Calorex Heat Pump

Heat Pumps

- are by far the most cost-effective way to heat a pool

The technology has been around for decades and is basically the same refrigeration circuit that you'll find in a domestic 'fridge or freezer, an air-conditioner, water cooler or dehumidifier

For every unit of electricity you pay for the heat-pump puts the equivalent of 5-6 units of heat to the pool via a heat-exchanger

It works like this: -

  • An electrically operated fan draws outside air, from around the heat-pump, and passes it over an evaporator coil that is very similar in principle to a car radiator
  • Refrigerant liquid within the evaporator coil absorbs ambient heat from the air and warms up
  • This turns the refrigerant into a gas
  • The refrigerant gas is passed to a compressor
  • As the gas is squeezed down by the compressor its temperature rises; it gets very hot
  • The hot gas now passes into a heat-exchanger where circulating pool water takes up the available heat
  • The gas is passed through an expansion valve and cools rapidly
  • The refrigerant gas now condenses into a liquid state again
  • The liquid passes into the evaporator coil and the process repeats over and over
  • The only cost is the electricity to operate the fan, pump and compressor

Lets imagine a cost of $1 for a given period of time (exactly how long that period of time is depends on the price of electricity from your particular electricity supplier)

Astral Pool Viron Heat PumpIn that period of time the heat-pump will capture anything up to $5 worth of heat from the air and transfer it to your pool-water. One could say that the heat-pump was 'up to 500% efficient'

This gives a Coefficiency-of-Performance (COP) figure of 5.0 whereas the best efficiency you can hope for with an oil-fired heater, a gas-fired heater or an electrical heater is something under 100%, or a COP of less than 1.0

It sounds like something for nothing but really it's not; it's just making good use of an enormous, absolutely free resource - the ambient heat in the air all around us

Heat-pump pros and cons

A heat-pump is the most economic way to heat a pool by far, giving up to 600% efficiency, but are not ideal in really cold climates

In really warm climates, however, they are ideal as they are capable of cooling a pool, also

(When I lived in Arabia the pool frequently reached temperatures of over 40°C in summer and provided no cooling refreshment at all)

Heat-pump pros: -

  • They are the least costly of all pool heaters to operate
  • Eco-friendly; with zero local emissions
  • No deliveries of gas or heating oil required, ever
  • Can operate in temperatures as low as 5-7°C (41-45°F)
  • Can be used to cool a pool when the water gets too warm
  • The exhaust fan can be used to keep your beer cool!

Heat-pump cons: -

  • Initially more expensive to buy
  • Not ideal for colder climates
  • Get noisier as they get older

 

We supply all plant and equipment featured on this website. All our work is Guaranteed; Parts and Labour

For free and unbiased advice, a site visit or no-obligation Quotation*, please make initial enquiries by email. Tell us a little about your pool problem and include a daytime phone number. Thanks, we look forward to meeting you soon

Note: - Please contact our recommended pool professionals for supply and installation of all pool-related services: - 

Andalusia and the Costa del Sol - Pool Safety SpainPool Safety Spain

Nerja area - This email address is being protected from spambots. You need JavaScript enabled to view it.

*We only offer Quotations: - a fixed, agreed price that cannot, and will not, be increased. We do not give 'estimates', as an estimate offers the client no guarantee of final price

Share this website with other Pool Owners and Users,  encourage them to read about Pool Safety, learn CPR and help them to save lives, time and money. Please help us to make every pool a safer place - by sharing this information we can cut the number of pool accidents and deaths.  Please also see our FacebookFacebook page

Ken Walker - MyPoolGuru©

evaporating pool

Evaporation and heat-loss

- outdoor pools gain heat from the sun, absorbing 75%–85% of the solar energy striking the pool surface.  Most swimming pool heat loss is through evaporation, therefore swimming pool heating costs can be significantly reduced by using a pool cover. Even if the pool has no heating it will still get warm quicker in the Spring and remain warm longer in the Autumn.

Though a pool-cover slightly reduces the total amount of solar heat absorbed by the pool (Liquid Pool Covers don't reduce the amount of sun hitting the pool), the cover eliminates heat loss due to evaporation and reduces heat loss at night through its insulating properties.

Use of a pool cover also can help reduce the amount of pool chemicals (Chlorine, etc.) needed to keep the pool sanitized and healthy. (However this small economy will not be enough to 'pay for your pool cover' - despite what a less-honest pool-cover salesman might tell you!)

To keep the pool-water warm in the colder months of the year it is necessary to add heat to the water - and prevent all that costly heat from leaving the pool.AstralPool Heat-pump

Indoor pools are usually heated also, and the resulting evaporation is a big headache for the operators. Dehumidifying equipment must be installed to dry the air, with associated power cost. Reducing evaporation in indoor pools can save a lot of money.


A Heat-Pump is the most efficient, economic and cost-effective  way of heating the pool and this is even more true when a Heat-pump is backed up by an Electric Heater for night-time use at Off-peak rates.

Heat-pumps work on the same principles as a refrigerator; heat is taken from one place and ‘pumped’ elsewhere.  A refrigerator takes heat from inside itself and radiates it to the atmosphere. A pool heat-pump takes ambient heat from the outside air and transfers it to your pool-water via a heat exchanger.

Even on an overcast or rainy day a heat-pump will heat your pool .  Most modern units will operate down to ambient temperatures of 7° or so. You should also fit a pool-cover to minimise evaporation and reduce heat-losses.

Heat is lost from a pool in a variety of ways.  Some radiates away via the surface, some is conducted through the sides and bottom and some is lost during a filter backwash; when you pump warm water away to the drains.

None of these losses are the real villain, though.  Over 90% of heat lost from a pool is by evaporation of the water from the surface.  Heat is measured in BTUs (British Thermal Units).  One BTU is ‘the amount of heat needed to heat 1 pound of water by 1 degree Fahrenheit’

However, evaporation of 1 pound of water takes 1048 BTU’s, all of which comes from your pool-water, thus making it much cooler.

Evaporated water is then replaced by cold mains-water, further reducing the temperature.

Evaporation also has another nasty side-effect - it contributes to increases in TDS and Calcium Hardness. This is because when water evaporates ONLY the water is lost; the minerals dissolved in the water remain in the pool and when you top the pool up more minerals enter the pool. Eventually, dissolved minerals build up to a point where some or all of the water has to be changed.

Note: - Please contact our recommended pool professionals for supply and installation of all pool-related services: - 

Andalusia and the Costa del Sol - Pool Safety SpainPool Safety Spain

Nerja area - This email address is being protected from spambots. You need JavaScript enabled to view it.

For free and unbiased advice, a site visit or no-obligation Quotation*, please make initial enquiries by email. Tell us a little about your pool problem and include a daytime phone number. Thanks, we look forward to meeting you soon

NOTE: - On the Costa del Sol please contact PoolSchool for supply and installation of all pool-related services and equipment including Jolly Gel

*We only offer Quotations: - a fixed, agreed price that cannot, and will not, be increased. We do not give 'estimates', as an estimate offers the client no guarantee of final price

Share this website with other Pool Owners and Users,  encourage them to read about Pool Safety, learn CPR and help them to save lives, time and money. Please help us to make every pool a safer place - by sharing this information we can cut the number of pool accidents and deaths.  Please also see our FacebookFacebook page

Ken Walker - MyPoolGuru©

Subcategories

Heat Pumps