Problems with Intex SWCG

[digidoggie18]

Moved from here.

I can make it short
Should I get one? Yes
Will it cause my pool to rot? NO
Jk
I am curious to understand them better

To be honest, ours has been nothing but a nightmare with the cells sometimes not even lasting a month with our water properly balanced. Weve even taken samples of our water to 3 different pool places to ensure our readings were accurate. our hard water is hard to get down into the proper spot though and we are constantly adding clorox scale and stain remover to do so. this year we had to add so much that I had to put in a phosate remover and vac today. it definitely cleared up our water though. They still baffle me to the point where we are going to go the route of an ionizer and low amounts of chlorine.

 

[digidoggie18]

I missed it, let me know when it’s on YouTube

same here, I'm very interested to see if I am just doing something wrong..

 

[Pv2]

To be honest, ours has been nothing but a nightmare with the cells sometimes not even lasting a month with our water properly balanced. Weve even taken samples of our water to 3 different pool places to ensure our readings were accurate. our hard water is hard to get down into the proper spot though and we are constantly adding clorox scale and stain remover to do so. this year we had to add so much that I had to put in a phosate remover and vac today. it definitely cleared up our water though. They still baffle me to the point where we are going to go the route of an ionizer and low amounts of chlorine.

maybe you can explain how an ionizer and low chlorine will solve your water problems?

 

[AUSpool]

To be honest, ours has been nothing but a nightmare with the cells sometimes not even lasting a month with our water properly balanced. Weve even taken samples of our water to 3 different pool places to ensure our readings were accurate. our hard water is hard to get down into the proper spot though and we are constantly adding clorox scale and stain remover to do so. this year we had to add so much that I had to put in a phosate remover and vac today. it definitely cleared up our water though. They still baffle me to the point where we are going to go the route of an ionizer and low amounts of chlorine.

Really? Are you seriously thinking of swapping chlorine for a pool full of heavy metals? The use of copper is progressively being banned in a number of industries. I’m surprised the EPA hasn’t banned them. I would never be without a chlorinator.

 

[digidoggie18]

Really? Are you seriously thinking of swapping chlorine for a pool full of heavy metals? The use of copper is progressively being banned in a number of industries. I’m surprised the EPA hasn’t banned them. I would never be without a chlorinator.

Yes... I'm tired of dealing with chlorine generators that dont work... especially when the cells are almost $100... if they werent so expensive I'd do otherwise. 1 copper can be carcinogenic however, if it was truly horrible, it wouldnt be used in plumbing which it is because of the antimicrobial properties. The body also needs copper. As for the silver ions, they are classified as a heavy metal however are non toxic. so, yes.. I plan to.. as for the EPA, half the time they don't even know what they are doing.. btw ionizers only put .2ppm into the water..

 

[markayash]

Yes... I'm tired of dealing with chlorine generators that dont work... especially when the cells are almost $100... if they werent so expensive I'd do otherwise. 1 copper can be carcinogenic however, if it was truly horrible, it wouldnt be used in plumbing which it is because of the antimicrobial properties. The body also needs copper. As for the silver ions, they are classified as a heavy metal however are non toxic. so, yes.. I plan to.. as for the EPA, half the time they don't even know what they are doing..

Lol I was watching a natural health video and he mentioned it can cause you to get low on copper and my thought was good no staining

 

[digidoggie18]

maybe you can explain how an ionizer and low chlorine will solve your water problems?

well, considering my chlorine generator stops working after a month or so.. i mean.. yea.. I'm not spending 90$ on cells that only work a month with proper chemistry... The other big issue weve had is trying to get hardness down, it has been a stupid pain in my butt. We are able to drop it down, it never stays like that for long though which to my knowledge, I thought salt was supposed to soften the water. I'm in the process of getting the TF-100 xl kit to once again verify but after taking samples into 3 different stores and verifying my readings, I'm honestly over it.. worst comes to worst, I'll just stick with chlorine tabs and be done. only reason we have issues is because the chlorine dips because the generator stops working properly when ran for 9 hours straight including boosting it. Once I shock and add manually with HTH chlorine granules, everything clears up and goes away. If the chlorine generator that intex supplied me with is too small, etc... then please let me know and I'll go a different route. but half the time with 9 hours of run time and boosting daily I still can't even hit 1 chlorine across the board... Salt level stays at 3000ppm usually too. At night, it goes away. This happens slowly over time and then I start having to brush the sides and we find small bits of white colored algae here and there with it. Ionizer kills a lot of the algae and with an ionizer, it cuts your chlorine need by 60-80%... When reading up on it, the manufacturers typically recommend .5 for chlorine and the reviews confirm this through multiple sites. I haven't looked through products without at least 1000 reviews either.

 

[digidoggie18]

Lol I was watching a natural health video and he mentioned it can cause you to get low on copper and my thought was good no staining

what can cause you to get low on copper??

 

[JamesW]

I'm not spending 90$ on cells that only work a month

You should buy a real SWG, not some cheap Intex SWG.

Get an aquarite with a 3 year warranty.

What is your CSI?

 

[markayash]

what can cause you to get low on copper??

I think it was talking about taking too much zinc can cause you to be low on copper. I watch a lot of natural health stuff so can’t remember the exact one

 

[aussieta]

I think it was talking about taking too much zinc can cause you to be low on copper

you are correct, excessive vit c, zinc and iron can all lower copper

 

[digidoggie18]

You should buy a real SWG, not some cheap Intex SWG.

Get an aquarite with a 3 year warranty.

What is your CSI?

