Cleaning an SWG cell

[poollover2012]

Hello all,

This is my first year owning a pool. Thanks to all your help I now have crystal clear water and have gotten familiar with all the equipment. One thing I wanted to do was inspect my salt cell. Given the overall neglect around the house/property, I was convinced the cell had never been cleaned. The pool is about 8 years old. However upon removal of the cell, at least to my eyes, it appeared clean, with no real evidence of scale. Should I have cleaned it anyway? Will scale be completely noticeable? Do I wait for the warning light on the Aquarite before cleaning? Is the warning light just a reminder to inspect the cell, or does it actually detect a problem? The SWG appears to be functioning normally as my FC is maintained currently around 3 ppm.


Thanks!

 

[jblizzle]

If you did not see any scale, there is no real need to do an acid cleaning. The scale should be noticeable on metal blades as a white build up if there is any

The inspect cell will come on about every 6 months IIRC to remind you to look at it ... this does not mean there is actually a problem.

I would be very surprised if the cell was 8 years old ... they seem to have a typical lifespan of 3-5 years before the cell goes bad and needs replaced.

 

[nutjob]

Around here where the fill water is so calcium heavy such that when my daughter wakes up in the middle of the night she doesn't ask for a glass of water but instead asks for a glass of "chalk juice" the scale on the platinium plates is readily apparent.

You can do an acid-clean if you really want to, but if there's no apparent scale and your FC readings are reasonable, it sounds like you're in the clear.

Enjoy it!

 

[poollover2012]

Thanks for the input. It's quite possible the cell isn't as old as the pool, but I failed to mention that I also have a central water softening system at home, which is the source for my pool, so I gather this is aiding in prolonging the life of the cell. I think I will put off the acid-clean then.

Thanks, and I love this site!