Ok here is a question for SWCG pool owners. Anyone have any regrets switching from chlorine to a SWCG ??? Is it really that much easier to maintain water balance ?
Any regrets switching from Chlorine to a SWCG ??
- Thread starter Donny
- Start date
No regrets here! After about a month of manually dosing, figured it would be easier overall, and it has been.
The only part of the Balance that might be or seem easier would be the maintenance of Free Chlorine. The easy part here coming from a reduced need for handling and adding a product for it. As for it being easier this is about it. You still have to monitor just as frequently and be just as diligent about all your chemistry. Perhaps even a little more so with regard to pH and FC in general until you have a very good feel for how your pool behaves.
No regrets at all, I love my SWG.
While it isn't a huge difference, it feels much much simpler. We still go out to the pool daily, clean the skimmer and test the water, but there is no more daily chemical additions and no more carrying bleach home from the store.
While it isn't a huge difference, it feels much much simpler. We still go out to the pool daily, clean the skimmer and test the water, but there is no more daily chemical additions and no more carrying bleach home from the store.
I travel frequently for work. With proper planning, I was able to leave my SWG pool completely unattended for up to a week at a time with no problems.
I love mine too, I'll love it even more when it actually works everyday once I fix the melted parts 
No getting chlorine and risking staining the car, no opening my wallet to buy said chlorine and no remembering to put chlorine in.
No getting chlorine and risking staining the car, no opening my wallet to buy said chlorine and no remembering to put chlorine in.I typically deal with 50-100 pools per week, and I would recommend a SWG to just about anyone. Once you get a feel for the system, a SWG makes life pretty easy.
The only down side is cost of replacing the cells. My SWG is extremely convenient, when it works.
I'm on my third cell in about 7 years. Each one has lasted less than two years. This will be my third season with my current cell, so I'm keeping my fingers crossed.
I'm on my third cell in about 7 years. Each one has lasted less than two years. This will be my third season with my current cell, so I'm keeping my fingers crossed.
- May 3, 2007
- 16,833
- Pool Size
- 20000
- Surface
- Plaster
- Chlorine
- Salt Water Generator
- SWG Type
- Hayward Aqua Rite (T-15)
No regrets either. My cell has lasted 9+ years which I can only attribute to strictly following the TFP methods. Good chemistry balance = long cell life.
You shouldn't be going through cells that fast. A cell should easily last 5 years, usually longer. What percentage are you running your SWG at? Have you tried acid dipping the cell?
Thanks again everyone. Just to confirm, the Aquarite T15 should be good for my 18,000 gal pool correct ??
- May 3, 2007
- 16,833
- Pool Size
- 20000
- Surface
- Plaster
- Chlorine
- Salt Water Generator
- SWG Type
- Hayward Aqua Rite (T-15)
I wish my cells lasted that long. My first cell lasted 18 months and was replaced under warranty. My second lasted 2 seasons (failed due to persistent low-salt readings), after which I switched to tabs for a year or two. Finally bit the bullet and purchased another cell 2 years ago.
I've cleaned each of my cells multiple times. Usually, there is little or no bubbling that would indicate a scaling issue. I generally operate the cells at 20-30% duty cycle, with the pump running about 12 hours/day. I usually check pH once a week nowadays and do a pretty good job of maintaining it between 7.5 and 7.8 with the help of borates. When the pool was new, I checked at least twice a week because the pH was constantly rising.
If you are having to clean the cells often, then your water balance is out of our recommended ranges for a SWG pool. Each cleaning of the cell will reduce its life span and could easily explain why you are not getting the proper life out of the cell. I recommend for you to research our recommendations and start a new thread of your own if you have any questions.
I'm pretty certain my water was reasonably within normal ranges. My CSI calculations always produced very satisfactory numbers. While I say I've cleaned them multiple times, I've actually cleaned them LESS FREQUENTLY than recommended by Pentair. Plus, the last 2 or 3 cleanings per cell, out of maybe 5 or 6 total, were done AFTER the cell started developing problems.
As it turns out, I had another situation this year. I reconnected my IC40 after unplugging it for the winter. Salt readings were very low (2550 ppm). I confirmed my salt levels to be within optimal levels (~3200ppm) at the pool store, but I added a bag of salt anyway hoping to get the readings to above 2600 ppm so the cell would at least operate. Unfortunately, the readings didn't budge. 1 bag in my 12000 gal pool should have raised the level by 300-400 ppm.
I replaced the flow sensor (which contains a temperature sensor) and my salt readings instantly went from 2500 PPM to 4000 PPM. So it turns out that it definitely was a hardware issue with the cell.
Interestingly, a tech rep from Pentair emailed me in response to an online support request. He tried to tell me that 2500 ppm was in the normal range for my water temp (~60 degrees F). He said that the IC40 salt readings vary by 70 PPM per degree of water temperature, and that the cells were calibrated at 77 degrees. Now, that may be true, but it begs the question as to why the IC40 cannot reasonably compensate for that temperature dependence IF IT HAS A TEMP SENSOR BUILT IN.
Anyway, I'm glad that I don't have to purchase another $500+ cell this summer (knocking on wood). I'm beginning to suspect that my last cell had the same issue, because it started to read very low salt (under 1500ppm) just before it quit working. I didn't realize at the time that the problem could have been fixed by replacing the flow sensor.
Similar threads
