How fast can pool heater heat my pool?

Can you use a kerosene fired jet engine styled heater and an automotive type radiator combination to heat an above ground pool if the heater is 70000 BTU output and radiator is 4 row tubes?

• Answer:

  CorrectionOops, the heater is 110,000 BTU not 70,000 as originally stated. Follow UpThis combination while rather crude and noisy (sounds like a jet plane is flying overhead constantly) works rather well. The heat transfer from the jet heater through the automotive radiator is amazing. The heated air entering the radiator is about 500+ degrees and when it exits the other side of the radiator, it is only about 100 degrees. The system is fed with a separate 1.5 HP pool pump using my spare vaccuum hoses draped over the sides of the pool, each having a vaccuum head on them to weigh them down the intake hose is on the bottom of the pool and the heated discharge hose is on the opposite side of the pool also at or on the bottom of the pool. Admittedly this is a rather "Rube Goldberg" set-up, but the results are impressive: 18 foot round by 4 foot deep pool, start temperature (with solar cover that has blue on one side and silver on the other) was 71.2 degrees. After 8 hours (two separate 4 hour runs 24 hours apart) the temperature of the pool was 92.1 degrees. Outside ambient air temperatures were in the low 80's during the day and high 50's at night. Pool lost approximately 2.5 degrees of heat overnight. Now pool can be maintained at 85 degrees with a daily burn of heater for less than 1 hour run time. Cost of operation is about $4.00 an hour for the kerosene (at 2.80 a gallon) and electric to run second pump and heater. I am still doing a cost analysis as compared to a purchase of either a 9KW electric heater vs. a 150,000 BTU heat pump vs. a gas or oil fired heater and the various energy sources required to operate them. Ed sounds like it workes great,if it workes use it. Hmm, I bet your neighbors love the noise huh? Better get htis pattented everybody's gonna want one.