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Whirlpool power consumption

How to significantly reduce electricity consumption and therefore electricity costs
for an outdoor hot tub.
Whirlpool Power Consumption | Spa Natural

It's best to consider what the electricity costs or consumption for an outdoor hot tub might be before or even after you purchase one. Or if you already own a hot tub, you may want to know how to reduce hot tub electricity consumption. First of all, it is important to know that almost every pool manufacturer advertises excellent insulation, but usually lacks facts and figures. That's why, in the following article, we would like to explain in detail the factors on which the power consumption of your Jacuzzi depends. The goal should be that you already have the right knowledge on the topic of electricity consumption before making a purchase decision and can set your parameters on this basis.

First of all, an outdoor hot tub cost calculator that you may come across during your research is an unrealistic illustration and can never represent reality. The individual location of your pool alone, to name just one factor, will significantly affect the outcome. Therefore, this article aims to provide you with practical knowledge so that you can weigh your desired equipment against electricity savings or any additional consumption when choosing your hot tub yourself.

When evaluating outdoor hot tub electricity costs, we differentiate between the following parameters:

1. the power consumption of the individual pumps of an outdoor Jacuzzi and whether it is at all relevant or worth mentioning.
2. the electricity cost of the internal heating of an outdoor Jacuzzi.
3. is the location a parameter I should pay attention to and does it change the electricity consumption?
4. Is the electricity cost directly related to the insulation of the outdoor hot tub? Specifically, is a hot tub with full foam insulation better than a hot tub that does not have it?
5. is the cover of an outdoor hot tub important? How does this cover relate to power consumption and how should you rank its importance?
6. how does the power consumption vary with the seasons? Is there a correlation there that can be graphed?
7. how much does a hot tub cost per month and how much does a hot tub cost per year?
8. what can be done to significantly reduce current electricity costs without changing the location and type of use of the spa?

1. the power consumption of the individual pumps of an outdoor Jacuzzi and whether this is relevant or worth mentioning at all.

Most often, hot tub "newbies" and seekers go under the assumption that the number of pumps and the consumption of the pumps make a big difference in the total consumption per month or per year. To this we can tell you that increasing the number of pumps or generally increasing the power of the pumps will naturally increase the electricity consumption for an outdoor hot tub, and therefore increase the electricity costs. However, we still recommend that you make your choice regarding the number and power of pumps regardless of the electricity consumption.

Whether you get in the pool or not, a spa turns on each pump for about 1 minute each day to flush it. This so-called circulation of the water is sometimes carried out by a separate circulation pump or by a 2-speed pump, which consumes between 50-500 watts per hour. The duration of circulation is largely based on the use of the spa itself. That is, the less you use the pool, the less circulation takes place.

Most importantly, when measured against the power consumption of an outdoor hot tub, pumps represent only a fraction of the total cost incurred per month or per year. You can learn why this is the case in detail in this report. For example, should your Jacuzzi have 5 massage pumps and you activate all of them, then it will consume about 5 times more electricity than a hot tub that has only 1 massage pump - logical. You should allow yourself the question here, whether more relaxation through more power of the pumps (operating time about 15-20 minutes) is worth the increased power consumption to you.

Example calculation for the power consumption of the massage pumps:

To give you a feeling for the approximate costs, we assume an electricity price of 40 cents/kWh and assume a pump with 2.2 kW power:

If a jacuzzi with a pump consumes 2.2 kW and a massage session lasts 15 minutes (1/4 hour), this results in 22 cents electricity cost (40 cents/kWh * ¼ hour * 2.2 kW). Assuming you use the outdoor jacuzzi 3 times a week, that would be 34.32 euros over the year (22 cents * 3 days * 52 weeks).

If you have 5 massage pumps and you activate all 5 of them every time, you will have 171,60 Euro electricity costs per year (34,32 Euro * 5 pumps). You should also consider whether 3 massage units per week are feasible or realistic for you. In addition, it is more likely that you will often only need 1 or 2 pumps, since you will not always be in the pool with 5 or more people. This calculation makes it clear that the electricity costs for an outdoor hot tub do not really depend decisively on the number and performance of the massage pumps.

