Around 5000 homes could hand over control of their backyard pools in a $5 million trial to return power back to the grid during peak demand times.

The trial, run by Pooled Energy and supported by the Australian Renewable Energy Agency, aims to involve the pools of about 5000 Sydney households and create a 5 megawatt remote control pool control system that automates energy usage and pool sanitation to power down during daily peaks.

The technology uses your pool pumps and filters to control energy usage during peak periods. Credit:Glenn Hunt

There are more than 1.4 million swimming pools in Australia, accounting for around 10 per cent of the average total demand on the grid.

“If all pool pumps and filters were on at once, they would use up to 3.7 gigawatts of energy – the equivalent of two Liddell-sized power stations running at capacity – so there is huge potential to both reduce the amount of energy used and better manage pools for the wider benefit,” Pooled Energy chairman John Riedl said.