Q: Why should I be thinking of heating my pool with a heat pump?
A: A heat pump allows you to heat your pool or spa economically. Depending on energy costs, an AquaCal heat pump can save you up to 80% over propane gas, 50% to 70% over natural gas, and over 600% against electrical resistance heaters found on most spas. This is the reason why thousands of customers choose a heat pump to heat their pool, rather than alternative types of heaters. If you plan on heating your pool, a heat pump makes the most sense, and the most economical heat pumps feature SCROLL compressors. AquaCal's HeatWave heat pumps were the first heat pumps to feature SCROLL compressors as their standard compressor.

Q: How does a heat pump work?
A: A heat pump simply moves heat from the air and transfers it to the pool/spa water. A heat pump uses a refrigeration cycle exactly like your refrigerator or air conditioner uses. A proven safe, economical and very trouble-free system.

Q: What is a pool heating audit?
A: A pool heating audit is a computerized report that your dealer can obtain for you. It will show your pool and advise you as to the optimum heat pump to use. Based on the weather data available for your local city, or the nearest city to you, the report will give you the approximate monthly cost of heating your pool with an AquaCal heat pump and also the cost of using fossil fuel heaters. Ask us for this free heating audit. Refer to pages 26-27.

Q: How long will it take to heat my pool?
A: The initial start-up heating time will differ, depending on the size of the pool and the air temperature at the time that you are trying to heat your pool; other considerations affect the time also, but these are not as important. However, once your pool reaches the temperature you desire, the run time can be as little as only a few hours per day.

Q: Is the refrigerant used in heat pumps ecologically safe?
A: YES! The United Nations Environmental Protection Agency has approved the type of refrigerant used in AquaCal's heat pumps, R22, until the year 2030.

Q: Why should I select a HeatWave SCROLL heat pump?
A: SCROLL compressors are the most efficient and reliable compressors on the market today! Most major heating and air conditioning manufacturers have been using SCROLL compressors for several years now. AquaCal was the first pool heat pump manufacturer to feature SCROLL compressors as standard on their HeatWave heat pump line. SCROLL compressors are 20% to 25% more efficient than conventional reciprocating compressors and 50% to 60% quieter, too! The HeatWave line also features a 10-year warranty-the best warranty in the industry!

Q: What is a pool blanket and why should I use one?
A: A pool blanket, or solar blanket, is a plastic bubble material that floats on the surface of your pool/spa. It provides a very effective insulation, similar to the insulation in your attic, to keep the heat in your pool or spa. A pool blanket can reduce your heating costs by as much as 60%, even if you use a heat pump. Our pool heating audit compares for you the cost of heating your pool with and without a pool blanket.

Q: Is a pool blanket necessary if I use a heat pump to heat my pool?
A: No, you do not need to install a blanket on your pool if you use a heat pump. However, if you choose not to use a pool blanket, your pool may require a larger heat pump. Your heating bills also won't be as low without a pool blanket.

Q: Why does AquaCal install an internal bypass on all their heat pumps?
A: the following answer only true for units that have cupro-nickel heat exchanger, titanium are full flow.

AquaCal installs an internal bypass, rather than letting the dealer install an external one, for several reasons. The most important reason is that we control the exact amount of water to enter the cupro-nickel heat exchanger inside your heat pump. Our bypass automatically adjusts to the flow of your pool or spa filter pump, unlike manual bypasses which require you to constantly adjust them to maintain optimum heating efficiency. A bypass is important to the life of your heat pump. Allowing too much water to flow into your heat pump will eventually erode the heat exchanger inside your heat pump, which can be a very costly repair for you. Also, too much or too little water flow will lower the performance of your heat pump.

Q: What is a heat exchanger?
A: the following answer is incorrect. Our standard units are now titanium, only currently mad e unit with cupro-nickel is the ST450.

