New Pool Need Heat

[rneally]

The more I read the more confused I get. I’m trying to figure out what is the best option. The house I bought last year already has a pool but the gas heater that it came with is broken. I live in Southern California but I’m looking to extend the swim season a bit and even in the summer I would like to get the pool up a good 5 degrees. I’ve always heard gas heating is the least efficient and most expensive but now I hear they have better ones these days. Now I’ve just read something about a heat siphon? I read that heat pumps are only a about 300.00 a year to run but I’m not sure if even that’s true. Every site tells you something different as far as what the efficiency and running cost of each unit. Any ideas on a good brand for heater of choice would be very helpful too. There is just a lot of info out there and no real place with reviews. Thank you for your help.

[trenery]

Is there a calculation to work out how much heat energy is needed to run a pool per cubic meter? (rough estimate)

Also, has anyone got experience with solar heating? I am thinking about adding a few solar tube heaters like these http://www.ebay.co.uk/itm/Solar-water-h ... 0866070195

I am thinking of pumping pool water through them with a solar powered heating pump as then it will only pump hot water into the pool.

Even when it is below freezing outside these things still produce hot water but I am wondering if they produce anywhere near enough heat to warm to pool by 10 degrees C or so. And I have no idea how many would be needed to make it work.

Any ideas?

Thanks

Mike

My pool has 27 cubic meters of water and we are in the UK so it's cold for 80% of the time.

[cpo2go]

I really like the Sta-Rite Max-E-Therm. Highly efficient, small design/footprint, easy to install and work on. You can discount most of the advertiser's claims for efficiency by about 5-10% but they are all pretty good these days, about 90% efficient.
Heat Pumps and Heat Siphons are good in some areas but I wouldn't recommend one to you here. It could be the greatest thing for you but I would need to know more about your secific location.
No worries, though, if you're only looking to bring your pool up 5 degrees or so, a properly sized heater and a simple pool blanket-style cover will keep you happy into October for not a lot of money. Obviously, there's the up-front cost of the heater but, operating costs won't be much and a blanket is about $200 depending on the size you need. The blanket will also save you money on water lost through evaporation.

As for the post following yours, there is a formula for calculating heater size:


Formula: Heater Output:

Pool Volume (gal.) x Temp Diff. X 8.33

Ex: 20,000 gal. pool that is 77 degrees and you want to
heat it to 83. It would be; 20,000 x 6 x 8.33 = 999,600. Thiss means that you would require a 1,000,000 BTU heater to get the pool up to temp in one hour.

Note: 1 BTU = 1 lb of water raised 1 degree F.

Note: 1 gal of water = 8.34 lbs.

To find heater input: Heater Output / Heater Efficiency

Ex: Heater output = 1,000,000 BTUs
Heater Efficiency = 80%

1,000,000 / .8 = 1,250,000BTUs (Heater Input)

I've just copied and pasted this from my blog and it's in American Standard measurements but doing a metric conversion is pretty basic. Use 1 gallon = 3.79 liters.

[rosalind]

Solar energy is best to give heat to new pool. Gyration the solar cover out over the top of your pool. The cover should be impact the water, So that pool can efficiently can be heat.

[preeti22]

Gas heating is the fastest and most economical way to heat your pool and spa. so go for gas heaters .Viron Gas heaters Heat on demand technology will save approximately 20% on operating costs over a conventional gas heater.

[pirateslovebacon]

I have solar heating panels on my roof; in Southern California too.

During summer I'm able to keep my water 87 deg F and I only run my pumps for 4 hr a day. I love it.

Solar won't help after Sept.

We also have a gas heater, but it's primarily for the pool-attached spa. It's expensive to heat a 20K gal pool, so we rarely ever do.