solar powered pool pump

[dlabrie]

Has anyone ever used solar power to run a swimming pool pump? I am planning on putting in an above ground swimming pool and it will be about 130' from the house so electricity will be a problem.
David

 

[MossRoad]

You could do it, but the cost would probably outweigh the savings. A 130 foot run is not really very long. A lot of the big houses that are built nowadays have runs longer than that just inside their walls /w3tcompact/icons/laugh.gif.

 

[njrqs]

Yep it would take a fair bit of juice to run a pool pump motor so you'd need some BIG panels and battery setups.

Go for conduit and cable.

 

[dlabrie]

I was worried about the amp drop over that distance. I wonder if I could run an underground 10-2 wire from my electric box to the the pump.
David

 

[MossRoad]

How big is the pump? Is it 110 or 220V? How many amps, HP and watts, etc... I have a one and a half horse power pump on my pool 110V. I run it on a dedicated 20 amp circuit with a GFCI breaker from a sub panel in my garage. It is 12-2 with a ground. I put in an X10 heavy duty apliance module in a waterproof enclosure and plugged the pump into that. That is what I use for a timer. Works great. Also, I have a spare house controller with an RF antenna on it plugged into another circuit in my garage, so when I am out by the pool, I can use a keychain remote controller to turn the pool off and on. That is great for when I am doing maintenance on the pool. Just click it off and on as I need. Don't have to go into the garage to shut off the breaker.

 

[dmccarty]

dlabrie,

I just went to a Solar House Design class a few weeks back. One
of the speakers works for Duke Solar. He used to own a company
in Florida installing solar systems. He said he had a solar water
heater and a solar powered pump hooked up to his pool. So
it is possible.

Depending on the technology, solar panels are running about $3-5
per watt. So if you pump is drawing lots of power your initial
costs are going to be high. Course its not going to be free to run
the power to the pump either and it costs some money to run that
pump.

Later...
Dan McCarty

 

[Gomez]

Like others have said, I would run the conduit (maybe an excuse to get a BH? /w3tcompact/icons/wink.gif), pull the wires, install a timer, and forget about the solar powered pump. It's just not cost effective. A few cloudy days in a row and your pool will be pretty ugly. With an AG pool, I don't think the pump will be more than 3/4 HP, so #10 will be more than enough. If the motor can be wired for 240, you may be able to go with #12. Check the FLA (full load amps) of the motor. While you're at it, I would recommend running an additional circuit for some outlets by the pool.

 

[dlabrie]

I decided to bag the idea of solar. I am going to run an underground 10/2 wire to a GFI pulg on a pole by the pool. No chance getting a BH.But might be able to rent a Ditch Witch
David