Review Sweepstakes

In an effort to serve you better, Aqua Supercenter has implemented the capability to review products you purchased. Your review can help others decide whether they want to purchase an item, or avoid it. We want to give you as much information about the products as possible, but some of the most valuable information we can post is your own feedback.

So to create more reviews for our products Aqua Supercenter has instituted a monthly Review Sweepstakes. If you own swimming pool products, pond products, or patio products we list, write about them. Tell us what’s good, what’s bad, if it was easy to use, or any other information you feel will help someone make a decision about that product.

By submitting your opinion, your review will appear on our site, and you have a chance to win a $100 Gift Certificate. Not only will you be a published author, but you could get rewarded for it as well! Your opinions count, so feel free to surf through our website for products you own or have purchased in the past, and submit a review about them. For more details on the program, click here.

Announcing Our Deal of The Week

AquaSupercenter.com is pleased to announce the Deal of the Week for 2.26-3.3

You can take advantage of our Deal of the Week by heading to our Deal of the Week blog, or subscribing to our RSS feed here.

How Much Solar Heating Do I need?

We’ve received many e-mails and calls about incorporating solar heating systems with your swimming pool. Solar heating is environmentally friendly (Green as it were), and we are more that happy to try and help you incorporate solar heating systems to keep your swimming pool more environmentally friendly. In considering a solar heating system for your pool there are a few basic questions you should take into consideration to make an educated decision about heating your swimming pool with solar power:

1. What is the square footage of my pool? (The solar energy commission recommends the following: South facing panels 80% of your footage, West facing panels 100% of your square footage and East facing panels 115% of your square footage.)

2. How much sun do I get in my area of the country? The southern United States obviously gets more sunshine than the north. Your geographical location can help determine the capacity of your solar panels, and how effective they will be.

3. What kind of temperature gain am I looking for? Some people are looking for 80 degree water and some are looking for 90 degree water. Again, your needs will help determine the effectiveness of the system you want for your swimming pool.

4. What is the average temperature gain for a properly sized solar system? Average heat gain is 6-10 degrees. However, remember this is a solar system, and one of the risks of this solar dependent system is if the sun does not shine, the system cannot produce heat.

5. Where do I have room for the proper number of panels? Some people put then on their roof and some people mount them on a rack on the ground. Solar energy has made steady progress throughout the years. As this technology progresses, the panels will become more effective, and the average home owner will be able to camouflage the solar panels to they can reap the benefits of environmentally friendly systems, without compromising their curb appeal.

6. Will my existing pool pump be enough to run both my pool and the solar system? This can have many variables, such as the distance the panels are mounted from your pool equipment. Generally, a 1 horse power pump is enough for the average size pool with a solar heating system. If your panels are mounted on a second story roof or are an extreme distance from the actual pool equipment you should have at least a 1 ½ horse power pump. A general rule of thumb is the farther away the solar panels are, the harder your pump will have to work.

This provides you with the basics of designing a solar system for your pool. The experts at Aqua Superstore have been designing solar systems for many years, and will be glad to assist you with any of the more complicated issues you might encounter, so feel free to contact us, or post your issue on the blog. Remember, solar powered heating is the most energy efficient way to heat your pool, and now is the best time to incorporate soar into your swimming pool.

Pool Heaters 101

There are 3 common types of heating: Heat Pumps, Gas Heaters, and Solar. Below will explain the pro's and con's of the different types of heaters.

Heat Pumps - Heat pumps are more expensive up front to purchase than gas heaters and about the same price as a comparable solar system. Heat pumps are more efficient than a gas heater. You can heat your pool for as little as a $1 a day with a heat pump. Heat pumps usually carry a 10+ year warranty.

Who should buy a heat pump - Someone looking to heat their pool many times throughout the year.

Gas Heaters - Gas heaters are less expensive up front. The life span of a gas heater is approximately 6 years. Gas heaters heat the quickest but cost the most to run.

Who should buy a gas heater - Anyone wanting to heat their pool or spa quick but use it few times a year, since it is costly to use it constantly.

Solar - Solar is great since it doesn't cost anything to run. It will heat your pool by as much as 10 degrees in most spring and summer months. Solar is not a good choice if you want to swim in the winter. Solar will extend your swimming season approximately 4-9 weeks.

Who should buy solar - Solar is great for those wanting to swim warm during the spring, summer, and part of fall.

Click here to view our heaters

The New and Improved PoolRX

Seeing as this is the inaugural post, I guess we’d better explain what this is all about. This web log has several purposes. Firstly, we would like to post answers to common, swimming pool questions. What swimming pool products we recommend, what backyard accessories will best suite certain needs, what swimming pool supplies will work the best…These are the type of topics we are hoping to cover.

Secondly, we are hoping we can post articles that relate to swimming pool ownership. What type of maintenance is required? What to look for in a good swimming pool cleaner. What type of swimming pool chlorinators are available. What new swimming pool products are available, or on the horizon.

Thirdly, we hope to post information about the company. What we are up to, what expos and conventions you could meet us at, and even some info about our swimming pool experts we have working here.

So feel free to post comments, or e-mail us with any questions you might have. Our next post will be a “How-To” on opening your pool for spring after its winter hibernation, so check back with us soon.