Hello Poollover 2012,
I know this is several months later and you have probably resolved your issue but I wanted to chime in and clear up some misconceptions about your problem. First the cell you have with a serial number of 5E0506 is a 5 year warranty cell the first 3 years were full replacement and the following 2 years were prorated replacement. Your cell was manufactured in June of 2005 and from is manufacture date is now 7 years old.
The cells contain a series of titanium plates covered in a special mineral call ruthenium. The ruthenium amplifies the conversion of salt to chlorine. As you produce chlorine you release some of the ruthenium into the pool water. As more of the ruthenium is released the plates slowly loose their ability to effectively produce chlorine. They designed the cells to last about 5 years in a seasonal application. About 5000 hours of chlorine production. So your goal is to find the lowest possible output percentage to give you the longest life possible. This is why it is important to test your water weekly and adjust the output of the unit as needed. Keeping in mind that the hotter the water is the higher the output and conversely the lower your water temperature the lower your output setting will be. The actual setting will be different for every pool. You will have to experiment to determine what is best for your individual pool.
The unit determines the salinity level based on the output of the cell. It takes into consideration the amperage, voltage and water temperature. It does some mathematical calculations and comes up with a salinity level of your pool. As a rule with any Goldline/Hayward salt generator you should only use the salinity display as a suggestion of the salinity level. Always have the salt tested independently of the unit to confirm the salt level before adding salt. Your over salting of the pool is not unusual because many people take the reading on their display as the actual salt level in the pool, when in fact it is and average salt level and it may be skewed by a failing cell. I do not know how you would lock the temperature sensor reading, however I would advise against this idea because it could cause a fire if the transformer should over heat from high salt levels.
The AquaRite, AquaPlus or AquaLogic will stop producing chlorine when the salt level reaches 2200 ppm to protect the cell from damage due to low salt levels. It is not possible to recalibrate the salinity reading in any of the Goldline/Hayward salt generators you can reset the average salt level however over time the salinity will go off again within a short time frame. The reason for this is that the units take a salt reading several times a day or when you do the instant salt check. When it reads the salt it store the results in it's memory. It actually stores 3 results then when it takes a 4th test it adds all 4 numbers together and divides by 4 thus giving you an average salt level in the pool. It then unceremoniously dumps the oldest reading and retains the newest reading. So If you think you are recalibrating the salinity level by resetting it you will be disappointed as was poollover2012.
The cell at 7 years old does not owe you a thing, it had a great long life and it is now time to replace the cell. Replacing the cell will solve all your issues and you will be back in the chlorine production business. Tip: Don't throw your old cell out when you replace it, hold on to it to put in line off season (if you winterize your pool) or if you are going to remove your newer cell for testing or cleaning you can put your old cell in line to keep your system running. It won't produce enough chlorine to do any good but you will be able to keep your system running so the water is not stagnate.
I hope you had a great trip and continue to enjoy your pool.
Jim Garrison
The Guru Of Pools
