Are you worried about the impact your swimming pool might be having on the environment?
Do you try to live a green lifestyle in every part of your home?
Wouldn’t it be great if you could find a way to improve the environmental impact of your pool’s operations while also saving you money?
Well, never fear—solar powered pool pumps and filters are here!
If you’ve driven around a residential community in the past few years, you’ve probably seen solar panels on the roofs of at least some of the houses. You might even live in a part of the world where solar energy is used to power banks, stores, restaurants, and even entertainment venues.
But did you know you can use solar energy to operate your pool, too?
In this article, you’ll learn about how a solar pool pump system operates as well as why this is an important choice for your pool. You’ll find out about five ways you can help the earth by upgrading your pump to solar power.
And best of all, you’ll discover reviews for two of the most popular solar pool filters on the market today. You’ll be able to choose between these two and figure out which one is best for you and your pool.
So, let’s get started learning about the world of solar pool energy!
Two Great Solar Pump Filters
In this section, you’ll be able to take a look at two of the best Natural Current products on the market today. Both of these are excellent swimming pool filters, and the one you choose pretty much depends on your personal preferences. Different variables, such as your budget, the size of your pool, and the location of your pool in relation to the sun all can help you narrow down the right solar filter system for you. Compare and contrast the two of them to see for yourself which one is sure to give you the best possible filtration for your pool water time and time again.
Our Top Recommendation: Natural Current Savior Bottom Feeder Pool/Spa Solar Pump and Filter System
- Improves your pond water quality; safety and build value while saving money for your household with Savior Bottom...
- Savior filters your water right in the critical zone because about 90-percent of all swimming pool bacteria and...
- State of the art American technology and ingenuity; harness the suns energy and reduce your costs
The Natural Current Savior Bottom Feeder Pool/Spa Solar Pump and Filter System gives you pretty much everything you need to get started on the path to solar powered pool filters right away. This filter is designed for use with koi ponds and other backyard installments, but you can use it with your swimming pool as well. It’s especially handy for use with in-ground pools. This filter is installed in the bottom of your pool so that the water passes through it as it circulates normally with the flow of the pump. This is ideal because it captures most of the germs and bacteria present in your pool water before they ever have a chance to fester.
PROS
- Works well in spas as well as pools, so if you prefer to keep all of your backyard water features eco-friendly, you can bring home a couple of these filters to get the job done right.
- Very strong and capable of pumping up to 3000 gallons of water per day easily when kept in normal sunlight.
- This filter is very easy to install even if you don’t have prior experience with pool filters or with solar panels.
CONS
- Since this filter is originally designed for use in ponds, it may be difficult to determine how to hook it up for your swimming pool, although it is still possible.
- Because this filter lays on the bottom of your pool, it may be more difficult to clean and maintain it than traditional side-mounted or separate pool filters and pumps can be.
- As with any solar powered product, if you don’t have regular access to sunlight, you will be unable to get much use out of this filter system.
Option #2. Natural Current Water Products NCSF10K Savior Pump and Filter System
- Awarded 2012 Best Product and Best Green Product in the Pool Industry - Save Money Now - Filter Your Water for FREE
- Savior gives you an opportunity to turn off your inefficient, noisy, and expensive to operate pool equipment
- Savior is needed because of the overwhelming expense you're spending on pumping and filtering your swimming pool...
The compact little Natural Current Water Products NCSF10K Savior Solar Pool and Spa Pump and Filter System is a great way to get started with solar-powered pool energy. This filter system can get you set up with the perfect solution to your energy needs. In 2012, this filter even received an award for being the Best Green Product in the Pool Industry, so you know you’re getting a great product when you purchase it. The filter comes in four different sizes—5k, 10k, 20k, or 40k—so you can easily choose the right one to suit your pool’s needs. With so many great options to pick from, you’ll be able to filter your pool the eco-friendly way in no time.
PROS
- This filter system utilizes three microfilters that are reusable and replaceable, and you can get several months of use out of each set before you need to worry about buying new ones.
- Capable of working in a pop-up pool, above-ground pool, or in-ground pool equally well, depending on the pool’s volume.
- Cleaning and maintaining this filter is much quicker and easier than it is to take care of most other types of filters.
CONS
- The speed of your filter pump correlates with how much sun the filter is getting at a given time, so if it’s very cloudy or shady where your pool is situated, your pump may run slower.
- The included microfilters are lower quality than many of the replacements you can find, so you may need to upgrade them fairly quickly the first time around.
