I have a 6000 gallon inground pool with 10 solar water panels. Its a small pool but its perfect.
My 3/5 hp Vertex Super II pump died after only 5 years and I am looking at a new pump. The distance I am pushing water is approc 140′ from pump to solar panels. Would it be overkill to put in a 1.5hp pump? or would a 1hp pump be ok? I dont want to put extra stress on the 1.5″ pipes that run to the solar panels and the returns and also dont want to overpower my sand filter (Hayward Model s180T) as well as I dont want to use more electricity than I have to.
Always replace like with like, so go with another pump the same size and specs for the best results with your system. You do not want to go with a larger pump for the reasons you list – extra stress on the panels and size in relation to your sand filter.