First time homeowner inherits pool with questionable Aqua Rite SWG -- Please help!

[starla0531]

Good morning!

Please bear with me, as I'm a new homeowner and am learning the ropes of my new pool. It was a swamp when I bought it, but I've gotten the pool and water clean, and I've just this week gotten the water professionally tested and added all the company's suggested chemicals.

I'm having major difficulty with the Aqua Rite SWG. It has a Turbo Cell attached. The previous owner said the pool was converted to salt in 2010, and I don't believe any parts have been replaced.

When I opened the Aqua Rite box for the first time this week, the power light was illuminated. The display said "r-something," but it almost looked as if the display was going out or maybe I just couldn't see it well in the bright sunlight. I turned the unit off and left for work.

When I got home from work that night, I turned it on and I could miraculously see the display perfectly. The power button was illuminated, and so were the "check salt" and "check cell" lights (not flashing, but solid.) As I clicked through the diagnostics, it said 76, 31.3, 0.00, 54p, 0, al-1, r 1.4. Then on the eighth press of the diagnostics button, it said 300. I turned the SWG off for the night.

I did some research online and realized the salt was super low. I took a water sample to a local pool store, and they checked it. They had me add 20 pounds of baking soda, 8 pounds of CYA to the skimmer, and 480 pounds of salt! I added all of those things throughout the day yesterday. After it was all in, I tried to turn on the SWG again. This time, there was nothing on the display at all. The power light remained lit. When I turned the unit on to chlorinate, the "generating" light would not come on. Same with the super chlorinate setting. The "check cell" and "check salt" lights were not on this time. No matter what button I pushed or knob I twisted, I could not get the display to come on or any light besides "power" to come on.

I should note that I did remove and visually inspect the salt cell. It looked very clean. I have not taken it to be tested at a store, yet.

Any advice would be greatly appreciated! Where do I start? I am at a loss and still have a lot to learn. I also don't want to spend money on parts that may or may not fix my problem(s).

Thanks in advance,

April

 

[Charlie_R]

First, let me welcome you to TFP!

Did you know that you need to have your pump going for at least 24 hours before turning your SWG on? that gives the salt time to dissolve and mix into the water. Did they tell you that at the pool store? Pool School is where you need to read about it. Link in upper right of every page here.

Your best bet would be to get your own testing kit, learn to use it, and trust your own readings. Check out test kits compared in Pool School. Read through some of the posts here, you will see most have the TF-100 (the best value in kits) or the Taylor K-2006 (the TF-100's little brother).

 

[Isaac-1]

What he said

 

[starla0531]

First, let me welcome you to TFP!

Did you know that you need to have your pump going for at least 24 hours before turning your SWG on? that gives the salt time to dissolve and mix into the water. Did they tell you that at the pool store? Pool School is where you need to read about it. Link in upper right of every page here.

Your best bet would be to get your own testing kit, learn to use it, and trust your own readings. Check out test kits compared in Pool School. Read through some of the posts here, you will see most have the TF-100 (the best value in kits) or the Taylor K-2006 (the TF-100's little brother).

Thanks for pointing me to the pool school. I will read up as much as I can.

No, the pool supply store didn't tell me to wait 24 hours before turning on the SWG after adding salt. They just told me to be sure to run my pump nonstop for 24 hours after adding it. They also told me to mix the salt up with my cleaning brush, which I did.

Does your post imply that my SWG might turn on after the salt has had time to properly mix? I will check it again once I get home today.

 

[jlentz32]

The pool store should be able to test your salt cell to make sure it's ok. I'd do that if you've not already.

I bought a house with a few year old aqua right as well and I had to replace my cell. The second year I had it.


The display not working properly would seem to me to point to a problem with the box.


Are you using bleach/chlorine to chlorinate now? Make sure you are putting in something until you get the swg issue worked out or you'll end up green.


Sent from my iPhone using Tapatalk

 

[Charlie_R]

It is entirely possible, since you've had the cell out and it look OK. If it doesn't, post back here, and someone more familiar with that should be along to help.

Do get a good test kit. The only place close to you for the TF-100 is TFtestkits.net. This is not an expense, it is an investment in your pool. With it, you will know (with our help if needed) what your pool needs. Accurate results are a must for proper pool care. Pool stores are notorious for not getting it right.

You will need to check your water on a daily basis to make sure things are working properly. With the recommended test kit, this will not be a problem.

We are here to help you have a great pool owning experience!

 

[starla0531]

Thank you. My next step will be to take the cell to the store for testing. When I came home tonight, I flipped my SWG on again and the display read "300," which I know isn't right since I just added so much salt this week. I still couldn't get the "generate" light to come on at all. Sadly, I almost feel like I'm going to have a box problem AND a cell problem.

And, yes, I had to shock the pool not long ago, so I have chlorine for now. Will make sure to keep it up so my pretty pool doesn't become a swamp again!

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It is entirely possible, since you've had the cell out and it look OK. If it doesn't, post back here, and someone more familiar with that should be along to help.

Do get a good test kit. The only place close to you for the TF-100 is TFtestkits.net. This is not an expense, it is an investment in your pool. With it, you will know (with our help if needed) what your pool needs. Accurate results are a must for proper pool care. Pool stores are notorious for not getting it right.

You will need to check your water on a daily basis to make sure things are working properly. With the recommended test kit, this will not be a problem.

We are here to help you have a great pool owning experience!

Thanks! I had NO IDEA that pool stores are known for wrong readings. I automatically figured they would be my best bet. Like I said, I've got a lot to learn! I'll report back once I get my TF-100!

 

[Casey]

What were your readings before you added all that baking soda, salt and CYA? Did they tell you? Just curious what they were???

 

[jlentz32]

Regarding the salt. When my cell was going bad it kept saying to add salt so by the time I got a salt drop test and figured it out I had to drain to get the extra salt out.


Sent from my iPhone using Tapatalk

 

[starla0531]

No, they didn't tell me what the readings were, Casey. Sorry.

What were your readings before you added all that baking soda, salt and CYA? Did they tell you? Just curious what they were???

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Here's an update: I called Hayward about my Aqua Rite box, and they said I have a problem with my display AND some other part. But I have to fix the display before they can diagnose the other problem. I'm wondering if it might just be easier to replace the whole box at this point. Any thoughts?

My salt cell is working properly, according to a test I had at Leslie's Pool Supply.

 

[Charlie_R]

If the cell itself is good, then it would probably be cheapest to replace the whole control box rather than a piece at a time.

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Do you have an electronics guru near you? Someone that likes to dig into the hardware end of things? Maybe a community college nearby with an electronics program?

If you can, let one of those type people open it and see if they can fix it. sometimes it's a simple part that went bad, and a quick replacement.