Drop in salt cell for 4500 Gal water feature

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Warlock1

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Jul 21, 2008
28
Cape Coral, FL
We have a 4500 gallon water feature with 3 water falls. We want to convert it to salt and are looking at some sort of drop in SWG. Unfortunately looking at the internet just leads to buyers anxiety as a lot of the reviews are discouraging. Most of which revolve around reliability. Tons of comments about having to replace the unit after a year or two.

We are located in South Florida
Feature is under a cage
Very little human or animal usage

Any recommendations on a reliable unit would be most appreciated.

Thanks
 
What do you mean by drop in?

One option might be the Intex units which should be plenty big for the fountain and are pretty inexpensive.

Realize that all SWG cells wear out in 3-7+ years depending on use and chemistry balance.
 
One that doesn't require it to be plumbed into the pump lines. Like the kind you can buy for hot tubs.

Units weren't wearing out so much as boards were burning up. No power on conditions and things like that. Some after just a few months, others just after the 1 year warranty period.
 
Hmmm ... I am not familiar with those units. Do they just float around with a wire plugged into the wall?
I would be more inclined to plumb something into the main pump line.
 
Do it right, I say. There are $400-1000 solutions that will last many, many years, even into double digits I would think. Relatively simple plumbing, even DIY. Most require some sort of regular maintenance, I don't think there's any way around that no matter what you spend, but also DIY if you're handy.
 
There are 'drop in' SWCG for spas, but those typically handle up to 500 gallons or so. Saltron makes one.

With 4500 gallons, a conventional SWCG will be necessary I believe.
 
They make ones that will go up to 20000 gallons. We had a Saltron on our hot tub and it was awesome and we never had a problem with it.

I was trying to keep a clean solution to the wiring of the SWCG. I just installed a Superflow VSP and it allowed me to get rid of that ugly archaic timer box. If I have to plumb in a SWCG then I will have to add the box back in as a timer for the SWCG unless I could find a waterproof timer of sorts to do the same thing.

For those that have never seen these they basically just sit in the water and can be suspended by either the cable or a hook attachment and they just belch out chlorine for lack of a better term. Then the water movement distributes it. Unless you opt for a smart one that turns itself off and on depending on the level of chlorine in the body of water you have to play with the adjustment until its dialed in.
 
Sorry, this is a bit vague, but maybe a jumping off point for a google search. Some here are using gizmo's that measure the amps running to the pump, so they "know" when the pump is on or not, and trigger a relay to power other things. So your SWG would wire to that, and only power on when the pump was running. No extra timer necessary.

Hopefully someone in the know will spot my post and fill in the blanks...
 

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SWGs have a rated lifespan. They all wear out. That spec was conspicuously absent from that Amazon page. That would be something to determine before you buy. One reviewer claimed replacement once a season. That would make it a substantially lesser value than most of the SWGs discussed here at TFP. Be sure you're comparing apples to apples.
 
Yep that is the one I was thinking of.
Yes you are also correct that an inline would probably be better in the long run.
I will have to pick up a VSR and see what kind of a circuit I can come up with. I didn't even think of that.

Thanks all, I knew you guys would come through.
 
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