Quote:
Originally Posted by jeffc1965
Thanks for all of the replies. If we are fortunate enough to get the house, I think we will go for the electric heat pump option. I would be fearful of solar panels on the roof as was mentioned.
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Good choice, some advice from a pool owner with a heat pump. Get a solar blanket pool cover also and keep the pool covered whenever not using it during the colder months. Heat pumps work great, but they work slow, heating the pool only about 1-2 degrees per hour. The key is holding the heat in the water once it gets warm. Without a cover, you will loose most of the pools heat overnight and the pump will be running almost all the time. With a cover, you typically only need to run the heater for a little while before swimming and while swimming. The difference between the pools temperature before going to bed and waking up can easily be 10 degrees on a cold night depending on weather or not it’s covered. Running a heat pump typically cost about the same as running your A/C, which you don’t need during the cold months, so your electricity bill will be about the same. Getting into a 90 degree pool on a 50 degree night, with the steam raising out of the water, is priceless.
One note of caution, a covered pool holds in chlorine better than uncovered, so watch the chlorine lever carefully and adjust your chlorinator accordingly. Swim on : )