Example calculation for the whirlpool power consumption of a circulating pump:

If a circulation pump with 250 watts power runs on average 4 hours per day, this results in a daily consumption of 1 kW (250 watts * 4 hours). Assuming an electricity price of 40 cents/kWh, this results in electricity costs of 40 cents per day or 146 euros per year (40 cents * 365 days), provided you use the pool accordingly throughout the year. Here it is important to know that a more economical circulation pump does not usually lead to lower electricity consumption, because these often have to run pre-programmed 24 hours a day, as the suction power is correspondingly lower.

So the bottom line for the cost of electricity for Jacuzzis and hot tubs is that the decision of which hot tub it should be should not be based on the number and power of the pumps. If you are interested in a hot tub with more power and performance, then this should be superficial and ultimately financially not decisive for you.

2. the electricity cost of the internal heating of an outdoor hot tub.

The cost of electricity for the pumps is followed by consideration of the power consumption of the heater for an outdoor hot tub. As a rule, this has a power of 3 kW. There are few exceptions with 1.5 or 2 kW (mostly cheaper models or from manufacturers for very warm regions). Likewise, there are rare models with an internal heater with 6 kW for particularly cold regions. Important for understanding is the operation of a whirlpool heater. The heating element or heating rods are immersion heaters and heat the water as in a kettle. When a hot tub is placed outdoors, in wind and weather, sometimes unprotected and without a roof, the heat on the surface of the water escapes in the form of water vapor or evaporation. The amount of evaporation virtually represents the power consumption of a Jacuzzi and can therefore be calculated. Therefore, in reality, based on the volume of water, the heater always requires the corresponding amount of energy for evaporation in addition to the actual power consumption.

Guide value: 1.16 kW per degree Celsius per 1,000 liters of water

Assuming that a spa with 1,000 liters of water loses 2-6 degrees Celsius per day in temperature, this translates to approximately 2-7 kW per day. This kW value is an important factor in calculating the cost of electricity for a hot tub, because at this point you can reduce electricity consumption. The keyword here is a heat pump. With this sustainable investment for the purchase of a heat pump, you can significantly reduce electricity costs. Of course, there are other methods, such as using your home's existing heating system as well. For example, if you heat your house with a pellet heating system, you can also connect the spa directly to your heating system using a heat exchanger.

So that you can make the right decision for yourself and not make an economically wrong investment, we will be happy to calculate with you when the investment in a heat pump is worthwhile. You can then decide for yourself whether you want to make this investment in order to reduce the electricity costs for your Jacuzzi or mini-pool. Of course, nowadays the green thought also counts and the weighting of the pure economic amortization falls back a bit.

3. is the location a parameter I should pay attention to and does it change anything in the power consumption of the spa?

The location of a hot tub should first be divided into indoor (indoors) and outdoor (outdoors), which significantly affects the cost of electricity for the hot tub.

Heating costs for a spa do not increase or decrease linearly, but increase progressively or decrease degressively. If the delta or difference between the ambient temperature and the set temperature of the spa is relatively small, for example, an average of 22 degrees Celsius indoors to a set temperature of 37 degrees Celsius, the heating costs for the spa are very low. However, an outdoor hot tub also tends to use less heating energy due to the smaller temperature difference in the warmer months from April to September. From this it can be concluded that, from an economic point of view, the purchase of an air source heat pump is unnecessary for this warmer season or for an indoor hot tub. The situation is different in the cold winter months.

A well-chosen, protected location outdoors, i.e. protected from the wind and in the best case still using the waste heat of the house, can definitely have a positive effect on the whirlpool electricity costs. Unfortunately, this is difficult to represent in figures, as too many variables play a role here.

4. Is the cost of electricity directly related to the insulation of the outdoor hot tub? Specifically, is a hot tub with full foam insulation better than a hot tub that does not have it?