I'm not sure what you mean with CSI. These acronyms throw me off even though I test daily for a lot. Our hardness typically stays at around 200ish. these past few days I think we hit 1000 due to the heavy rains we've been getting daily. Normally I will go out and add some scale and stain remover and it'll drop down. Normally I never have to add more than 2 bottles (64oz), it says never to add more than 96oz... if I have to add more like lately due to the rain, I then need to add a phosate remover and vac the next day. After that my water is clear as can be.... I've been thinking though my alkalinity may be messing with it even though it appears to be in range. I'm going to look into the aquarite here in a sec though. I'm always up for new ideas. Our intex one just does not even come close to keeping up.

 

[digidoggie18]

I think it was talking about taking too much zinc can cause you to be low on copper. I watch a lot of natural health stuff so can’t remember the exact one

Ahh gotcha haha. I was lost there for a second.

 

[digidoggie18]

You should buy a real SWG, not some cheap Intex SWG.

Get an aquarite with a 3 year warranty.

What is your CSI?

over $1000 is a lot to swallow considering the problems we already have with our current and honestly don't think I could swallow that with those constant issues... If I still have the same issues, I'm screwed on 1k...

 

[JamesW]

Our hardness typically stays at around 200ish. these past few days I think we hit 1000 due to the heavy rains we've been getting daily.

How does rain make the hardness go from 200 to 1,000?

 

[JamesW]

Use Poolmath to calculate the CSI.

What are all of the chemistry readings and how are you testing the water?

PoolMath

Discover the calculator behind the perfect pool, PoolMath. Dealing with pools has allowed TFP to become the original authors of the best calculator on the net.

www.troublefreepool.com

 

[Pv2]

well, considering my chlorine generator stops working after a month or so.. i mean.. yea.. I'm not spending 90$ on cells that only work a month with proper chemistry... The other big issue weve had is trying to get hardness down, it has been a stupid pain in my butt. We are able to drop it down, it never stays like that for long though which to my knowledge, I thought salt was supposed to soften the water. I'm in the process of getting the TF-100 xl kit to once again verify but after taking samples into 3 different stores and verifying my readings, I'm honestly over it.. worst comes to worst, I'll just stick with chlorine tabs and be done. only reason we have issues is because the chlorine dips because the generator stops working properly when ran for 9 hours straight including boosting it. Once I shock and add manually with HTH chlorine granules, everything clears up and goes away. If the chlorine generator that intex supplied me with is too small, etc... then please let me know and I'll go a different route. but half the time with 9 hours of run time and boosting daily I still can't even hit 1 chlorine across the board... Salt level stays at 3000ppm usually too. At night, it goes away. This happens slowly over time and then I start having to brush the sides and we find small bits of white colored algae here and there with it. Ionizer kills a lot of the algae and with an ionizer, it cuts your chlorine need by 60-80%... When reading up on it, the manufacturers typically recommend .5 for chlorine and the reviews confirm this through multiple sites. I haven't looked through products without at least 1000 reviews either.

there is so much to deal with here, so I will just leave it at...you really should read Pool School, or at least watch the videos. your equipment issues may or may not be related to your water, but you aren't going to know until you have and post real, self-taken test results from one of the recommentded test kits.

is your SWG under warranty? at least the more recent purchases should be. having said that, intex equipment is not noted for their reliability and there shouldn't be any reason you cant have a functioning SWG. people with all kinds of water manage them fine.

spending money on questionable things like ionizers without understanding what they do and don't do is not a great plan. get a test kit, test your water yourself and post the results here and people will gladly help. read Pool School. Pool School - Trouble Free Pool

 

[digidoggie18]

How does rain make the hardness go from 200 to 1,000?

Your guess is as good as mine but usually my ph goes up, alkalinity goes up, and my hardness goes up... I am taking a total hardness reading, total chlorine, free chlorine, PH, total alkalinity, stabilizer, and salt readings. Typically my PH sits at 7.2, total and free chlorine with the generator running and on boost sits at 0 (both) with my salt level at between 2870 and 3110ppm (when I replace the cells, it goes back to normal) Total alkalinity is at 120, stabilizer sits normally between 50 and 100 (right now 100), and the hardness at roughly 200-250 with rain, those items I mentioned above go up until I bring them back down. Granted, I truly may not understand it, I am willing to learn from yall. I test with clorox smart strips and for the salt aqua check strips. I have verified every one of my readings with 3 different stores including one that has a machine that tests the water. the other two stores check via strips as well. as far as the hardness, replacing the water hasn't worked for us as we have extremely hard water already..

 

[digidoggie18]

there is so much to deal with here, so I will just leave it at...you really should read Pool School, or at least watch the videos. your equipment issues may or may not be related to your water, but you aren't going to know until you have and post real, self-taken test results from one of the recommentded test kits.

is your SWG under warranty? at least the more recent purchases should be. having said that, intex equipment is not noted for their reliability and there shouldn't be any reason you cant have a functioning SWG. people with all kinds of water manage them fine.

spending money on questionable things like ionizers without understanding what they do and don't do is not a great plan. get a test kit, test your water yourself and post the results here and people will gladly help. read Pool School. Pool School - Trouble Free Pool

It is currently under warranty and we plan on using it. Due to both my wife and I being in school currently though the test kit will probably come next year due to the season here almost being over and the fact that budget is tight. I am currently trying to get a TF100 XL test kit. I posted my normal strip results here although I know that they can be inaccurate from reading the last few days. I'm just tired of the issues, every one says its super simple but it's been a metric Crud ton of work these past 3 years.

 

[Pv2]

IF, and I say "if" due to questionable testing, your stabilizer is at 100, that will explain why you have cloudy water and is most likely your biggest problem. buy the test kit before you buy any other equipment. the money you save from TFPC and testing yourself, adding only what you need and not a bunch of pool store magic products (much less miracle machinery) that can damage your pool, will pay for that kit in very short order.