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Recently, someone said that they either owned a swimming pool or knew someone who did and the electric costs associated were VERY high. I think the number quoted was $300 to run the pool equipment.
Does anyone on the Forum own a pool? If so, could you comment on these figures? Thanks!
That figure in my opinion is WAY high. We have a pool and the pump runs 3-4 hours per day and we have A/C in every room and our entire bill is less than $300.
We have a pool in Dominical and have calculated that the electrical component of its operating cost is around $225-250 per month. We do not have A/C and our total electric bill averages $325 at current rates. The pump timer was broken a few months ago, and the pump ran continuously for many days before anyone noticed, and our bill was much higher. Pools can be expensive–there are chemical and other maintenance costs beyond electricity to consider, but we consider our pool our very beautiful A/C-alternative. When we get hot, we cool off with a swim.
I have a 20 000 gallons swimming pool, and run the pump nearly 6 hours a day when I am there.
No A/C and my total electricity bill never went more than 130$ for a month.
When I am not in CR, the pump runs only 3 hours a day, and the bill declines to 60$ a month. In that time, only the pump runs and a few lights turned on at nightHope it helps
JoJo: Thanks for your reply! These responses have a HUGE disparity on costs. Where is your home located and is it “all electric”, such as appliances, etc?
We are looking at a couple of properties with pools…..$130 bills would be OK, but $300 bills? I am afraid too much for our budget!
These kind of concrete facts are invaluable to folks who are “house shopping”!
I agree the disparity is sort of shocking and it certainly motivates me to consider some sort of energy audit to verify our usage. If you are considering purchasing existing homes, as we did, why not ask to see a record of past electric bills. Then apply the current rates to the historical average usage. And of course add on for additional lighting, appliances or equipment you intend to use. We bought our home several years ago and the electric bill was a manageable $150. We’ve reduced usage somewhat through some conservation measures, but the rates have increased, resulting in our now less tolerable bill.
Excellent thought. Our realtor has suggested that we see several months of utility bills on any property we are considering – a sort of sampling of different seasons.
Although unfortunately not a pool owner, the disparity could be if the pool is heated or not.
Obviously at the beach the air is warmer but many have pools at higher altitudes and are cool….My property is on a pacific beach, no need heating the pool water. Actually I could use a ice block delivery once in a while 😆
I have a 1000 meters lot and a 125 m2 house, 2 bedrooms, 2 bathrooms. No A/C but 7 ceiling fans. A 2 rooms guard cabin and the swimming pool bodega. That is all the construction.
I use a gaz stove, not electric. I have a washing machine, no dryer and I have no water heater in the house (which I miss a lot but only in october and november) That might explain the difference between 130$ bill and 300$ bill though…
I’ve read here somewhere that the cost of Kw electricity raise with the more you use, so maybe what I save with the gaz stove and no dryer helps with the cost of the swimmingpool pump. My highest electricity bill ever for a month was 57000 colones and I thought it was very expensive !!!! … and as I said before, when I am out of the country, my bill goes down to 15000 or 18000 colones. I finished building at the end of 2007That is my 2 years experience, hope it helps you make a decision
Good luck
Jo[quote=”*Lotus”]Anyone using solar for some of their needs?[/quote]
Yup, we have solar water heating for domestic use as we did in North Carolina and Michigan. It works just fine.
While we don’t have one (blessed not to have a pool), there are solar pool heaters available, too.
Yes, some of those are just black “blankets” for passive solar gain or much more elaborate systems. Friends here in the high mountains of Arizona have a small solar array JUST to run and heat the pool. It was really expensive to start with, so not sure how long it would take to pay itself back.
Pools can be sort of a pain, but a couple of properties we are looking at already have them, so really good to know these figures!
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