Pool swim season in Beckley, WV
Swim season in Beckley without a heater, and with one
An unheated pool in Beckley never reaches 78°F in a normal year. It peaks around 70°F in Aug. The air allows up to 5 swimmable months with a heater (May to Sep).
- J
- F
- M
- A
- M
- J
- J
- A
- S
- O
- N
- D
Heater options for a Beckley pool, side by side
| Option | Months | Swimmable | Energy/yr | All-in/yr |
|---|---|---|---|---|
| No heater | 0 | no month | $0 | $0 |
| Solar cover only | 0 | no month | $0 | $50 |
| Solar panels + cover | 4 | Jun to Sep | $0 | $283 |
| Heat pump + cover | 5 | May to Sep | $399 | $949 |
| Gas heater + cover | 5 | May to Sep | $683 | $1,108 |
For a 450 sq ft pool held at 80°F, at WV prices of 15.6¢/kWh electricity and $14/Mcf gas. All-in spreads the purchase over the equipment's life.
The cheapest way to the full season in Beckley
Solar panels + cover: 4 of 5 possible months for about $283 a year all-in, which works out near $71 for each month it adds.
A solar cover alone adds no swim months here, so if you want a longer season you need a heater (why); still use one at night to hold the heat you pay for. If you get quotes, ask for a heat pump sized to your pool's surface area; here it beats gas all-in (heat pump or gas).
Weather station: Beckley Va Hospital, 1.9 mi away (NOAA 1991–2020 normals). Water temperature is estimated from air and sunshine, not measured.
Beckley month by month: air, sun and pool water
| Month | Air high | Air avg | Sun kWh/m²/day | Water, unheated | Water, covered | Heat pump $ | Gas $ |
|---|---|---|---|---|---|---|---|
| Jan | 40° | 30° | 2.0 | 30° | 36° | – | – |
| Feb | 43° | 32° | 2.7 | 31° | 37° | – | – |
| Mar | 51° | 39° | 3.8 | 36° | 42° | – | – |
| Apr | 63° | 50° | 5.0 | 46° | 52° | – | – |
| May | 71° | 58° | 5.5 | 57° | 63° | $173 | $279 |
| Jun | 76° | 65° | 6.1 | 65° | 71° | $82 | $147 |
| Jul | 79° | 69° | 5.8 | 70° | 76° | $37 | $70 |
| Aug | 78° | 67° | 5.4 | 70° | 76° | $32 | $59 |
| Sep | 73° | 62° | 4.5 | 66° | 72° | $75 | $128 |
| Oct | 63° | 51° | 3.4 | 57° | 63° | – | – |
| Nov | 53° | 41° | 2.5 | 45° | 51° | – | – |
| Dec | 43° | 33° | 1.8 | 36° | 42° | – | – |
Heating costs most in May (about $173 with a heat pump, $279 with gas). Sunshine peaks in Jun at 6.1 kWh/m²/day (NASA satellite data, 42.5 km grid cell). Highlighted months are swimmable with no heater.
How Beckley compares with nearby cities
Beckley ranks 13 of 13 West Virginia cities for unheated swim months, and no nearby city gets a longer unheated season.
| City | Distance | Unheated months | Heat pump months | Heat pump $/yr |
|---|---|---|---|---|
| Charleston, WV | 47 mi | 0 | 5 | $125 |
| South Charleston, WV | 49 mi | 0 | 5 | $163 |
| Blacksburg, VA | 55 mi | 0 | 5 | $298 |
| St. Albans, WV | 55 mi | 0 | 5 | $157 |
| Radford, VA | 56 mi | 0 | 5 | $258 |
| Christiansburg, VA | 60 mi | 0 | 5 | $286 |