My Jandy PLC-1400 salt cell appears to need replacement: it's throwing 125/194 error codes. The cell is 4-1/2 years old, and it's worked flawlessly over that time at 25% in the winter and 70% in the summer. My pool guy and an electronic sensor that I have both report the salt level at 2800 but the control panel says 3400ppm. I descaled it two months ago -- got rid of all the visible white matter stuck to the plates and the place where the wires connect inside.

The code interpretation:

194 Cell Current is 85% lower than desired and cell voltage above 19V (Generates 125 code – Cell dirty or needs replacement)
125 Cell needs to be cleaned or replaced

The price of the PLC-1400 seems to have skyrocketed though. The last time, I paid $599 at Marina Pool Supply. This time, their price is $1199 and that's the price my pool guy quoted as well, so I'll get it from him.

Two questions:

* Is it worth proactively replacing the flow sensor/power cable? I have these from when I replaced the cell in 2017 and didn't replace the flow sensor or power cable because the new cell started working immediately (I did replace these in 2021 with the ones that came with that cell). Replacing the wires is a pain because the SWG control box is in an awkward hard-to-reach location and I'd prefer to just do it once with the new cables, but if it might make a difference, I'll give it a try. I'd rather not do it twice, but I suppose I could continue to use the 2017 sensor/cable (both unused) with the new cell unless something about these has changed since 2021.

* Does the measured salt level (3400 vs 2800) make a difference to the salt cell? Does it lower the current if it thinks there's more salt than there actually is? If I recalibrate the control box to match, might that make a difference? I think I'll give that a try anyway, once I find the calibration instructions again.

* Finally: instead of spending the $1200, have there been improvements in these systems since mine was installed in2006? Could I spend a bit more cash and switch to a better or more durable salt water generator to replace the Jandy system? This one has worked well, but if the technology has improved, that's something I'd be willing to consider if it's not 3x the price. I'm not wedded to Jandy/Zodiac but it would have to be compatible with my control box so I can see the salt level and control the cell level from my control panel and app.

Thanks!

We have a pool installed in 2023 with a Cover Pools cover. We often come to find the pool dirty and the cleaner has not been running. When going to the web-based aqua link system setup- Cover Pools icon, the cleaner will have an X to the right. So that the cleaner will not run with the cover is closed. First problem - sometimes the cover is open and the system thinks it’s closed. second problem - we want the cleaner to run regardless of pool cover position. Little worms and bugs get through the crack. I make the changes and then mysteriously I find the setting back to the X beside cleaner again. We do not have a pool cleaner company. It’s only my husband and I with the code. The pool builder company can operate remotely. We have asked numerous times if they are making the changes and they say no. Is there a batch update that is making it default back???

If anyone can tell me how to troubleshoot why the cover position is not always in sync with the app, perhaps I could consider using some of the fancy communication available between the cover and aqua link. But at this point, we don’t understand why they need to communicate with each other! Pic of how we find the setting when the cleaner didn’t operate.

We have been Coverstar owners on another property for 12 years. And never had any problems. The Coverstar cover is not in communication with the Jandy app!

I'm a proponent of reclaiming pool cover surface water rather than simply pumping to drainage.
Also, I maintain a 3,000 square foot garden, located some 500 feet away from the pool.
With an artesian well and no city water, I've previously pumped water into 30-gallon drums, hauled them to the garden, then pumped out the barrels.
This takes much time and effort, and the water flow from barrels into the garden is expectedly weak.

So...
1 - Would incorporating a pressure washer at the end of the run significantly speed up the actual watering of the garden?
2 - Would a powerful enough pump omit the need for filling multiple drums and allow me to pump directly from the pool cover to the garden?
3 - Can you suggest a more efficient alternative method of getting water to my garden?

Thanks in advance!
-A

Hi, I recently purchased a new home with an old pool that I believe is about 20K gallons and kidney shaped. I am thinking through simplifying and modernizing some of the management of the pool. The installed mechanicals currently are only:

Pentair DE Filter
Pentair 1.5HP pump

I recently purchased an AquaCal HeatWave SQ200R electric heater (the house is all electric) and ran 100 amp service to the pool area. I am having a pool company install the heater and open the pool week week.

