sunshine pool products - combining SWG w/ ionizer

[Westovers]

Does anyone have any experience with the PURITY salt water generator sold by SUNSHINE POOL PRODUCTS(www.awesomepoolproducts.com)?

I like the idea of the combo SWG and ionizer that they sell, claiming it should allow the user to reduce the FC to .2ppm. Yes, I understand the problem of using ionizers alone, but what about supplementing it with SWG to allow lower levels of needed FC? Can anyone comment on SUPPLEMENTAL use of an ionizer? (There's plenty of info on this site regarding exclusive use of an ionizer, but not supplemental...)

Thank you!

 

[JasonLion]

Welcome to TFP!

Ionizers are not what you want. Combining a bad product with a good one (the SWG) does not make the ionizer any better, it is still not something you want. Anyone who says that you can lower FC down to 0.2 is just lying. That is not safe.

Read this topic. Everything waterbear says there about ionizers is still true when they are combined with a SWG, or used in any other combination.

 

[frustratedpoolmom]

Keep reading the forum, as many topics as you can, use the Google Search feature in the bottom left corner. Keeping your FC level below 2ppm is not advisable for any pool - not sure why you would want it that low.

Two thumbs down on Ionizers, supplemental use or not. :thumbdown:

 

[learthur]

Yeah, this is a bad idea. Here is another take on why it is a bad idea.

True, you can combine 0.2 ppm FC + copper/silver ions in water in a beaker in the lab and it will sanitize/kill bacteria.
The problem is that this is VERY impractical to replicate in your pool. 0.2 ppm FC is an impossibly fine line to walk. You would have to sit at the side of the pool 24 hours a day constantly monitoring your water at multiple locations to maintain it at exactly that concentration. If it dips lower you have bacterial growth.

Here is the second reason it is impractical: Even if you did sit at the edge of the pool 24 hours a day and did maintain it at 0.2 ppm FC, the moment you get any kind of bather load (actually use your pool), you will have some FC consumption and you will drop below threshold and bacteria/algae will grow.

Here is the 3rd problem with this system. While chlorine is an FDA approved sanitizer, you must have some mechanism for oxidation in your pool. Without proper oxidation you will accumulate a nasty organic/inorganic load which will grow algae, promote bacterial growth, and trash your water quality. Your choices are to either oxidize this stuff and remove it that way or drain your pool and remove it that way. Here are some common and not so common ways to oxidize this stuff out of your pool:

1) Maintain consistantly higher FC levels as recommend here at TFP based on your CYA level and let time do the work.
2) Shock periodically with high doses of chlorine or MPS.
3) Run a SWG as it will help oxidize during the part of the plumbing where the chlorine is at a high concentration.
4) Run an ozone generator in combination with a chlorine source.

And then the followup discussion is how fast does your particular system remove the organic load after loading from say heavy bather load, etc........ but that is for another day.

Bottom line: chlorine is your friend

...besides copper is getting expensive lately...

Lee

 

[Guest]

And that does not even include the staining and green hair that inevitably happen with ionizers.