How Much Does My Pool Heater Cost to Run? A Complete Guide

Quite often we get the question How much does my pool heater cost to run? Here’s some quick information to help you figure out how much it is costing you to heat your pool.

Propane Pool Heaters

You can figure about 1 gallon per hour per 100,000 BTU’s to operate a propane pool heater. For a typical 400,000 BTU heater, that’s 4 gallons per hour. Currently Propane runs about $2.50 per gallon, propane prices do fluctuate so keep an eye on this website updating the National Average Cost of Propane. In our example, 1 hour on propane will cost $10.00.

Natural Gas Pool Heaters

You can figure about 1 therm per hour per 100,000 BTU’s for Natural Gas. For a typical 400,000 BTU pool heater, that’s 4 therms per hour. Currently Natural Gas runs about $1.00 per therm, natural gas prices do fluctuate so keep an eye on this site showing the Cost of Natural Gas Per State. In our example, 1 hour on Natural Gas will cost $4.00.

Heat Pumps

You can figure about 5,000 watts or 5 kilowatts per hour per 100,000 BTU’s for a heat pump. For a typical 100,000 BTU heat pump, that’s 5 kilowatts per hour. The national average for Electricity runs $.13 cents per kilowatt hour. Electricity costs vary widely throughout the United States so checkout this website updating the Electricity Costs for all 50 States. In our example, 1 hour on a heat pump will cost .60 cents.

Final Thoughts – Pool Heater Cost…

• Normally Heat pumps are the least expensive option to heat your pool from operational cost standpoint.
• If you live in an area where electricity is extremely expensive then Natural gas may become more enticing as the operational cost savings of a heat pump become less.
• A gas heater will heat your pool much quicker than a heat pump but normally costs more to do so.
• A heat pump draws in the outside air to heat your water so once the air temperature reaches 50 degrees they are pretty inefficient.
• A gas heater is usually a good choice for a spa as a heat pump takes to long to heat a spa, and if you want to get in the spa in lower outside temps. a heat pump is inefficient.
• Heat pumps cost about $2,500 and gas heaters are in the $1,500 range.

If you have questions on how much your pool heater is costing your to operate or need help sizing the correct heater for your pool then post your questions in the comments below or give us a call at 1-877-372-6038 and we would be happy to help.

Patrick Paroline

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