The heat exchanger is a device that transfers the heat that was removed from the air to your pool or spa water. On standard models, AquaCal uses a 90/10 marine grade cupro-nickel material to manufacture their heat exchangers. This material gives you the best heat transfer, which is important to the efficiency of your heat pumps, yet also provides excellent chemical resistance to the chemicals found in the pool environment. We also offer a titanium heat exchanger as an option where severe corrosion is a concern.

Q: How much clearance around my heat pump is required?
A: 24-inch clearance is required on the evaporator sides of most heat pumps. The unique design of our Thermee Model allows for zero clearance on one side where space is a concern.

Q: How much water does my heat pump require to operate?
A: the following answer only true for units that have cupro-nickel heat exchanger, titanium are full flow.

An AquaCal heat pump can handle most typical outputs of up to 2-hp pool pumps and is just as effective with a flow as low as 20 gpm. AquaCal heat pumps can do this because of their 2-inch plumbing and internal bypass.

Q: How do I adjust the temperature setting on my heat pump?
A: You set the electronic thermostat on your AquaCal heat pump in the same way you set the thermostat on your central air conditioner. Once set, the thermostat will maintain the temperature of your pool or spa to within 1 degree F.

Q: Why does AquaCal use electronic thermostats?
A: Our electronic thermostats will not lose their setting in power outrages or brown outs and are the most accurate...to within plus/minus 1¼ F. Mechanical thermostats, as used by some other manufacturers, can vary as much as 3¼ F. from the set point, costing you more to heat your pool. A variation of this magnitude becomes critical when heating your spa.

Q: Can I heat my pool and spa combination with an AquaCal heat pump?
A: Yes, AquaCal can provide you with several options for heating a pool/spa combination. All AquaCal pool/spa units feature a dual electronic thermostat control panel that allows you to set two temperature settings-one for the pool and the other for the spa. Unlike other manufacturers, AquaCal features automatic switching from the pool setting to the higher spa setting, without requiring you to have to go out to your heat pump and manually switch from the pool setting to the spa setting.

Q: What is the warranty for the HeatWave heat pump?
A: All HeatWave heat pumps feature a ten-year limited warranty. This is standard and, unlike many other manufacturers, there is no additional charge for this. The warranty is handled by factory-trained personnel and administered by AquaCal. There is no third party involved in AquaCal's warranty. Our interest is seeing your heat pump operate properly for the specified warranty period, not what a third party dictates, i.e. an insurance company. For warranty outside the 48 contiguous United States, please contact the AquaCal factory at 727-823-5642.

Q: How is the heat pump installed?
A: An AquaCal heat pump installation is very easy. The heat pump is installed after the filter system but before any chlorinator or other chemical feeder. Standard 2-inch PVC fittings that all pool dealers use are all that is required to install the plumbing side. All AquaCal units are equipped with 1-inch electrical connections for 220-volt line voltages and a secondary fitting for installing optional electronic controllers such as Jandy, Compool or Intermatic.

Q: How much water will condense from my AquaCal heat pump?
A: Heat pumps operate by removing heat from the air. When this is done, water will condense on the outside of the unit and run down into the base of the unit. In humid weather, this water condensate could be several gallons per hour. Each AquaCal heat pump is provided with a connection that allows a drain line to be easily installed.

Q: How noisy is a pool/spa heat pump?
A: The AquaCal HeatWave line of high-performance heat pumps has been engineered to give you the quietest-running heat pump on the market today. Features such as the SCROLL compressor, which is 50% to 60% quieter than other types of compressors, and a low-speed 825 rpm fan motor, vs. other manufacturer's 1050 rpm fan motors, ensure that there is no quieter air-source pool/spa heat pump available. In most cases, your pool filter pump will make more noise than your AquaCal HeatWave heat pump.

Q: Can I cool my pool in the summer, if it gets too hot?
A: Yes, if you choose an AquaCal Heatwave IceBreaker unit. If you want to heat your pool in winter and cool it in summer, the HeatWave IceBreaker can do both. This is very useful if you use your pool for exercise and find that your pool gets too hot in the summer. A simple flip of a switch changes the IceBreaker unit from heating to cooling as desired. Refer to page 11 for details.