The Solar System at the Painted Pony Resort

As noted in a previous post the solar system heating the pool required some reworking.  A new pump station was installed which contains all the essentials for filling, monitoring, and running the solar system.  This unit, built by SunMaxx Solar, contains fill and drain ports, an inline pump, a one way valve, an electronic controller, a flow meter, a pressure gauge, an air purge, a pressure relief valve, and analogue thermometers.  It replaces a  series of parts installed inline which did many of the same functions except the pressure gauge and flow meter are new.  Previously, to check flow and pressure required a trip to the collectors to draw off some coolant which had to be replaced simultaneously to maintain flow throughout the system.  Now a simple visual inspection reveals the flow rate and the same for the pressure.  The original pump was left inline as a backup but all the old copper plumbing and brass fittings were removed.  The unit comes completely insulated minimizing heat loss which insures the maximum amount of heated fluid reaches the heat exchanger (the connecting pipes were also insulated).  The system is still connected to the shortened PEX lines but these will be replaced with stainless steel flexible insulated piping, eliminating any possibility of overheating and blowouts.

The pool was at 71 last night and the maximum temp observed at the solar collectors since installing the pump station was between 115-120 F. 

SunMaxx pump station

It is Hiking day, but not This Week

The Portal Rodeo hiking club is out enjoying a hike in the Chiricahua Mountains, but finishing other work takes precedence this week at the Painted Pony Resort.  The solar collectors are up and running and producing 110 degree water.  The hot water is circulating through the heat exchangers and heating the pool.  An additional purge valve was installed to make purging trapped air at the collectors easier.  For those interested, the angle of the collectors is higher to maximize winter solar energy collection and minimize summer collection. 

I note that while much is made of solar energy as a renewable resource it is really just nuclear fusion taking place 93 million miles away.  So the new heating system might be more accurately described as fusion powered.  While the idea of fusion powered pool heating may make some uncomfortable, it does sound high powered and futuristic.

The "Green Pool" at the Painted Pony Resort

The 20' x 40' pool at the Painted Pony Resort is a favorite with the owner and he likes it heated, but heated pools requires lots of electricity and can become expensive.  An alternate route to heating the pool is using available resources to keep the water temperature at 80 degrees.  A combination of geothermal and solar heat are used to heat the pool water allowing for year round pool use.  Unfortunately the original solar system ran pool water directly through the system and the pool chemicals eventually degraded the manifolds.  The system has been replaced with one that does not circulate pool water directly but extracts solar energy by passing solar heated coolant with a heat exchanger.  Below is a photograph of the geothermal (2 heat exchangers on left) and solar (heat exchanger on right) systems installed to heat the pool.  By using natural resources the pool stays warm and minimizes electrical costs.

Plumbing for heating the pool.

One of 3 solar panels for the pool.

Pool Maintenance at the Painted Pony Resort

The 20' x 40' pool at the Painted Pony Resort is heated with a combination of geothermal and solar with a goal of 80 degrees in the pool.  A recent broken pipe has taken some time to repair but the pool is now ready for cleaning.  While shocking and vacuuming, Roadie the Roadrunner, came down to help with pool maintenance and as always was a thoughtful and helpful assistant. A mated pair of Roadrunners lives at the resort full time and frequently show up while working outside.  I suspect they show up in hopes some tasty bug will be uncovered for them but the company is always appreciated.

Roadie asking a question about pool water quality.

Roadie collecting a water sample for testing.