It comes pre programed to run 12 hours if it is not in the summer logic mode. I made the decision to run it 6 hours a day and it works well for me. It is programmable; the primary filter and secondary filter.
That means my savings is 1/2 I stated earlier for a 24 hour cycle
Ok then you are using half the energy versus someone else who might be running it with the preset 12 hr setting which is great and hopefully the dealers go over this type of thing with their customers so people can adjust as needed. You threw me off when you mistakenly compared it to 24 hrs originally because I thought you were comparing it to 24/7 circ pumps out there on other spas. With your restatement that you're comparing it to the 12 hr default setting I understand now.
Its the same as with spas that use 2 speed pumps for filtering, often the new owner finds they can get by with less filtering that the manufacturer sets it for. MUCH of all this has to do with the fact the manufacturer has to err on the side of caution when setting up default filtering times because they don't know if the spa owner is going to be a single well groomed person or a couple with 6 kids who will use it often and require a lot of filtering.