IC 40 reads low salt; Pentair told me to bring down phosphates?

[Species 8472]

My water is perfectly balanced.
Salt: 3400
FC: 4
Alk: 80
CYA: 60
PH: 7.6
Borate: 30


Phosphates are high (300) but I usually do not care since everything else is balanced. The same thing happened last year and Pentair sent a new IC 40 (less than a year old). This year my IC 40 just started reading low salt which is inaccurate.

Called Pentair and they said to add phosphate remover as it can impact the cell's ability to read the salt level properly. Does this make sense?

 

[GreatCanadian]

How are you testing? Just want to be sure those are accurate measurements.

GC

 

[ping]

My water is perfectly balanced.
Salt: 3400
FC: 4
Alk: 80
CYA: 60
PH: 7.6
Borate: 30


Phosphates are high (300) but I usually do not care since everything else is balanced. The same thing happened last year and Pentair sent a new IC 40 (less than a year old). This year my IC 40 just started reading low salt which is inaccurate.

Called Pentair and they said to add phosphate remover as it can impact the cell's ability to read the salt level properly. Does this make sense?

What is the SWG's salinity reading?

Phosphates do not make SWG's read low salt and it's their way to pass on troubleshooting the system without needing to be there to actually find out what is wrong with the system.

 

[Species 8472]

Salt is reading 3400 PPM.....Exactly what Pentair claims is optimal. I am going to call back and get a different rep. Last year, had the same issue and they just replaced it. I have not had much luck with SWG. Third year of this new pool.

 

[ping]

Have you tried cleaning the cell?

 

[Species 8472]

Have you tried cleaning the cell?

When I first opened the pool mid-April, I cleaned the cell with 100% vinegar as recommended by the pool opening company. I have not cleaned it since then. I am not entirely certain how to clean with muriatic acid without making a mess of things?

- - - Updated - - -

How are you testing? Just want to be sure those are accurate measurements.

GC

I have a Taylor commercial grade test kit. I also tested at Leslie's pools as requested by the Pentair technician who apparently felt that Leslie's would be more accurate. My results comported with those of Leslie's.

 

[ping]

You need to remove the cell and inspect it for scale.

If the cell has scale then you should plug one end of the cell and use a 4:1 mix of water to acid to clean the cell.

 

[Species 8472]

My water is perfectly balanced.
Salt: 3400
FC: 4
Alk: 80
CYA: 60
PH: 7.6
Borate: 30


Phosphates are high (300) but I usually do not care since everything else is balanced. The same thing happened last year and Pentair sent a new IC 40 (less than a year old). This year my IC 40 just started reading low salt which is inaccurate.

Called Pentair and they said to add phosphate remover as it can impact the cell's ability to read the salt level properly. Does this make sense?

So, I added a phosphate remover and the SWG started claiming appropriate salt levels? Go figure.

Any chemists who can explain what is going on? Coincidence? A chemical reaction?

 

[ping]

I'm going with coincidence.

The cell might be going out when it reverses polarity. One side of the cell might work fine but when the cell reverses its polarity it will show low salt. Try to find out the cycle time for the IC-40 and keep a watch on it for when it switches the polarity.

It would still be a good idea to see if there is any scale inside the cell.

 

[Species 8472]

I'm going with coincidence.

The cell might be going out when it reverses polarity. One side of the cell might work fine but when the cell reverses its polarity it will show low salt. Try to find out the cycle time for the IC-40 and keep a watch on it for when it switches the polarity.

It would still be a good idea to see if there is any scale inside the cell.

Okay...Just removed SWG and will use muriatic acid solution and see what happens.

 

[Species 8472]

I forgot ask--How long should one let the muriatic acid solution sit on the scales? I let it sit for about 2 minutes, re-installed the SWG, and it now says it reads a fine salt level. I will update tomorrow because it could be oscillating between low and good salt levels as it seemed to do after I added phosphate remover.

 

[ping]

The time depends on how much scale there is inside the cell. If there isn't any scaling then it should not be cleaned. Any heavy buildup should be first removed with a wooden object to prevent scratching off the coatings on the cell plates.

 

[Species 8472]

The time depends on how much scale there is inside the cell. If there isn't any scaling then it should not be cleaned. Any heavy buildup should be first removed with a wooden object to prevent scratching off the coatings on the cell plates.

There was no evidence of visible scaling (or not bubbling) so I let sit for about two minutes.

So far this AM the SWG is indicating a good level of salt. Let's see if it continues to read such or if it oscillates again in a few days.

Could have less to do with scaling (new SWG last year) than with a malfunction in the SWG itself