At the same time, I would like to modernize the system by converting it to salt water and possibly to add some automation. My current thinking from reading these forums is to go with the circupool rj-45 but I am tempted by the core control 55.

Given how bare bones the system is I’d love any advice on what makes sense to do on day 1 to allow for the most optionality and expandability as I grow into the system and managing the pool myself. Thanks

I have had a pool since 2006 in southwest Georgia. I am a believer and have used the methods described in this forum to solve any problems I have had with water chemistry balance. However, this one has got me stumped as well as many of the pool service companies in my area. I have never had such a problem as I do now.

My pool is in-ground, capacity 25000 gals, vinyl liner (replaced in 2017) with a salt water chlorination system. My present water chemistry is PH 7.6, Chlorine 21.0, Alkalinity 110, Cyanuric acid 95 and salt level 2700. Prior to my problem and just opening the pool in the spring the water chemistry was PH 7.4, Chlorine 0.0, Alkalinity 80, Cyanuric acid 80 and salt 2600. I have several river birch trees around my pool which always have produced a lot of debris plus seeds in the spring that cause me to empty the skimmer basket and polaris frequently in the spring.

The present chlorine level is high right now due to increasing dosage of bleach to get rid of what I thought was an algae problem. It has remained high because I increased the salt system to an output of 80%.

Right now my pool is green (picture attached). I looks like algae but I do not have any algae dust on the bottom of the pool when I brush it. My water feed is from a well. The pool service people think that I have a metal problem. I have added their metal out chemicals (2 quarts) and ran the pump system overnight but I do not see an improvement this morning. I do not know how to test for metals.

What I do know, is that I have had this pool since 2006, have always used my water from the same well and I have previously never had a problem that I could not fix using borax, bleach and acid. Any help would certainly be appreciated.

Sincerely, Jim Kempf

Not sure if this is the right thread but……second season using the TF Pro Kit and the smart stir LED light no longer working. Fresh batteries and magnet still sound great just no light which is beneficial those mornings when I need to leave before sunset. Any else have this problem? Any one able to successfully repair? TIA

Doing absorbic acid treatment today and don’t have access to Polyquat 60. I know poor planning. Is there another algicide I can use?

Is there any point in using a degreaser when opening the pool, to help with gunk removal from the vinyl?

Good morning!!

Asking for some reassurance from those that have gone before me. I have used a solar cover almost every year since I have had my pool (since 2013). I typically buy the 12 mil ones (maybe even 16?). And they only last about 3 years . After reading on here - I decided to save the money and go for the 8. I just placed it and it feels SO flimsy. Will this actually last three years??? I would rather return it now and get the 12 or 16 mil with the fancy upgraded verbiage. A lot of what I read on here was pointing to just saving the money and go basic and 8mil

Thank you for the insight!!

We’ve got a new build that’s finally getting the plastering done next week. We’re going with Pebble Sheen. We’re building a 26k inground pool and our pool builder says it will be a two day process - pebble sheen applied the first day, then acid wash the second day (and then filled with water the second day, in the afternoon).

Our forecast is showing wind both of those days - 10-20 mph generally. Is it problematic to do the final finish application while there is wind? Should I be concerned?

Thanks for any help.

Good Morning, I was wondering if someone can give me some advice on my pool and a high water table. I have a 30,000 gallon pool and hired a pool company to replace my liner. They started to clean out the bottom and water started rushing in. I have a well point already installed and they are using 2 sump pumps, but water keeps rushing in. All the hoses are directing to the street so they aren’t in the yard. I just don’t know that this company is working fast enough because the pool will dry they will leave it then come back and the water is back. It eventually pumped out sand and they removed the sand and now we are back with water coming out. Can someone please advise on what I should do to keep this water from coming from the earth thank you so much

I have recently replaced the gas valve on my Hayward Heater. The solenoid just failed.

