Even the most basic and smallest of pools are a luxury home feature. Therefore, do not limit its use to the warmer months with no one to enjoy it for the rest of the year.
There are pool heaters to let you enjoy the water all year-round. Currently, there are two commonly used forms of pool heating: electric heat pump and solar pool heater. Each has its unique set of advantages and disadvantages.
Read on for a straightforward pool heater comparison.
Electric Heat Pump
Electric heat pumps work much like a refrigerator or an air conditioner — but in reverse. It utilises electricity to take large amounts of air and transfer it to the pool. Using a fan, it sucks the warm air through a piping system filled with a refrigerant and then transfers the heat to the water.
With an electric heat pump, you can heat the pool quite quickly. While solar pool heating might take a week to bring the pool to a nice temperature, an electric pump will only take a couple of days. An electric heat pump, however, consumes a lot of energy during the process.
Solar Pool Heater
A solar pool heater uses free energy from the sun, and does not involve direct operational costs. It has an average life expectancy of about 20 years.
Solar pool heaters circulate water from the pool, move it through a filter, and transfer it through the solar collector typically located on a roof. Once it heats the water, it returns the water to the pool.
The method is only as effective as the amount of direct sunlight shining on the solar collectors. With the abundance of sunlight in Australia, this would not be much of a problem.
Both options are good, but when it comes down to deciding between them, it all depends on what you want — and how much you are willing to spend.
But of course, Pool Solar and Spa believes this need not be a case of one or the other. There is nothing wrong with having both systems; the electric pump can kick-start your pool’s water temperature, while the solar pool heater can maintain the temperature year-round.
Ready to have your own pool heating system? Call us today and to discuss your pool heating requirements.