I got the pot at my local Meijer store. It isn't a brand name, label says "Dist. by Wholesale Merchandisers, Inc., Grand Rapids, MI". I looked at the Meijer website, but they don't show my pot. I paid $39.99 at the store. The straight sides of the pot measures 10" from the bottom, then there is a raised edge, that is slightly larger than the body of the pot, that the lid fits into. It is a dome lid, as opposed to flat. Wonder if this makes a difference? I forgot to take a tape measure to the store, but thought for sure the pot would be around 12" high. I was a bit surprised that it was only 10". But I have measured it several times & it is surely 10" high.

VNC, Virtual Network Computing Windows/MSN messenger have remote desktop feature, Very nice, gives you remote control of a desktop .. but you have to accept the connection. Another words you have to use the desktop keyboard to initiate or accept the connection. With one of the VNC programs you just remotely connect with login/password and can remotely do things like rebooting/defrag/program installs, etc from your laptop without ever getting off your couch. Hdd ,,, thought everybody knew that one.. short for Hard Drive. If you map the full desktop hard drive(s) to your laptop you will have access to all programs and files it contains on your laptop just like another drive. Some of the configurations won't work unless you initially install the program on both desktop and laptop to build the registery keys but basic functionallity will work on most programs.

I bought a few pieces of Radio Shack X-10 just last week at a clearance store with the idea of installing it in my elderly mothers house so she could switch a few lights on from her bedside. Sort of as a security/convenience thing. Anyways I'm a bit confused. I got two wall outlets that the box says "controls a lamp or appliance" My question is what if you plug an appliance into the "controlled" socket for example an electric space heater and then someone uses the dimmer feature on the mini-controller.. isn't that dangerous... My other question is do the "appliance modules" not respond to the "all lights on" command or do they? It's all very confusing. Like the original poster I would like to use some of these systems but if it's going to be a hassle because I've got nearly all CFL's installed now it won't be worth it.

Peter- Thanks for the link to the Intelliflo technical discussion. Obviously this was an Intelliflo only discussion and only addressed low speed efficiency. Variable speed pumps with BPM motors will always use less power than a PSC motor at low speed. There is no argument here. However, variable speed at higher speeds suffers from large power consumption due to two primary power robbers 1) high current inversion of AC to DC power in the VFD, which is very inefficient and produces a lot of waste heat as a result 2) Compromised impeller design because the impeller can not operate at peak efficiency for a large gpm range so the engineers have to make a choice where they want to optimize the impeller and at the same time a choice at where the impeller will not be very efficient. In the case of Intelliflo, from their published power, TDH and gpm curves, they have optimized for low speed operation and rightly so, but this choice also causes the higher speed efficiency to be miserable. Also of note, while I agree with your warning of using FLA to estimate power consumption, I would also add that the Intelliflo curve is true power consumption in watts and not FLA. Using FLA to calculate 2 speed pump power is worst case and, to your point, will only be better in the real world which makes the 2 speed even more favorable over variable speed. Just wanted to offer a balanced view here. Variable speed has its own merits, mainly low speed efficiency and ability to tune flow to plumbing resistance for optimum performance. But, to suggest using a variable speed pump for multi-tasking, which requires higher speeds, is not doing the energy conscious homeowner any good. In the case of pools with multiple water features or in-floor cleaners which require higher flows, multiple 1 speed or 2 speed pumps that are tuned for the higher flows will always save energy over a variable speed that is trying to inefficiently cover a large operating range. jj- In your case with a floor cleaning system...the floor cleaner will have to run for about 2 hours a day to get full rotation of the heads and full cleaning. For other hours of the day, the pump can ran at low speed allowing the pump to operate easier against lower resistance providing turnover and filtering for your pool. A variable speed or a 2 speed will both provide energy efficient operation for your cleaning and filtering needs. Only you can make the decision if you want to spend the extra money for the variable speed. To help you justify the extra cost for variable speed over 2 speed, use 200 watts per hour savings over 2 speed at low speed and 1,000 watts per hour cost over 2 speed at high speed. Knowing how long you will run the pump at high and low speed will allow you to calculate how much money is saved per day with variable speed and 2 speed, helping to make your decision. Hope this helps!