Question on a new pool

[Golfermj23]

Hey everyone. New to this board and would appreciate any advice

We are having a L-Shaped vinyl pool put in. The contractor we are using has installed other pools for friend and are very happy with the work he has done. We are excited to use him but I do have a couple questions because he says he usually uses 1 1/2 inch pipe for vinyl and 2 inch pipe for gunite. Everything I have read, it seems as though 1 1/2 inch piping isn’t sufficient. Below is what he said he proposes along with the measurement of the pool. I have already asked him if we could do a variable speed pump and he said yes (he initially suggested just going with a single or dual speed). Any suggestions on piping, pool pump, etc would be greatly appreciated!

We also are thinking about putting in a heat pump...not sure if that is important to know when providing advice.

16 x 32 x 40trueL 2’radius corners
8 foot deep
2 wide mouth skimmers
2 main drains
5 returns
3 smith led lights
1 auto cleaner
8’ diving board
1 ladder
8’ walk-in step
Cantilever edge
1.5 hp pump
24” sand filter
Single timer
3 deck jets
1 over flow
Salt water generator
Maintenance kit
8’of Concretre on deep end and shallow. 4’ on sides
Complete electrical hook up
All permits

Thanks again!

[Teapot]

There is absolutely no reason to use 1 1/2" pipe over 2" because it's vinyl/glassfiber or anything else. It's down to the water flow that is required to keep the pool water at it's best and a 1.5hp pump (go variable speed IMO) and insist on either another 24" filter, making it 2, or a 36" minimum otherwise your electricity bill and pump longevity will cause you sleepless nights. It is pointless to use a 1.5hp pump on 1 1/2" plumbing through a 24" filter. This guy might be able to build nice pools but he doesn't understand hydraulics and flow! Also the position of the skimmers, not both at one end! Personally you are right on the limit for two skimmers, three would be better.

[Golfermj23]

Thank you...this is the kind of stuff I was hoping someone could provide. After doing some research on my own, I was worried about the 1 1/2 inch piping so that is why I thought I might need to ask you guys to get some more info.

So I should ask for a 36 inch sand filter minimum with at least 2 inch piping? Is 2 inch sufficient?What hp would you say I should go up to for this size pool? Any particular one you would recommend? I will go with a variable speed pump.

I had planned on asking for three skimmers actually. We do have some trees...not terribly close for the leaves but I do worry about that. We didn’t have trees where we were at before and didn’t have to worry about leaves in the pool. Not sure best where they should go but hopefully he knows on that.

Any additional insight is much appreciated! Thank you.

[Golfermj23]

Thank you for the reply. I was hoping to get feedback like this.

So it would be ok to go with a 36” sand filter with 2” pipe? Regarding a pool pump, what hp would you suggest? I was going to go with a variable speed pump like you suggested. Is there a particular one/brand that you think would be based given this set up?

I thought two skimmers wasn’t enough either For this size pool. We do have some trees so a little worried about the leaves. We didn’t have trees near the pool at our previous home so didn’t have to deal with that issue.

Would you stick with 5 returns...is that sufficient?

Sorry for all of the questions. Thank you to anyone taking the time to help.

[Teapot]

Hi Golfermj23,
Personally I would go with the 2x 24" if possible, it gives a much larger surface area and being able to close of one filter at a time (with additional valves) means being able to get a better backwash of the filter media. Domestic filters do not backwash well.
My usual is two returns per skimmer but on an L shape without seeing the design it's tricky to make a recommendation. If you look at the other thread Variable speed or multiple single pumps you see I totally recommend getting rid of the multiport filter valve in favour or straight through valaves. Take a read, that coupled with a variable speed pump will allow a huge energy saving.

[Golfermj23]

So ask him to go with 2” piping, 1.5hp variable speed pump...not 2hp? Could you recommend a specific one to use by chance?
Ask him to either do 2 24”sand filters or 1 36” filter.
I need 3 skimmers and 6 returns.
Does all that sound right?

If we wanted to add a heater, would you do a heat pump or a pool heater? We live in Alabama so pretty hot most of the year...very humid.

Anything else worth recommending I make sure i check with the builder on?

Thanks again so much for all of your help!

[Teapot]

You absolutely won't need a 2hp pump. One of my customers has the same size pool and that runs on around 128 watts in filtration, his pump is a 500 watt model with tremendous flow potential. I removed his old 1.5hp pump, this is baring in mind another of my optimised flow systems. That's around 0.12hp, you need the max for backwashing but on a 1.5 hp pump you could blast the filter media out of the filters to waste!
Regarding pump, is your pump above or below the water line? Have you read the other thread?
Depending on price, heat pumps cost more but low running costs, gas cheaper but higher running cost. I do prefer the heat pump for it's green credentials.

[alicechen745]

I have just installed a Madimack pool heat pump in conjunction with my newly installed solar panels. I went for the Elite Silent 28kW and have been running it for a few months. We took down our roof top solar pool heating as it kept leaking and was inconsistent at best. The pool is constantly 26 degrees where we have set it, and we use a pool cover. I wish we had done it years ago. To me it made sense to use my roof space for PV and combine it with a heat pump.