Swimming pool pumps come in a large variety and it's not easy to know which one is right for your pool. They range in price from under $200.00 to over $1000.00 and usually offer a 1 year warranty. Pumps from 1/2 h.p. with 40 gallons per minute to pumps with 5 h.p. and 122 gallon per minute. You can have a single speed or a 2 speed motor. So which one is right for you?

Determining the right pump for your pool will require you to either rely on an expert that you trust or figure it out yourself. You want to buy the most efficient pump you can while maintaining the filtering systems capacities. There are basically 2 things to figure out and they are the minimum and maximum flow rates. To find the minimum use the following: You take the pool size in gallons and divide it by the turnover time. Divide that by 60 and you will have your minimum flow rate. The first thing to find out is how long does it takes for your pool water to circulate thru the filter system. An average size pool with moderate use will take roughly 8 - 10 hours to circulate or turnover.(either use 8 or 10 for your turnover) Next you need to know the amount of water your pool holds. If it holds 24,000 gallons of water, you divide 24,000 by 8 (turnover time) and get 3000. You then divide 3000 by 60 and your minimum flow rate is 50 gallons per minute.

You also need to know the maximum flow rate and this is determined by knowing the plumbing flow rate which depends on the size of your intake lines. A 1.5 inch intake equals 42 gallons per minute and a 2 inch intake equals 73 gallons per minute. Furthermore, you need to consider what the maximum capacity of your filtering system is. The maximum flow rate will be the lesser of the two. Once you have determined the minimum and the maximum, choose a pump that falls somewhere in the middle. If you don't have a spa a single speed motor will be fine but if you think you will add one later or have one now then a 2 speed motor should be utilized.

Figuring out what it is you need is not that easy but can be done. It does make sense to have an expert go over your calculations to make sire that you didn't miss something important. Swimming pool pumps should be matched closely with all the other components so you will have many years of trouble free service.