- The packaging for this product has been known to be faulty and may cause your filter to arrive with loose pieces in the box.
You Might Also Like These Solar Pool Pumps:
How do Solar Powered Pool Filters Work?
Before you get started shopping for your solar filter, you’re probably wondering how these products work. To put it simply, they work the same way solar panels do! However, if you’ve never worked with solar energy before, you still might be a little bit confused. Take a look at the following information to learn more about how your solar pump will work when you have it installed in your swimming pool.
- Solar panels and solar pool pumps work on the same principle. That is, when light particles strike a photovoltaic cell, such as those you might find making up a solar panel, they change the makeup of the atoms that are present there and convert that light into energy.
- The cells themselves are usually charged with electricity—positive on one side and negative on the other. This helps them turn the light particles that strike them into usable energy. Although this sounds like a big, complicated scientific process in terms of large-scale solar panels, the same thing happens on smaller ones like those you might find as part of your pool system.
- When this process takes place in your pool filter, the energy is sent through wires that are connected to your filter’s solar panel. That energy is used to operate the pool’s pump, which works like any other pool pump to draw water through it.
- Solar powered pool pumps use cartridge style media in the same way that traditional cartridge pumps do. As the pool pump uses the sun’s energy to move water throughout itself, that water passes over the cartridge filter media and is filtered normally.
- The end result is crystal clear swimming pool water that can be easily achieved as long as you have access to sunlight in your backyard.
Why are Solar Pool Filters Important?
Although solar pool pumps can do a lot to help the environment, there are plenty of other great reasons why you might want to consider bringing solar energy into your backyard. Even if you don’t have solar panels on your whole house, you can get a ton of excellent benefits out of using the power of the sun to operate your swimming pool. In this section, you’ll learn about why these pumps are important and what they can do for you.
- Much like solar pool heaters, solar filters and pumps can help you save a lot of money. There are plenty of ways this can happen. First and probably most obvious, running a solar pump means you don’t have to spend money on your electric bill to keep your pool pump running at all times. This is doubly helpful in the event the power goes out for a long period of time because you don’t have to worry about your pool system quitting on you. These filters can also save you money on expensive maintenance over time.
- In some locations, you can even get money back on your taxes for installing solar panels. Especially in sunny locations, such as Florida, you can apply for a tax break when you have solar energy on your property. Some places count solar pool pumps in this and some don’t, but it’s worth checking out to see if you can save even more money this way.
- You don’t need to use harsh pool chemicals if you don’t want to with your solar filter. These filters are great at getting your pool water clean and clear without the additional use of harsh chemicals. If you’re looking to operate a more eco-friendly pool, this is a great benefit.
- You won’t have to clean your pumps as often with solar energy. Solar energy keeps your cartridges cleaner for longer, so you can cut back a little bit on your regular maintenance. Best of all, since these filters utilize cartridges, you don’t have to worry about harming the environment with diatomaceous earth, either.
- Solar powered pool pumps are easy to repair and replace. Many times, if something goes wrong with these filters, all you have to do is move the wires around a bit to get them up and running again. However, even if that isn’t the case, it’s easy to take care of most troubleshooting issues that might arise when you’re dealing with a solar filter.
5 Great Ways a Solar Pool Pump Helps the Earth
So what makes these filters important for you, and how do you choose the right one for your swimming pool? When it comes down to it, the most important reason to go to solar-powered pool filtration is to help the environment. How can you know just what an impact you’re making on the environment when you use one of these filters in your pool, though? Check out our list below of the five best ways solar powered pool systems help improve the quality of the environment and benefit the earth. Once you see this list, you won’t have any trouble choosing an eco-friendly pool system to help you take care of your pool!
1. All solar panels, regardless of size, cut back on greenhouse gas emissions.
Electricity as you normally use it works on fossil fuels, like gas and coal. This is one of the leading causes of global warming as well as air pollution, both of which are preventable if we all work together to choose less harmful forms of energy.
a. This is why the recent push for solar power has been so prominent.
When you use the sun’s energy to help power your home—or even just your swimming pool!—you’re cutting back significantly on the carbon footprint you and your household leave behind.
b. And since fossil fuels will someday run out, they can be very expensive.
You’re helping yourself as much as the earth around you when you rely on something else to help power your swimming pool.
