Smartpool Solar Pool Heater Review
It isn’t all that easy to find a quality solar pool heater specifically designed for inground pools.
I would know – I spent months and months researching different options, different products, and different solutions only to turn away from taking advantage of any of them time after time.
However, when I stumbled upon the Smartpool solar heater I knew that everything was going to be different – this particularly model is able to warm your pool with solar power without having to wait until halfway through the season to enjoy the benefits!
First Impressions
When you first set eyes on this particular pool heater (especially the 4’ x 20’ solar panel array), you’re going to be at least a little bit skeptical.
I sure was.
However, after all, all of the reviews I’ve read about this product were overwhelmingly positive – I am officially hooked on this solar pool heater. Once you install it, you won’t imagine ever going back to fossil fuel (and overly expensive) gas and propane heaters ever again.
What I liked about the Smartpool WWS601P Sunheater Solar Pool Heater
Taking advantage of completely passive solar power to heat up all of the water in your pool using polypropylene heat collector technology, this solar heater takes advantage of a relatively small solar panel array to heat up water faster you ever would have thought possible.
The panels are easy to install (and don’t require you to climb a ladder and stick them on your roof if you don’t want to), and you should see a 10°F bump in pool water almost immediately. At least it will feel like that.
What I wasn’t crazy about
The solar panels (obviously) do require at least a little bit of babying.
You’re going to need to make sure that you set them up in an area that gets quite a bit of sun, which could be on top of your roof or maybe on an exposed patch of lawn that gets a bit of sun all throughout the day.
Overall efficiency rating
To really squeeze every drop of efficiency out of this completely passive system, you’re going to need to make sure that your plumbing is tight and gets water circulated through the system just as quickly as it can manage.
Having zero difficulty whatsoever heating up pools at least as large as 20’ x 40’ after almost a full day of sun, the overall efficiency rating of this technology is very impressive – especially considering the fact that you’ll be using passive solar power that isn’t going to cost you anything outside of the initial cash outlay for this product.
Heating capabilities
Heating capabilities are off the charts!
Again, it’s going to be critically important that you’re smart about how you set up this particular system, but so long as you follow the included directions right down to the letter – and use high quality components throughout that help you to retain and transfers the heat more efficiently – you’re going to find yourself blown away by the heating capabilities that this solar powered system brings to the table.
It’s really not that difficult to get your pool to 80°F through 84°F and then hold it there regardless of ambient outdoor temperatures, even if you’re using the system all year round.
Value for the money
Setting you back less than $300 (and less than $250 if you know where to purchase it), you are definitely going to get every single penny’s worth when you decide to go with this particular pool heater.
Solar powered systems used to be all the rage until they fell out of favor a couple of years ago, but they are definitely coming back in a big way with more advanced technology that dramatically improves the efficiency and effectiveness of the solution.
Don’t sleep on this heater!
Any point to putting 2 of these up in sequence — have large area of roof can be used, will there be additional heating if that is done? what is the minimum number of hours of sunlight advised for reasonably good results?