly oversize).

About this time last year I had a pool in Bali with issues of non performance. There were a myriad of problems including under sized and badly installed pipeworks. By applying the above I was able to correctly select and size the required pumps to make everything work correctly. However, I was being paid for this solution and for this question it is not worth the time and effort to calculate, besides not having sufficent information.

Please remember a pool is just an application of maths and the maths is the key to a successful pool (or spa) or a disaster.

As I stated, calculations and flow rates mean absolutly nothing to the end user. What means everything is how it feels to the end user. Some people love the feel of 1.5 HP and whatever flow rate goes with that, others aren't happy unless they have 12 HP and what ever flow number and jets goes with that. And I know someone has spent time figureing out the best way to get pluming sized correctly, flow rates, plumbing routing, manifold size and everything else to make a spa work (design) But consumers don't care. A spa that had 1,000,000 bucks spent on design may feel terrible to one consumer, while another that has 1000 dollars worth of design may feel fabulous to the same consumer. The only way any consumer can find this out is to try the tub. And no matter how it is marketed only the consumer or end user can say how it feels. Not some sales guy or manufacturers rep..

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