Pentair IC40 Red Low Salt Light on... Salt Not Low. HELP

Jump to latest Follow Reply
acgibson

acgibson

0
LifeTime Supporter
Aug 26, 2014
90
Olney / IL
Hey all,

Ok I got one for you.... My pool guy is stumped, his Pentair reps are stumped, lets see if any of you have come across this. My Pentair IC40 generator has had the low salt light on all season since opening up. So initially I thought, ok and added a bag of salt which took salt too high I later discovered (around (4300-4500). Last weekend my pool guy came by and we put a new cell on.... same thing. We then put both old cell and new cell in a bucket up water while leaving them hooked up to the control panel and on. He held the flow sensor down while in the bucket and lights went all green and started foaming producing chlorine, everything worked exactly as it was supposed to on both cells. Put it back on my system.... Low salt light is still red. Flow light is green. It has everyone stumped. Behaves the same on my old cell and with the brand new cell. So it currently is not producing any chlorine which is getting very old. He had me try changing out some old water with some fresh water to bring salt down (was at 4300) and just to try it.... did not help. Any thoughts?


I have used methods here for years and have very little trouble with my water, but here are specs
Salt 3500
FC 5
PH 7.4
TA 120
CH 250
CYA 65
Borate 10
Temp 87


Thanks all, I appreciate the help.
 
A,

Logically, the salt level reported by the IC40 is determined by the cell and a thermistor inside the flow switch.. If two cells have the same problem then either both cells are bad, or something common between the two cells must be bad.. The only thing common between the two cells is the power center inside the EasyTouch that supplies the cell its DC voltage..

I have never heard of a bad power center causing a low salt issue, but what else is common?

Water temp can cause the cell to report low salt, but this time a year I doubt that would be an issue.. What is your water temp?

Just to be clear.. You say the low salt light was on all season.. Was the light on the cell red, or was the level just zero when looking at ScreenLogic? If the light itself is red, the cell should not be making any chlorine..?? What was the reported salt level when looking at ScreenLogic?

When the cell is shut off (no lights) and then powered back up, does the cell have flashing salt lights that look like a railroad crossing for about two minutes?

Thanks,

Jim R.
 
Jimrahbe said:
A,

Logically, the salt level reported by the IC40 is determined by the cell and a thermistor inside the flow switch.. If two cells have the same problem then either both cells are bad, or something common between the two cells must be bad.. The only thing common between the two cells is the power center inside the EasyTouch that supplies the cell its DC voltage..

I have never heard of a bad power center causing a low salt issue, but what else is common?

Water temp can cause the cell to report low salt, but this time a year I doubt that would be an issue.. What is your water temp?

Just to be clear.. You say the low salt light was on all season.. Was the light on the cell red, or was the level just zero when looking at ScreenLogic? If the light itself is red, the cell should not be making any chlorine..?? What was the reported salt level when looking at ScreenLogic?

When the cell is shut off (no lights) and then powered back up, does the cell have flashing salt lights that look like a railroad crossing for about two minutes?

Thanks,

Jim R.
Click to expand...
Hi Jim, Thanks for the reply.

So my screen logic has not worked for years... bad internet, big spans of space, etc. To answer your main question, yes it is the red low salt light on the cell itself and also on the intellph control. We initially tried connecting directly to the control panel and bypassing intelliph control, but it did not change anything.

By all season I mean it was fine last year and when I opened pool this year it has been doing this, and is not generating chlorine.

Water Temp is a steady 87-89 with the Ultratemp heat pump. Shows correct temp on control panel screen and heat pump.

Yes, when the unit is powered down and then back on the lights flash back and forth for several minutes, then lands on low salt.

The really odd thing here is.... when the cell is pulled out (both cells old and new) and placed in a bucket of water while holding flow switch down to simulate flow.... the lights flash for a min or two and then go green and starts making chlorine. Same hookups to the electronics in the intellph control and everything....just pulled it out and put in bucket. Put it back into my system line and turn back on....red light. Nothing has changed from a equipment or setup perspective from last year when it worked fine. We tried the bucket method to rule my water... pool guy brought a bucket of water from his pool and it worked fine, so we got a bucket of water from my pool then...worked fine.
 