2. Using a solar pump means you aren’t dumping harmful chemicals or other substances into the surrounding environment.
When you operate a pool the old-fashioned way, you’ll need a lot of chemicals to keep the pH balance right and you may even need harmful substances like diatomaceous earth to run your filter. Even if you have a sand filter, which runs on a natural filter media, you still will need to perform regular backwashes that will allow gallons of chemically treated pool water to spill into your backyard. This is the leading cause of groundwater pollution and contamination in residential neighborhoods. Groundwater pollution, in turn, is a serious type of water pollution that affects the whole world.
3. Any kind of pump on your pool cuts back on the risk for waterborne illnesses and parasites to be spread to the environment around your home.
When you don’t have a pump filter installed, or when you have one that can’t handle the amount of water in your pool, you run the risk of allowing parasites, bacteria, viruses and more to build up in your pool water. When this happens, all it takes is a small leak in your pool or lines to allow all of that mess to find its way into the groundwater in your backyard. And from there, that groundwater eventually finds its way to your home or to the local water supply. A solar-powered pool filter, however, is strong enough to take care of all these contaminants and more, so you never have to worry about harming the environment (or yourself) this way.
4. Supporting companies that provide green products also supports companies that operate cleaner production processes.
When companies focus on creating and developing green products, they are very environmentally minded. And if this is important to you, then you can do these companies a favor by supporting their eco-friendly practices and showing them that you’re interested in purchasing products that are designed to help the environment. The more money you spend in support of these companies, the more likely other companies will be to follow their example in the long run. And that’s great news for the environment!
5. Cutting back on the reliance on fossil fuels in your neighborhood has impacts around the world.
Other than improving the quality of the atmosphere and cutting back on harmful emissions, reducing the amount of fossil fuels that are used up in any given amount of time helps countries around the world, too. It even helps regulate the cost of these fuels in your own part of the world. And, of course, it means that these non-renewable resources won’t be used up as quickly, and the earth won’t have to suffer from the overuse of these substances.
The Natural Current Company
While there are a few companies out there that specialize in solar powered pool pump systems, one of the best is the Natural Current Company. This company prides itself on keeping the cost of solar pool pump installation low while providing great quality products that can make a big difference for the environment as well as for their customers. In this section, you’ll learn a little bit about this company and what makes them stand out from the rest.
Who are they?
The Natural Current company focuses on providing off-the-grid products that can benefit their customers while making a positive impact on the environment. This company creates a wide variety of different items that are sure to make the entire backyard experience that much more enjoyable for everyone involved. Best of all, the company is committed to customer service and take extra care to answer any phone calls they may get regarding product issues, troubleshooting, and questions or concerns from customers or potential buyers.
What are they known for?
Natural Current is most well-known for creating and perfecting many excellent renewable energy systems that can be used to make household appliances and products run smoothly with the help of solar energy. More than just focusing on the power of the sun, however, this company also strives to harness the energy that can be found in both water and wind too. As they continue to develop their products, their quality improves and the benefits they can pass along to their customers do as well.
What awards have they won?
Although this company only began in 2010, it has already won a very impressive award. In 2012, the Natural Current Solar Pump and Filtration System was awarded Best New Product at the International Pool, Spa and Patio Expo. It also won the Best Green Product award at the same event in 2010. With both of these big awards to back up the system, you can easily see why it’s such a great choice!
What are their green initiatives?
While the Natural Current company doesn’t presently have any official green initiatives, it is still focused on and driven by a commitment to providing high-quality green products that are produced with a minimal environmental impact. The company prides itself on focusing on its profits last, after the people it serves and the environment, and they devote themselves fully to this promise.
Get Your Solar Pool Pump Today
Do you feel more informed about solar pool pump options and how they can work for you? Now that you’ve read through this article, you should be ready to pick the right solar pump for you and your swimming pool. You should now understand a little more about how these filters operate and what, exactly, you’ll be looking for when you purchase yours. And you’ve learned a little more about the Natural Currents company, too, so that you know just what you’re supporting when you buy a pump from them.
Best of all, you should understand just why these filters are so important. As you can see, there are a lot of great reasons for you to install one of these filters in your swimming pool right away, and you’ll be doing yourself and the environment a huge favor when you do.
Operating a swimming pool can be very harmful to your local environment and even to the atmosphere, too. When you take steps toward improving the quality of products you use for your pool, you’re already well on your way to making a big difference for the world around you. Remember that there are plenty of other great ways to operate your pool in an eco-friendly, green way, too. A solar pool pump is a great place to get started!
