{"id":746,"date":"2026-10-21T10:23:56","date_gmt":"2026-10-21T08:23:56","guid":{"rendered":"https:\/\/helyora.eu\/que-depuradora-necesita-piscina-desmontable\/"},"modified":"2026-10-21T10:23:56","modified_gmt":"2026-10-21T08:23:56","slug":"pool-pump-size-above-ground-pool","status":"publish","type":"post","link":"https:\/\/helyora.eu\/en\/que-depuradora-necesita-piscina-desmontable\/","title":{"rendered":"What size filter pump an above ground pool needs: calculation by model"},"content":{"rendered":"

By Miriam Andaloro<\/strong> \u2014 Helyora team \u00b7 Last updated: 21 October 2026<\/em><\/p>\n

The filter pump is what keeps the water clean week after week, and choosing one is easier than it looks: it must be able to move all the water in the pool in 4 to 6 hours. With that figure and your pool\u2019s volume, you know the flow rate you need and whether a cartridge or a sand filter suits you best. Here is the calculation done for every size.<\/p>\n

How do I work out the filter pump I need?<\/h2>\n

Divide your pool\u2019s m\u00b3 by 6 and by 4. The results are the minimum and recommended flow rates in m\u00b3 per hour. For example, a 9 m\u00b3 pool needs a filter pump of between 1.5 and 2.25 m\u00b3\/h.<\/p>\n

Look at the flow rate on the spec sheet, not the motor power: two units with the same wattage can move very different amounts of water. And if you are torn between two sizes, pick the larger one. A slightly oversized filter pump simply runs fewer hours; one that falls short never gets the water properly clean.<\/p>\n

What filter pump does each model need?<\/h2>\n\n\n\n\n\n\n\n\n\n\n\n\n\n\n\n
Model<\/th>\nWater<\/th>\nMinimum flow<\/th>\nRecommended flow<\/th>\nType<\/th>\n<\/tr>\n<\/thead>\n
Azora XS (\u00d82 m)<\/td>\n1.5 m\u00b3<\/td>\n0.3 m\u00b3\/h<\/td>\n0.4 m\u00b3\/h<\/td>\nSmall cartridge<\/td>\n<\/tr>\n
Azora S (\u00d83 m)<\/td>\n8 m\u00b3<\/td>\n1.3 m\u00b3\/h<\/td>\n2 m\u00b3\/h<\/td>\nCartridge<\/td>\n<\/tr>\n
Azora M (\u00d84 m)<\/td>\n15 m\u00b3<\/td>\n2.5 m\u00b3\/h<\/td>\n3.8 m\u00b3\/h<\/td>\nLarge cartridge or sand<\/td>\n<\/tr>\n
Azora L (\u00d85 m)<\/td>\n28 m\u00b3<\/td>\n4.7 m\u00b3\/h<\/td>\n7 m\u00b3\/h<\/td>\nSand<\/td>\n<\/tr>\n
Azora XL (\u00d86 m)<\/td>\n40 m\u00b3<\/td>\n6.7 m\u00b3\/h<\/td>\n10 m\u00b3\/h<\/td>\nSand<\/td>\n<\/tr>\n
Marea XS (200\u00d7200 cm)<\/td>\n3 m\u00b3<\/td>\n0.5 m\u00b3\/h<\/td>\n0.8 m\u00b3\/h<\/td>\nSmall cartridge<\/td>\n<\/tr>\n
Marea S (300\u00d7200 cm)<\/td>\n5 m\u00b3<\/td>\n0.8 m\u00b3\/h<\/td>\n1.3 m\u00b3\/h<\/td>\nCartridge<\/td>\n<\/tr>\n
Marea M (400\u00d7200 cm)<\/td>\n9 m\u00b3<\/td>\n1.5 m\u00b3\/h<\/td>\n2.3 m\u00b3\/h<\/td>\nCartridge<\/td>\n<\/tr>\n
Marea L (400\u00d7300 cm)<\/td>\n18 m\u00b3<\/td>\n3 m\u00b3\/h<\/td>\n4.5 m\u00b3\/h<\/td>\nSand or large cartridge<\/td>\n<\/tr>\n
Marea XL (500\u00d7300 cm)<\/td>\n22 m\u00b3<\/td>\n3.7 m\u00b3\/h<\/td>\n5.5 m\u00b3\/h<\/td>\nSand<\/td>\n<\/tr>\n
Marea XXL (600\u00d7300 cm)<\/td>\n27 m\u00b3<\/td>\n4.5 m\u00b3\/h<\/td>\n6.8 m\u00b3\/h<\/td>\nSand<\/td>\n<\/tr>\n<\/tbody>\n<\/table>\n

For Azora S, M and L the calculation uses the high version, which holds the most water. If you have the low one, the same unit works and simply runs fewer hours.<\/p>\n