I cannot find any major literature on why these fail. This may be a dense question and I am asking more out of my own curiosity. This was a 4 year old valve. Any idea generally why these fail?

Good morning, thanks to this forum I have been able last year to solve several issues and do my own maintenance with the pro kit.
Next week i’ll open the pool (a pool guy is doing that). He’ll of course do all start ups chemical etc, but after that, i’ll do my own.
Do you hve any tips on what to look for at least at the beginning or it is just regular testing as usual? I mean are there any level i should be particularly concerned AT the beginning or anything i should be expecting or it is business as usual? Should i leave salt chlorinator at the low setting as in season? Any tips you can share is greatly appreciated.

Just thought I’d ask the other Brits where you’re all buying test kits etc from in case I’m missing a trick

Thanks for letting me join. We bought a small (12 foot) above ground pool for my daughter about 3 years ago and it’s been a learning curve

I’ve got to grip with the basics but am now “improving things” as I go forward. New pump & filter using glass media this season along with an air source heat pump for cold British weather.

I’ve converted the small pump housing it came with to just a skimmer and all seems good with strong water circulation.

I’ve been using the basic test strips but now realise I need better information and am waiting on a proper kit to arrive, now that I understand more about the chemistry of the water etc. We do have very hard water where we live apparently.

I look forward to continuing to learn and hopefully I can give a bit of help back from my own experiences over the last few seasons.

Please excuse the tangle of hoses in the photo, that’s from test set up day and I will be making it a lot neater now I have everything sussed out

Well, I hope to be through the worst of it and I’m not feeling too bad just four weeks in a sling , PT and then a little bit of time to recover and I hope I’ll be better than new.

Hi everyone,

I noticed after a recent heavy rain that there’s a small amount of water pooling around the edge of my pump pad. At first, I thought it might be a plumbing leak, but after checking all the visible connections, everything looks dry when the pump is running. It seems like the rainwater might be seeping in around the pad itself.

I briefly spoke to a concrete contractor who was doing some work nearby, and he said sometimes these small shifts or tiny cracks in concrete pads can let rainwater sneak through, especially if the ground underneath settles a bit over time.

Has anyone had something similar happen with their pump setup? Wondering if it’s worth patching the pad or just keeping an eye on it unless it gets worse.

Thanks for any help!

If I wanted a preventative algacide, what might you recommend? There are pools I care for that have some degree of volatility where one would help. What do you use to treat an algal bloom? Mustard? Green? BLACK!? As stated I need to veer away from metal based products.

I live in a windy area and my pool is at risk from time to time of getting very dirty from dirt/leaves etc. Are non-chlorine shocks recommended in this case or should I just rely on manual cleaning etc? I almost never deal with algae because my chemicals are always kept within proper levels so I don’t ever use cal hypo and would just slam instead. Thank you.

Hi All! I have a HC3315 chlorinator and I’m trying to figure out if one of the protrusions at the bottom of the housing that keeps the filter screen in place is missing. I only have three protrusions so I believe the filter screen is not being held in place properly as it would be with four protrusions or Dots that extend up from the bottom of the housing. Can anyone tell me the correct number of protrusions that should exist at the bottom of the housing?

Hi everyone,
I have an IC-60 that is several years old and I’ve just opened my pool and am finishing up a SLAM and I went to turn down the SWCG and it won’t turn down! Its stuck at 100% and I cannot get it to activate the “boost” mode by pressing both buttons down either!

My chlorine is around 17ppm and has been holding steady and slightly climbing now that the algae is gone so I know it’s still working. I have changed the run time on the pump/chlorinator to a 8 hours instead of 24 hours like I usually do to compensate for the increased chlorine - I have a variable speed pump and it runs around 1400rpm for 16 hours a day and 2500 the rest of the time. I usually have the IC-60 set to 10% to maintain my chlorine level.

My question is can I take apart the front panel of the IC-60 and repair or replace those buttons? Is that what’s wrong even? Can the ic-60 even be taken apart? I haven’t taken it out of the plumbing to look at it yet since it’s still working… at 100%

I teach electronics and robotics and can solder well and have everything I would need in order to replace parts on a circuit board.

