Hench writes:

Okay, more like a dumb theory but want to solicit opinions regardless...

I have a 16' x 32' x 9' deep pool. I live in an area where in the day
electricity is double the cost than at night. However, running the
filtration system at night means lots of heat loss and water loss,
therefore, it's easier to keep the pool warmer and cleaner during the
day when electricity is the priciest. by moving the water during the
day, I can preserve and capture the sun's heat throughout the pool,
with minimal water loss under the solar cover.

I have a 90 degree elbow on a 1.5" ID pipe intake to the pump. I have
no elbows on the outtake back to the pool on 1.5" ID pipe, but do have
1.25" barbs inside that outtake pipe.

Is it worth my while to take the 90 degree elbow out and use a flex
pipe to have a sweeping radius to increase water flow? My filter is
running at 12 PSI under current setup, but it's rated for 50 PSI.

I want to know if there is a possible gpm increase by removing that
elbow. If I can move more water in less than I can save on
electricity, or have the electricity being used now, move more water.

Anyone have any thots on this dumb theory?

If anyone knows of any decent pipe flow calculator website, pass it on
to me.

The terms "water flow pipe bend" bring up hits that calculate the force
a bend causes, but they don't compare a sharp bend to a gradual bend.

My intuition tells me the difference is small, but when you look at this
video:

http://www.youtube.com/watch?v=zF4NlG3uRco

you can actually see the turbulence that water being bent creates.

--
Dan Espen