Oh I need help! I have a Autopilot LS model. The cell light is on and green! Temp is fine. Everything else seems to be in working order. The problem is that it is not making chlorine. I have cleaned the cell just to make sure, with no difference. Any suggestions would be greatly appreciated!
Autopilot LS model no chlorine
- Thread starter needpoolhelp
- Start date
Re: Cell not generating
How old is the cell? What size cell is it?
needpoolhelp said:
How old is the cell? What size cell is it?
Welcome to TFP!
How do you know that the SWG isn't generating chlorine? It is quite possible that it is generating chlorine, but the chlorine is all getting used up fighting algae, or some other organic contamination in the water. Could you post a full set of water test results? Also, what does the water look like?
How do you know that the SWG isn't generating chlorine? It is quite possible that it is generating chlorine, but the chlorine is all getting used up fighting algae, or some other organic contamination in the water. Could you post a full set of water test results? Also, what does the water look like?
The pool holds 22000 gallons, The cell is only about 2 years old (replaced from old one), it is a Supercell SC60. The readings I have are: pH:7.2, alkalinity: 80, stabilizer: 30-50, salt level: 3200. These are the only readings I have. We ARE fighting the black algae, which is not TOO bad right now, have added a product and are brushing everyday. I added 4 chlorine tabs yesterday and this AM still have no chlorine reading. (can it be eating up the chlorine that fast?)The water is starting to look discolored in the deep end. Another note- we live in a very rural area with the only pool service 70 miles away-- and they don't like to come here often. Last year it took them 4 months to come to do some service-- so we are kinda on our own.
Black algae is tough, really tough. If you have a concrete pool, you need to attach it with shocking levels of chlorine and a wire brush repeatedly.
With a liner pool, it's worse as it's likely coming from the back side and can't be brushed with a wire brush for obvious reasons. A regular pool brush is the only other option.
Sometimes a short (no more than a half hour) placement of a trichlor tab may give a B-A spot enough of a concentrated dose but this is a risky thing as a line may show a bleach spot where the tab sits.
Best of luck.
Scott
With a liner pool, it's worse as it's likely coming from the back side and can't be brushed with a wire brush for obvious reasons. A regular pool brush is the only other option.
Sometimes a short (no more than a half hour) placement of a trichlor tab may give a B-A spot enough of a concentrated dose but this is a risky thing as a line may show a bleach spot where the tab sits.
Best of luck.
Scott
Your stabilizer/CYA level is on the low side for use with a SWG. That means you will lose more chlorine to sunlight than the SWG is assuming you will lose. Combine that with the algae, and it seems very likely that all of you chlorine is going aways just as quickly as the SWG is adding it. That is much more likely than the SWG front panel reading good when the unit is not in fact working.
SWGs are not designed to raise the FC level up from zero. Instead they are designed to take a pool that is already in balance and maintain it there. Your best bet is to add chlorine manually until your have dealt with the algae and then go back to using the SWG. During this process the SWG could also be used to supplement the chlorine added manually, but with algae the SWG is unlikely to be enough by it's self.
If you really want to find out if the SWG is working, you could put the SWG on boost mode so you are sure it should be generating chlorine, then loosen the union on the output side of the SWG just enough to get a slow stream of water out. Collect enough water to test, tighten the union back up, and then test that water sample for chlorine. It will likely read at least 1 ppm higher in FC than the pool, perhaps as much as 2 or 3 ppm.
SWGs are not designed to raise the FC level up from zero. Instead they are designed to take a pool that is already in balance and maintain it there. Your best bet is to add chlorine manually until your have dealt with the algae and then go back to using the SWG. During this process the SWG could also be used to supplement the chlorine added manually, but with algae the SWG is unlikely to be enough by it's self.
If you really want to find out if the SWG is working, you could put the SWG on boost mode so you are sure it should be generating chlorine, then loosen the union on the output side of the SWG just enough to get a slow stream of water out. Collect enough water to test, tighten the union back up, and then test that water sample for chlorine. It will likely read at least 1 ppm higher in FC than the pool, perhaps as much as 2 or 3 ppm.