Operation and Maintenance of:

Hayward® Pool Heater

-- [POOL HEATER VENTING INFORMATION]

-- [HAYWARD POOL HEATER SELECTION]

LED Diagnostic Codes for Hayward Pool Heater

"IF" - Hayward Pool Heater Fails to Ignite: the most common reason for this problem is insufficient gas supply. The Hayward heater LED display will show a diagnostic fault code of "IF" which stands for Ignition Failure. Undetected gas pressure problems if not investigated properly may result in unnecessary replacement and servicing of your Hayward Pool Heater.

Gas pressure readings and tables are expressed in "WC" ( inches of water column), and testing is done with a manometer. [Click Here] to buy a manometer.

Propane vs. Natural Gas: Gas pressure (WC) requirement differ substantially for propane vs. natural gas fuels. The above two charts shows WC requirements for most Hayward Heaters.

CAUTION: Before connection or removing a manometer for a pressure test, always make sure the main gas valve is turned to the "OFF" position. When removing the manometer from the test port, be sure to replace the allen-head plug before moving to the next test.

Test 1 - Static Pressure:

-- Measures the baseline pressure of the gas at inlet this reading should remain constant.

-- Manometer attached to the INLET side of the gas valve

-- Heater Status during test is OFF

If STATIC pressure is too low:

-- Meter size is too small for attached appliances, OR

-- Gas line size is too small, or heater is too far from meter OR

-- There is an obstruction in the gas line OR

-- Gas line regulator is damaged or not properly set

Test 2- Load Pressure:

-- Measures how well the gas pressure/supply holds up under load (while heater or other appliances are operating.

-- Manometer is attached to INLET side of the gas valve

-- Heater status during test is "ON" with other appliances on the same gas supply are also operating

If LOAD pressure reading is LOW

-- Meter size too small for all attached appliances, OR

-- Gas line size too small ( or heater is too far from gas meter) OR

-- Gas line regulator is damaged or not properly set

Test 2- Manifold Pressure:

-- Measures gas pressure/supply reaching the combustion chamber

-- Manometer is attached to OUTLET/MANIFOLD side of the gas valve

-- Heater status during test is "ON" with other appliances on the same gas supply are also operating

If gas readings fluctuates

-- Obstruction in gas line or shutoff valve

-- Meter size is too small

If reading is too low or too high

-- Improperly adjusted gas valve. See manual for details

Installation of a Hayward Pool Heater

Location of Heater

Venting and Vent Kit installation

Propane Gas Usage Information

Liquid propane is externally compact and portable, but must vaporize to be released as a gas that can be used to fuel your heater. An insufficient gas supply causes reduced efficiency and poor combustion, which leads to soothing.

As a rule of thumb, Propane tank size should be 100 gallons for every 100,00 btu of heater rating.

If you're buying a Propane gas heater, the following information will help you decide how big a propane tank to select.

The rate at which a liquid propane converts to vaporized Propane gas is determined by many factors including: Humidity, Ambient Temperature, Surface Area of the liquid in the Propane tank. The "Rule of Thumb" for factoring these variables is to assume that a heater's Propane tank should be refilled when 60% of it's full-tank capacity has been used.

(BTU per hour - with 60 % Liquid in Tank)

Propane's ability to vaporize decreases with the temperature - particularly as the temperature dips below 60 o/F. On the other-hand, when the temperature outside is warm, say 85 o/F and the Propane tank has been 60% depleted, it will continue to provide sufficient gas flow for a while.

However, as the thermometer dips below 60 o/F, a Propane tank's ability to produce vaporized gas decreases sharply. In fact, as the chart above indicates, a Propane tank will yield barely HALF as much capacity at 20 o/F as it does at 60 o/F.

Also, keep in mind that cooler overnight temperatures can have lingering effect during the following day, causing the tank to not supply sufficient gas to the heater. "Low gas" conditions like these should be avoided, as they result in sporadic, inefficient operation.

Calculating a Propane heater's operating time

A single gallon of Propane will produce 91,000 British Thermal Unit (BTUs) in an hour. This fact coupled with the 60% usable rule of thumb allows anyone to determine how long a propane tank will supply enough gas to properly run a heater.

Calculating a Propane heater's operating time involves three-step formula illustrated below - though we should emphasize that these shortcut calculations are general in nature. The accompanying shortcut calculation are quite convenient, but are not foolproof method for estimating when a heater's Propane tank needs to be refilled. The safes method to use is the 60% rule of thumb.

AS propane tank is used or emptied, the tank contents steadily shift from liquid state to vaporized gas, reaching a point at which the remaining liquid propane no longer vaporizes enough to supply the proper amount of gas to the heater or appliance.

Calculating how long a full-tank of Propane will last

- Multiply the Propane tank's capacity by 0.6 (this is the "usable" Propane available with a full tank)

Step 1: Usable Propane = Propane tank capacity X 0.6

- Divide the heater's BTU rating by 91,000 (this is the gallons of Propane used in an hour)

Step 2: Propane Needed / Hour = BTU Rating / 91,000

- Divide "Usable Propane" (step 1) by heater's per hour gas demand (step 2)

Step 3: Hours of Operation = Usable Propane / Propane Needed per hour

The result estimates how many hours of operation can be expected for a specific BTU rating heater using a specific Propane tank size.