Salt system? Ozonator? Two-speed pump? Thinking about having a pool installed...

[waterbear]

Hi all,

My wife and I are seriously considering having an in ground pool installed. We've talked to three different contractors and have heard vastly differing opinions on the below items:

Salt system:

Two contractors say it's great - better for the skin, easier to take care of, etc. One recommended against it and says it causes heaters to blow up, "it's not good to have all that salt in the water", etc. Who's right? My wife has sensitive skin, so, if there are no major disadvantages to the salt system, it seems worth the $1300 price tag.

Get the SWG! You won't regret it! I have a heat pump and have had no problems!
Ozonator:

I currently have a portable spa with an ozonator and Nature2 and love it. Two dealers recommended ozonation for the pool, while one said "it's not really effective". Who's right?

Ozone actually works better with bromine than chlorine, hence its popularity in spas. In a chlorine system Ozone will deplete your free chlorine and chlorine will destroy the ozone....they don't play well together.

As far as Nature2 (and I DO sell them at work)...forget it...not needed, doesn't really help sanitize the water, will drain your wallet. (Ditto for use in the spa!) In fact, last year Australia passed legislation that requires all copper/silver ionizers including Nature2 to be used with NORMAL and not reduced chlorine levels since there is not enough sanitation of the water with the recommended reduced chlorine levels....If only our own EPA was so diligent!
Two-speed pump:

Here in San Diego, electricity is very expensive. I've heard that the two-speed pumps can really save on energy costs. Two dealers recommended the two-speed pump, and one said that they're a waste of money. We do plan on installing solar heating as well as a couple of "sheer descents" water features. Will the two-speed pump be pointless since the solar heating will (apparently) require that the pump run in the high-speed? What about the days in the summer where the water is already hot enough?
Two speed pump, although more expensive initially, will soon pay for itself and then some in energy savings!

Solar heating system:

The concept seems very basic - put some black plastic panels up on the roof and pump water through 'em so that the water soaks up the heat from the sun. Are the more expensive solar heating systems really that much better in efficiency, or will an inexpensive solar heating system be sufficient?

If you are putting it on an inground pool you might want to consider a roof mounted unit with an automatic controller. If you decide to go with the SWG you might want to look at the Goldline Control (Hayward) Aqualogic units...They combine a SWG and full pool automation, including solar control. Not cheap but they work well. In fact , have one on my pool!
Thanks, in advance, to all that can provide some unbiased opinions on the above features.

Kevin K

Hope this helps.

[kevink619]

Hope this helps.

Thanks PatL34, CarlD, bparks, cwstnsko, and waterbear. I really appreciate the advice from all of you here.

From reading your replies, the consensus seems to be that a salt system, two-speed pump, and solar are definitely worthwhile options, the ozonator is of little value, and the Nature2 is of questionable value.

As for the solar heating system, I was fairly certain that, indeed, it would work very well here in San Diego. I don't plan on getting a gas heater as it never really gets too cold here.

One clarification: As my backyard is rather small, I plan on installing the solar panels on the roof. Will the two-speed pump be able to make use of the low speed when pumping the water up to the (single story) roof and through the solar collectors? The contractor we're most likely going to go with is planning on installing a Pentair IntelliFlo pump. Judging from the specs, this seems like a NICE and very energy efficient pump.

Now we just need to decide if we can afford the expense of almost doubling the balance of the 2nd mortgage on our house... We both REALLY want a pool, but paying off the expense will mean that we'll have WAY less extra cash to spend on other forms of entertainment, vacations, etc. Of course, with our own pool, we probably won't feel the NEED to go AWAY on vacations as much. Decisions, decisions...