Save Money On Spa Heating?

Q: I have posted this in another news group but with little feedback. Maybe you knowledgeable frugal persons can help. Query. I have a new L.A. Spa that holds approximately 350 gallons. It looks well insulated (spray foam) underneath and I have an insulated lid but my electrical bill shot up an extra $125 per month. The Electric Co. says I shouldn't be surprised but others have told me that it should only cost $30-40 per month. I had an electrician install the power (225V). Could he have done something wrong? I need input on what else I can do to heat my spa but conserve energy. Solar assist?? I live in San Diego county and we have lotsa extra sunshine in spite of El Nino. Scooter

A: How many additional KWH are you using? This is a more accurate figure than a $ figure. Nick can give a heat loss cost, or if you want to do it yourself, check dejanews for Nick water heater costs in this newsgroup. You should check the pump size and operation as well. A pump operating against a restricted pipe can push up electric usage. $30 to $40 per month sounds low to me. Are you using resistance heat, or heat pump, or scavanger from an air conditioner? What is ambient air temp and what is the water temp.? Is there wind around the spa? What is the surface it sits on, and what is the temp. of that? You could meter the spa by itself for an accurate reading of what is happening. I have a spa a little larger than this and it doesn't cost this much to heat. You might want to check the thermostat setting; the proper temperature is 104 degrees Farenheit, and if you set this too high it's not only unhealthy, you will use a lot of power vaporizing water. I have my spa wired to run the heater from 110 instead of 220 because it shares a line with the air conditioner compressor, and the current draw at 220 is too much for the line if everything comes on at once. However, this should not make much difference; it puts out 1/4 the power but should stay on 4 times as long. "Build Your Own Solar Hot Tub" is an article in "Backwoods Home Magazine" in the Jan/Feb 1998 issue. It uses strictly convection ciruculation (you need and elevation difference between collector and tub). The author's gets up to 150 degrees. His "tub" was a 100 gallon stock tank. This is a frugal living magazine.

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