Thanks in advance!

Ok, I'm SLAMMING briefly as I think i'm good, doing OCLT tonight, but my last 2 tests my chlorine has gone UP and I haven't added any. My salt is 1000 so my SWG isn't working but just to confirm I shut it off. I have never had this happen but now I question my OCLT ability. I did the last 2 twice to make sure I wasn't messing up. at 4:20 I tested at 12.5, 6:40 14 and 8:20 16. Is this even possible? I only added chlorine once today. 2 gallons this afternoon to get it up to 12 for a SLAM.

What could this be. I scratched on it and it comes off after while.

Hi All,

I have a 31,000 gallon salt water pool that is starting to turn green and my mineral level is below the recommended level.

I recently bought a Taylor K-1766 salt testing kit. I followed the instructions and it took 15 drops of silver nitrate reagent to turn to a milky salmon color. 1 drop = 200 ppm, 15×200= 3,000ppm.

What does this mean? How many bags of salt do I need to buy? Thank you

Is there a mechanism to download a multi-page conversation I'm involved in? It would be nice to have a PDF containing an entire conversation. I could of course do a Print to PDF of each page, and then combine them in my PDF editing software, but that all feels a bit rudimentary. Just want to see if there's a more built in way to export conversations. Thanks.

Is it really possible that my green swamp only needs 3 1/2 cups of chlorine to clear it up? Fc level .5 cya 30

I've just had a chlorine generator installed. I've had the skimmer crack and leak twice last year, so its being replaced. I now have leaks around the motor on an eight year old Pentair Superflow pump. Had all this not happened at this time, I'd fork out the replacement cost by having a new Pentair installed for me. Its hard and not a lot of options. I'm looking at a Black+Decker replacement with DIY installation.

The output side plumbing was just redone. In input side has not room left to cut out and replumb without cutting out the shutoff valve and going into a block wall. Nobody is too exited about this as the pool water line is above the pump and plumbing. The original Pentair unions were replaced after cracking in the last 3 months.

The reading I've done make it seems as if the B+D can be a direct replacement, without the need to replumb.

If its just a matter of screwing down the input and output with some Teflon tape and hooking up two electrical legs and a ground, I think I can handle it.

I'm looking for any input from somebody that has just directly swapped a Pentair with a B+D pump in case there are issues I'm taking into consideration to do this myself.

Thanks

Hello, my pool is only 4 years old and my pentair intelliconnect controller died. My pool only has a single speed pump and a booster pump for the pool sweep. The intelliconnect allowed me to run the equipment with the app on my phone, but to be honest I only used the app to turn off everything when I would do the weekly maintenance. I had all the equipment set to a timer. My question is should I replace it with another intelliconnect or just use one of those old fashioned mechanical timer, that will last for years? Also is there a timer that will turn on the pump and the booster separately?

Cleaning filters and noticed water is coming out of the area circled. Something to be concerened about? My pressure is low but I do think Im due for a new pump.

Hi,

I've gone through multiple threads and figured out what I think I need to do, but I still have a couple of questions I wanted to ask help with.

I found out today after opening one of the ball valves for my pool fountain that it's leaking (red arrow in pic below). I can't see any water coming out of it when it's closed, but when I open it there's a steady stream. I need to replace it. The other two are OK (for now).
After reading through the other threads, I got the idea that I should replace all three ball valves with Jandy valves. I think I have enough basic skills to do that, but I don't want to start anything until I understand what I'm getting into.

1. The Jandy valve with the green allow doesn't allow to completely cut off the flow towards the fountains (right side of T). When all three blue ball valves are shut, the three fountains don't work. But the Jandy valve has a stop that prevents me from shutting off the right side completely. I don't understand why. Additionally, the Jandy valve "Inlet" port is the one at the bottom of the T, even though the water flows from the left of the picture. Is that the problem?
2. Other than shutting off the pump and closing off any valves that I can to prevent water from flowing into the manifold that I will be replacing, what else do I need to take care off?