The mood here is quite good, especially so since a couple of unexpected Gold Medals were won near the end of competition. Now if only our ladies Basketball team could have beaten a certain team from North of the Equator...... I've been at Orchid Show off and on for the recently and did not discuss the Olympics with a couple of British tourists who turned up to look at the flowers.

Thanks, it's good to be back! 80's, I'm jealous!! :-) I've been eyeing covers and solar panels, LOL! I'm ready to swim! I was bummed about the green banana trees because I really liked how they looked behind the waterfall. I'll probably replant them and then maybe wrap them in the winter this year and see how they do. I cut them off before winter as recommended (about 12" above the ground), but they just totally rotted during the winter. We had some very cold weather this winter including some long, hard freezes; so that may have been the problem. The red one made it through just fine though! The red one is not at all what I expected, it grows almost like a bush. I linked to a picture of it below (from last year). It doesn't grow a trunk like the green ones do, it's more like the leaves sprout up and out from the ground. I don't think they get much bigger than 8'. Ours got to about 6' last year. I chopped it off for the winter too, it started sprouting again in mid-March. Here is a link that might be useful:

Seems like a fair price but certainly make sure the heater works. Also...Check the depth. 7x7 and 300 gallons indicates to me, it might be shallow. Which, if you're tall, might be an issue. Or not. Our tub is 7'7x8 and 550 gallons. We're tall and when I'm seated in my fave spot, the water is right up to my neck. Heaven. Ask them if they'll heat it up. It only takes a few hours. Then give it a try. Did you see if you could find any reviews on that brand and model online? Good luck.

Another perspective to balance repairguys comments. The Intelliflo technology offers a guarantee that all water features will work well regardless of circuit restrictions and type and number of devices on the circuit. This is a huge benefit when retrofitting existing pools that have plumbing circuits already in place and normally under-engineered (i.e., small pipe size and lots of 90 degree elbows). The other advantage is these pumps have permanent magnet motors which are about 4-5% more efficient than other pump motors. Not a huge difference in efficiency as the 2 pole induction motors used in todayÂs pool pumps are 86-89% efficient already. RepairguyÂs comment on full speed power consumed vs lower speed power consumed is entirely true. Running a 1.5HP pump at high speed for 3 hours uses a lot more power than running that same pump at a lower speed for 3 hours. The power savings is largely due to the laws of hydraulics and only slightly due to pump technology. Lower speed provides Lower Pump Head Pressure which provides Significantly Lower Watts! What I do not agree with is Intelliflo technology offering improved low speed performance over 2 speed technology. Although it is true that low speed is half speed, it is not half flow. The flow actually drops significantly down to 20-50 gpm and this puts the 2 speed in the same flow range as Intelliflo. 2 speed operating at low speed offers almost the same efficiency and benefits of Intelliflo. The Intelliflo will save an additional 4-5% in power over 2 speed due to its permanent magnet design. Not a big savings, but one that can certainly help if planning to use the pool pump for many years to offset the high installation cost. This payoff period will be greatly affected by the cost of power in different areas of the US. Here in Louisiana at 7.5 cents/KWH , the pump would have to be in service for almost 20 years to offset the initial cost of Intelliflo on my new pool. Other areas of the US, where power cost may be up to 5-6 times higher will obviously payoff quicker. If replacing a pump in an existing pool, the Intelliflo is probably a good choice due to ability to fine tune flow to the pool design that is already in place. Sometimes, the Intelliflo will also allow the removal of other pumps in multiple pump pools which will helps offset the initial cost of Intelliflo. Not saying 2 speed is not a good choice for replacement, but Intelliflo will guarantee a good result where 2 speed will be more trial and error due to the existing piping design. If building a new pool, 2 speed will work and provide all the same benefits of Intelliflo but does require some homework up front to ensure that low speed will offer enough flow for particular needs. Good plumbing practices such as using large diameter pipe and limiting the number of 90 degree elbows will ensure that 2 speed will offer equal performance as the Intelliflo. Intelliflo is a Cadillac in the pool industry and will offer other features that 2 speed can not. Features such as multiple flows and sounds from water features, multiple power settings on spas, accommodating under-engineered plumbing on older pools, providing adequate flow when the filter is dirty, replacing multiple pumps with one pump are all areas where Intelliflo will shine. If these features are important to the pool owner and the initial cost is not a barrier, then Intelliflo is the obvious choice. By the way, IÂm in the HVAC industry and not an affiliate of any of the pool industry companies. I just built a new pool and hence my interest in this forum. Pentair is leading the way on variable speed pump technology and they have a very nice product. Others in the industry will likely have a variable speed product soon to compete. But, like in the HVAC industry, variable speed pump technology will remain a niche product serving small markets while 2 speed technology is gaining share year over year. Economics 101Â..the cost of variable speed will continue to limit its acceptance while 2 speed is financially more attractive and offers nearly the same energy savings. No one selling variable speed pumps is going to take a loss to change these economics. The variable speed technology is just too expensive to manufacture to gain widespread acceptance. Hope this dissertation helps any of those interested in this topic who are still awake!