Last edited:
Jimrahbe said:
A,

Sounds impossible... :mrgreen:

Show us a pic of your equipment pad so we can see how the cell is mounted.

Thanks,

Jim R.
Click to expand...
I know, it has us stumped which why I’m reaching out here hoping some vets may have seen it before. As of right now, Pentair reps are supposedly looking into it.
Pics attached…
 

Attachments

  • A0D982E3-AF4D-4743-9C75-04C00D3FE824.jpeg
    A0D982E3-AF4D-4743-9C75-04C00D3FE824.jpeg
    617 KB · Views: 34
I did just try removing the intelliph and plugged straight into control panel, just to double check again. No change.

I will say it thinks (railroad flashing lights) for a very long time before finally settling on low salt. Pool guy said it was pretty long to. It registered in half the time in the bucket and went green.
 

Enjoying this content?

Support TFP with a donation.

Give Support
A,

Is the pump new? Did the problem start after installing the pump?

I admit I am just grasping at straws here, but... There is no moving water when you do the bucket test, and there is moving water when you do the in-place test.. Flow switch closes, so you would not think it is lack of flow, so maybe it is too much flow... :scratch:

It is interesting that it quickly finds the salt level without any flow, and take forever when there is flow.

I find idea that you could have too much flow with your filter and heater in line, impossible, but then again, I find the cell's operation impossible too.. :mrgreen:

Thanks for the pics and new info.

Jim R.
 
Let's see if @JamesW has any ideas...

Op has two cells that do exactly the same thing.. low salt when installed, but ok salt when run in a bucket of the same pool water. The cell's salt calibration takes the normal time when in the bucket, but a lot longer when in the plumbing..

Thanks,

Jim R.
 
Jimrahbe said:
A,

Is the pump new? Did the problem start after installing the pump?

I admit I am just grasping at straws here, but... There is no moving water when you do the bucket test, and there is moving water when you do the in-place test.. Flow switch closes, so you would not think it is lack of flow, so maybe it is too much flow... :scratch:

It is interesting that it quickly finds the salt level without any flow, and take forever when there is flow.

I find idea that you could have too much flow with your filter and heater in line, impossible, but then again, I find the cell's operation impossible too.. :mrgreen:

Thanks for the pics and new info.

Jim R.
Click to expand...
I keep coming back to the pump as well, but it was in system last year, I think it was installed in 2019 if memory serves correctly. It worked fine last year.... Something in the flow perhaps, but i have 3 laminars that drop pressure 10 lbs when on, no change with them on or off.

I did have to change the control board on the heat pump this year as well. Could there be a short or current in the water flow that would fool the cell or something? A setting in the main panel that got messed up when they changed the control board on the heat pump?
 
JamesW said:
Can you get the system to tell you what the salinity reading is?

How are you checking the salinity?
Click to expand...
I am not sure how to check the salinity on the system.

I have digital Lamotte salinity meter and a Taylor Salinity test kit. both are within 100-200 of each other, and pool guy took a sample back prior to bucket testing and confirm my readings. When we did bucket tests, his pool water he brought was at 3200 and cell worked fine, and when we tested cell in my water the high salt warning came on the cell (my water was at around 4500)....this was prior to replacing some water yesterday.
 
JamesW said:
What is the date on each cell?

Can you show several more pictures of everything from different angles?

Can you show the wiring inside the Easytouch?
Click to expand...
Sure i will get some more pics in the morning. It is very strange, nothing has been changed or touched (other than this brand new cell) for several years. The cell currently in use is brand new this Saturday. My previous cell was december of 2016. Pool guy did believe my old cell was bad, as it did not foam in bucket...but new cell did.
 

Enjoying this content?

Support TFP with a donation.

Give Support
You must log in or register to reply here.
Thread Status
Hello , This thread has been inactive for over 60 days. New postings here are unlikely to be seen or responded to by other members. For better visibility, consider Starting A New Thread.
Top Bottom
Back
Jump to latest Follow Reply