Additional Research:
http://www.livescience.com/41995-how-do-solar-panels-work.html
http://www.solarcity.com/residential/benefits-of-solar-energy
http://www.solarswim.net/faq.html#q12
https://www.troublefreepool.com/threads/51593-Using-solar-power-to-power-pool-pump
http://www.naturalcurrent.com/
5 Tips to Get the Most Out of Your Solar-Powered Pump
- Make sure your solar pool pump is installed in an area that receives direct sunlight for maximum efficiency.
- Check the water level in your pool regularly and adjust the pump accordingly.
- Clean the filter on your pool water circulation regularly to ensure it is running at peak performance.
- Inspect all hoses and connections for any signs of wear or damage, and replace them if necessary.
- Be sure to turn off the pump when not in use to conserve energy and extend its life.
ALSO: Consider investing in a solar cover for your pool to help keep it warm and reduce evaporation!
Additional Useful Information For Readers
Anyone wishing to save money on their energy bills and protect the environment should definitely consider these useful tools. You may have all the advantages of a conventional pool pump with a solar pool pump without having to worry about expensive electricity costs. You no longer need to pay for electricity or be concerned about running out of fuel thanks to these practical items that use the sun's energy to operate your pool. These dependable products also require no maintenance and are significantly quieter than conventional pumps. Additionally, because they last longer than conventional pumps, you won't need to repair them as frequently. Additionally, they are more effective than other kinds of pumps and can help you save money over time by lowering your energy expenditures. All in all, purchasing a solar pool pump is a great method to cut costs while also preserving the environment!
Usage Application Ideas: What Are They Good For?
These products can be utilized in three major ways: First, they are an energy-efficient solution to maintain your pool clean and clear. By utilising the power of the sun, these pumps can run for hours without having to worry about hefty electricity bills. Second, they are also wonderful for minimizing your carbon impact, as they don’t use any fossil fuels to run. This makes them a perfect choice for people trying to lessen their environmental impact. Finally, these pumps can also be employed as a backup system in case of power shortages or other situations. This is especially beneficial if you live in an area prone to natural catastrophes or other unexpected events that could cause your normal pump to fail. With all of these qualities combined, these dependable devices are a wonderful way to save money while also helping to protect the environment.
The Cons: What To Expect
Despite these trustworthy items' many advantages, there are a few disadvantages to take into account. They first demand a sizable upfront expenditure. These useful items cost more than conventional electric pumps and call for extra hardware like solar panels and storage batteries. Because they depend on sunshine, they might not be appropriate for all climates. The pump might not be able to provide enough energy to keep the pool clean and operating correctly in places with a lot of gloomy days or long winters. Before making an investment in a solar pool pump, it is essential to investigate your local environment in order to overcome these drawbacks. If you live in a place where there is little sunlight, you may want to consider alternate options like hybrid systems that use both solar and electric power or battery-powered pumps that can store energy from other sources like wind turbines or generators. The expense of buying a solar pump can also be stretched out over time by looking into financing options.
What Specifications Should Be Used To Evaluate Them?
Efficiency, cost-effectiveness, and environmental impact are the main quantitative measurements for evaluating these items. The ratio of the pump's energy production to consumption is used to determine its efficiency. The cost of installation and maintenance is contrasted with the long-term energy cost savings to establish cost-effectiveness. The amount of carbon dioxide emissions that are decreased when a solar pool pump is used instead of a conventional one is the final way to evaluate the environmental impact. When comparing a solar pool pump to its rivals, all these aspects should be considered to determine which one is ideal for your requirements.
Using It First Hand: What To Expect
These devices are a great way to save money on electricity and protect the environment. The pump is powered by solar energy, which keeps your pool clean and operating effectively. Due to the fact that they don't use energy to operate, these items are usually more effective than conventional electric pumps. They can also be employed in regions without access to a power grid or where the cost of electricity is high. You can lower your carbon footprint and save money each month on your power costs with a solar pool pump. A solar pool pump is relatively easy to install, and once it is operational, it requires little maintenance. For optimum performance, you must place the panels such that they receive the most sunlight possible during the day. For safe operation, you should also frequently check the filter and make sure all connections are safe.
The general procedures for using these pumps are as follows: A solar panel and battery must first be attached to your pump. Next, modify the pump's settings to correspond to the size and water flow requirements of your pool. Third, start the pump and make sure it's functioning properly. Fourth, regularly check the water levels in your pool to make sure the circulation is working. Fifth, to maintain your system operating properly, clean or replace any filters as necessary. Enjoy swimming in a pristine, healthy pool at last! By following these easy instructions, you can utilize a solar-powered pump to maintain your pool secure and clean without having to be concerned about electricity costs.
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