In order to answer this question and give you, the reader, the opportunity to judge for yourself, it is necessary to delve a little deeper into the matter. First, you should pick a few hot tub models and manufacturers and make a weighting for yourself, what is particularly important to you. An outdoor hot tub in which you can only sit uncomfortably, for example, brings you just as little as one that you do not like visually. Especially since you then have to see this every day in your garden.

Assuming that all outdoor hot tubs are visually and structurally the same inside and we only consider the insulation with PU foam, a special insulation foam, we could theoretically evaluate the price differences based on the insulation alone. It is important to remember that the hot tub also needs regular revision or maintenance. Thus, the cost of an outdoor hot tub, similar to a car, is not only the purchase and electricity costs, but also services such as maintenance or repair. If a foamed-out hot tub needs an overhaul or repair, then this service, the search for the problem and the repair can easily take 4-5 hours longer than if the technology is not behind foam and is easily visible and accessible. Without naming names here, we know that some companies "gold plate" this service.

Ultimately, it should be noted that the main power consumption in an outdoor hot tub occurs through the evaporation of water on the surface. So, as with a thermos, the lid is critical. Without the proper lid, the thermos is only partially efficient insulating and insulating. Basically, any kind of insulation brings an advantage, the question is only whether the acquisition costs or the additional costs in relation to the savings and reduction of power consumption make sense. Therefore, as a manufacturer of various brands, we offer you any type of insulation for your hot tub.

5. is the cover of an outdoor hot tub important? What is the ratio of this cover to the power consumption and how to classify its importance?

6. how does the power consumption behave over the course of the seasons? Is there a correlation there that can be represented graphically?

There is no matrix that deals with such a representation in detail. It would certainly be possible to develop empirical models that approximate this, but no one has yet ventured to tackle this topic. There are institutions in the U.S. that conduct tests on electricity consumption under certain conditions and thus assess energy efficiency, but these are always only snapshots. For example, there is a measurement from California (not exactly the coldest location), from inside a building. Solar radiation, wind and usage are not taken into account.

The different equipment of different manufacturers leads to very different consumption. A simple example is the air massage, which automatically cools the pool by pumping air into the water. However, this pool equipment is often desired and would not make sense purely from an energy rating. So, just because a manufacturer offers this equipment, it should not be rated lower because of it. Through our experience with manufacturers from the USA, Canada, China, Spain, Finland, Italy, France, UK and Mexico, we can say that the consumptions are all very similar, in terms of water volume.

How does this now behave over the course of the year. In a 2D model, the curve would be degressively decreasing and progressively increasing over the course of the year. Each degree Celsius difference between the outdoor temperature and the water temperature will result in an increased cost of electricity for the outdoor hot tub and Jacuzzi, or a significant savings. This may sound drastic at first, but it is only a matter of nuances in electricity consumption.

8. what can be done to significantly reduce current electricity costs without changing the location and way the spa is used?

The simplest way is certainly the connection of an air source heat pump. Its operation significantly reduces the cost of heating and electricity of a Jacuzzi, and installation is usually simple. As already mentioned, this would be indoors (indoor) to reduce electricity consumption, but rather not useful and in addition also problematic, because the device must be located outdoors.

Other options include other sources of hot water that are already available anyway, such as your water heater that runs pre-tempered to 70 degrees Celsius in the winter and has capacity for the spa. A plumbing professional can put an inlet and outlet to the spa so that you can share heat by means of a heat exchanger.

So there are various possibilities, up to a mini CHP (combined heat and power plant), which produces heat as waste. However, the installation of such a mini CHP unit would not be profitable for the spa alone. But in a new construction project you could consider such a purchase to keep the power consumption and thus the electricity costs for a Jacuzzi or outdoor whirlpool permanently very low.

Advantages of a heat pump for hot tubs & swim spas

If you are looking for a more efficient method of heating your spa, consider a heat pump. A heat pump can provide the same heat as traditional heating methods, but uses less energy. In this video, we explain the benefits of using a heat pump to heat your hot tub or swim spa.

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