Cartridge or sand?<\/h2>\n

A cartridge filter pump<\/strong> is compact, cheap and easy to use: the water passes through a pleated paper filter that you rinse with a hose every one or two weeks and replace when it loses its shape. It is the logical choice for small and medium pools, up to about 10\u201315 m\u00b3.<\/p>\n

A sand filter<\/strong> costs a little more at first, but filters a higher flow and has hardly any running costs: instead of replacing cartridges, you clean it with a two-minute backwash once a week, and the sand lasts several seasons. From about 15 m\u00b3 it is the better deal, and for the large sizes it is the only sensible option.<\/p>\n

\"Person<\/figure>\n

How many hours a day should it run?<\/h2>\n

A widely used rule of thumb: in summer, as many hours as half the water temperature. With the water at 28 \u00b0C, about 14 hours a day; at 22 \u00b0C, about 11. They don\u2019t have to be in one go: you can split them into two or three runs and use the hours when electricity is cheapest.<\/p>\n

With heavy use, after a storm or if the water starts to look cloudy, add a few hours. Out of season, if the pool stays up, a few hours a day are enough, or you can stop it completely and use a winterizing product, as we explain in how to winterize an above ground pool<\/a>.<\/p>\n

How is it connected to the pool?<\/h2>\n

The filter pump draws water through an outlet fitting, filters it and returns it through an inlet fitting, using two hoses. Before buying, check the hose diameter of the filter pump (the most common for above ground pools are 32 and 38 mm) and, if it does not match the fittings, use an adapter.<\/p>\n

Place it on the ground next to the pool, on a firm base, never in the water. Plug it into a socket protected by a residual-current device, away from puddles and without extension leads lying on the grass, and shelter it from direct rain.<\/p>\n

Can I do without a filter pump?<\/h2>\n

For the smallest pool, yes, with conditions: you will have to change part of the water often and use more chemicals. In any pool of more than a few m\u00b3, the filter pump is not optional: without circulation, the chlorine does not reach all the water and it turns green within a few hot days.<\/p>\n

Remember that the filter pump is not included with the pool: the kit comes with the manual inflation pump and the repair kit, so you need to buy it separately.<\/p>\n

In summary<\/h2>\n

Work out the flow rate by dividing your pool\u2019s m\u00b3 by 4 and by 6, choose cartridge up to about 15 m\u00b3 and sand above that, and in summer run it for as many hours as half the water temperature. The rest of the water care is in maintaining a portable pool<\/a>, and the litres for each size in how much water an above ground pool holds<\/a>.<\/p>","protected":false},"excerpt":{"rendered":"

How to work out the filter pump flow rate, table for all 11 sizes, cartridge or sand, how many hours a day to run it and how to connect it to an above ground pool.<\/p>","protected":false},"author":2,"featured_media":708,"comment_status":"open","ping_status":"open","sticky":false,"template":"","format":"standard","meta":{"footnotes":""},"categories":[40],"tags":[],"class_list":["post-746","post","type-post","status-publish","format-standard","has-post-thumbnail","hentry","category-guias"],"_links":{"self":[{"href":"https:\/\/helyora.eu\/en\/wp-json\/wp\/v2\/posts\/746","targetHints":{"allow":["GET"]}}],"collection":[{"href":"https:\/\/helyora.eu\/en\/wp-json\/wp\/v2\/posts"}],"about":[{"href":"https:\/\/helyora.eu\/en\/wp-json\/wp\/v2\/types\/post"}],"author":[{"embeddable":true,"href":"https:\/\/helyora.eu\/en\/wp-json\/wp\/v2\/users\/2"}],"replies":[{"embeddable":true,"href":"https:\/\/helyora.eu\/en\/wp-json\/wp\/v2\/comments?post=746"}],"version-history":[{"count":1,"href":"https:\/\/helyora.eu\/en\/wp-json\/wp\/v2\/posts\/746\/revisions"}],"predecessor-version":[{"id":747,"href":"https:\/\/helyora.eu\/en\/wp-json\/wp\/v2\/posts\/746\/revisions\/747"}],"wp:featuredmedia":[{"embeddable":true,"href":"https:\/\/helyora.eu\/en\/wp-json\/wp\/v2\/media\/708"}],"wp:attachment":[{"href":"https:\/\/helyora.eu\/en\/wp-json\/wp\/v2\/media?parent=746"}],"wp:term":[{"taxonomy":"category","embeddable":true,"href":"https:\/\/helyora.eu\/en\/wp-json\/wp\/v2\/categories?post=746"},{"taxonomy":"post_tag","embeddable":true,"href":"https:\/\/helyora.eu\/en\/wp-json\/wp\/v2\/tags?post=746"}],"curies":[{"name":"wp","href":"https:\/\/api.w.org\/{rel}","templated":true}]}}