Pool swim season in Wenatchee, WA
When can you swim in an outdoor pool in Wenatchee, WA?
An unheated pool in Wenatchee never reaches 78°F in a normal year. It peaks around 78°F in Aug. The air allows up to 5 swimmable months with a heater (May to Sep).
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Heater options for a Wenatchee pool, side by side
| Option | Months | Swimmable | Energy/yr | All-in/yr |
|---|---|---|---|---|
| No heater | 0 | no month | $0 | $0 |
| Solar cover only | 2 | Jul to Aug | $0 | $50 |
| Solar panels + cover | 4 | Jun to Sep | $0 | $283 |
| Heat pump + cover | 5 | May to Sep | $200 | $750 |
| Gas heater + cover | 5 | May to Sep | $480 | $905 |
For a 450 sq ft pool held at 80°F, at WA prices of 14.4¢/kWh electricity and $18/Mcf gas. All-in spreads the purchase over the equipment's life.
The cheapest way to the full season in Wenatchee
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.
Before you pay for any heater, buy a solar cover: on its own it adds 2 months here for about $50 a year (why a cover comes first). 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: Wenatchee, 1 mi away (NOAA 1991–2020 normals). Water temperature is estimated from air and sunshine, not measured.
Wenatchee 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 | 36° | 31° | 1.2 | 29° | 35° | – | – |
| Feb | 44° | 36° | 2.1 | 32° | 38° | – | – |
| Mar | 54° | 44° | 3.1 | 40° | 46° | – | – |
| Apr | 64° | 52° | 4.6 | 50° | 56° | – | – |
| May | 73° | 61° | 5.7 | 59° | 65° | $128 | $299 |
| Jun | 80° | 68° | 6.3 | 68° | 74° | $50 | $127 |
| Jul | 89° | 76° | 7.0 | 76° | 82° | – | – |
| Aug | 88° | 75° | 5.9 | 78° | 84° | – | – |
| Sep | 79° | 66° | 4.3 | 71° | 77° | $22 | $54 |
| Oct | 63° | 52° | 2.5 | 59° | 65° | – | – |
| Nov | 47° | 39° | 1.3 | 44° | 50° | – | – |
| Dec | 36° | 31° | 0.9 | 33° | 39° | – | – |
Heating costs most in May (about $128 with a heat pump, $299 with gas). Sunshine peaks in Jul at 7.0 kWh/m²/day (NASA satellite data, 14.7 km grid cell). Highlighted months are swimmable with no heater.
How Wenatchee compares with nearby cities
Wenatchee ranks 3 of 91 Washington cities for unheated swim months, and no nearby city gets a longer unheated season.
| City | Distance | Unheated months | Heat pump months | Heat pump $/yr |
|---|---|---|---|---|
| East Wenatchee, WA | 2 mi | 0 | 5 | $200 |
| Ellensburg, WA | 32 mi | 0 | 4 | $235 |
| Moses Lake, WA | 54 mi | 0 | 5 | $241 |
| Yakima, WA | 59 mi | 0 | 5 | $205 |
| Snoqualmie, WA | 72 mi | 0 | 3 | $205 |
| Sunnyside, WA | 79 mi | 0 | 5 | $312 |