We are in the process of building an in-ground pool (16 x 34) and spa (8x7) and chose a Jandy chlorine system w/ Paramount UV Sanitizer after being scared off of saltwater by multiple builders during the bid process. Now I'm reading the UV system is useless and I'm debating paying to upgrade to a salt system instead. Please talk me out of this or confirm our desire to go w/ salt! We have MX travertine coping in platinum ice and stacked stone veneer on the spa, a raised glass tile wall and waterline tile in the pool, and salted concrete decking. Is it true that we can't use the salt system when the water gets below 60 degrees? What are the pros/cons... Thank you so much!!
Saltwater Pool in N. Texas? OR Chlorine w/ UV Sanitizer....
- Thread starter TexasMom77
- Start date
- Jun 22, 2014
- 47,854
- Pool Size
- 17888
- Surface
- Fiberglass
- Chlorine
- Salt Water Generator
- SWG Type
- CircuPool RJ-45 Plus
Still amazing how many in the industry don't know basic chemistry. Go salt, you'll be glad you did. See the links below.
UV Systems - Further Reading
www.troublefreepool.com
Ozone Systems - Further Reading
www.troublefreepool.com
Alternative sanitizers and "chemical free" pools--The Truth!
Pool owners frequently seek out "Chemical Free" alternatives to pool water sanitization. Many claims in favor of these systems and methods have been made (usually by the manufacturers of such systems) often without adequate scientific proof of their efficacy. Let's take a look at them and see...
www.troublefreepool.com
- Jun 1, 2018
- 13,765
- Pool Size
- 26000
- Surface
- Vinyl
- Chlorine
- Salt Water Generator
- SWG Type
- Hayward Aqua Rite (T-15)
Depends on which swg you get but all have a point at which they no longer operate- when the water is between 50-60 degrees. No big deal, just dose with liquid chlorine, the demand will be quite low at those temps so it won’t be the same as having to manually chlorinate daily during the swim season.
Were u planning on a jandy unit? Will u have jandy automation?
- Jan 7, 2012
- 1,453
- Pool Size
- 21000
- Surface
- Plaster
- Chlorine
- Salt Water Generator
- SWG Type
- Pentair Intellichlor IC-60
In the Pentair ecosystem, the IntelliChlor SWGs function until the water temperature is 52° F ± 3°. When the water is that cold, FC demand is very little. Last winter, I used less than one gallon of LC in my pool.
Mcow
0
- Jul 5, 2017
- 319
- Pool Size
- 22000
- Surface
- Plaster
- SWG Type
- Pentair Intellichlor IC-40
I live in North East Texas and having both a SWG and previously a UV/Ozone system I can 100% tell you I prefer SWG. We were talked out of a SWG on our old pool and I regretted it daily in the summer. I honestly have no idea if either the UV or Ozone did a thing but during the summer it took almost a gallon of chlorine a day so I doubt they did anything to reduce the amount I had to use. Our current pool has one and it is way way easier and less maintenance. After getting everything to correct levels (had to increase my Calcium and get my CYA up) all I have to add not is Muriatic acid weekly to keep the PH inline.
- Jul 17, 2019
- 3,714
- Pool Size
- 13000
- Surface
- Plaster
- Chlorine
- Salt Water Generator
- SWG Type
- Pentair Intellichlor IC-40
DFW salt owner here too, with travertine and a stacked stone raised wall. No issues for me and I would 100% do it again.
BTW - If they remove the UV system and replace it with a salt water chlorine generator, it should really be a wash in price. If the builder is trying to charge you more than a few hundred $, I would really question that. Both pieces of equipment are roughly $900.
BTW - If they remove the UV system and replace it with a salt water chlorine generator, it should really be a wash in price. If the builder is trying to charge you more than a few hundred $, I would really question that. Both pieces of equipment are roughly $900.
Yes, We have Jandy equipment and automation. I'm assuming if we upgrade to the salt system it will be the same? Is there one in particular we should get?
He charged us $1200 for the Paramount UV and said he'd give us $1K off toward salt system which is $2200-2500, so We'd have to pay an additional $1,000-$1200 for salt. He already installed the UV and said he paid the electrician to install, so we'd have to pay the electrician to come back out and install the salt system.
Wow! That's great to hear. It seems to be a 50/50 split in our neighborhood, and both have algae issues, so it must be poor maintenance? What do you do during the winter?
Mom,
I have three saltwater pools in the DFW area. In total they have been "TFP" Saltwater pools for over 25 years and I have had zero issues related to them being saltwater.
I love them... The main reason that I can take care of all three of them is the fact that they are saltwater pool. They are the easiest type of pool to maintain.
When you get out of a standard chlorine pool you feel like you need to take a shower. When you get out of a saltwater pool, you feel like you just took a shower.
I'd just as soon fill them in with dirt as have them not be saltwater pool.
Thanks,
Jim R.
I have three saltwater pools in the DFW area. In total they have been "TFP" Saltwater pools for over 25 years and I have had zero issues related to them being saltwater.
I love them... The main reason that I can take care of all three of them is the fact that they are saltwater pool. They are the easiest type of pool to maintain.
When you get out of a standard chlorine pool you feel like you need to take a shower. When you get out of a saltwater pool, you feel like you just took a shower.
I'd just as soon fill them in with dirt as have them not be saltwater pool.
Thanks,
Jim R.
- Jun 1, 2018
- 13,765
- Pool Size
- 26000
- Surface
- Vinyl
- Chlorine
- Salt Water Generator
- SWG Type
- Hayward Aqua Rite (T-15)
- Feb 6, 2015
- 6,140
- Pool Size
- 12300
- Surface
- Plaster
- Chlorine
- Salt Water Generator
- SWG Type
- CircuPool RJ-45 Plus
Texas builders like to blame SWG for the low quality flagstone issues many there experience. It's not the SWG, it's the flagstone.
Every pool is a salt pool - whether or not a SWG is installed. Adding chlorine (in any form) and muriatic acid also adds a bit of salt to the water.
Here in AZ - with our high evaporation rates - after about 3 years on a fresh fill, the pool can have over 3000 ppm of salt. And that's without ever having added salt directly.
No reason to have UV with an outdoor pool. Look up in the sky - see that big bright orange ball - it provides plenty of UV... and for free.
A SWG should be rated for at least 2 times the pool volume.
Every pool is a salt pool - whether or not a SWG is installed. Adding chlorine (in any form) and muriatic acid also adds a bit of salt to the water.
Here in AZ - with our high evaporation rates - after about 3 years on a fresh fill, the pool can have over 3000 ppm of salt. And that's without ever having added salt directly.
No reason to have UV with an outdoor pool. Look up in the sky - see that big bright orange ball - it provides plenty of UV... and for free.
A SWG should be rated for at least 2 times the pool volume.
Mom,
My 3 pools have never had algae. Algae is the owner's fault, and really has nothing to do with how you chlorinate.
Thanks,
Jim R.
- Jun 1, 2018
- 13,765
- Pool Size
- 26000
- Surface
- Vinyl
- Chlorine
- Salt Water Generator
- SWG Type
- Hayward Aqua Rite (T-15)
The largest standalone Jandy swg is the aquapure 1400 - it is rated for 40k gal. There is another one that has a mineral thing - the Nature2 Fusion Soft, you don’t want it.
As @proavia mentioned above, it is recommended to get a cell that is rated for at least 2x’s your pool volume as the manufacturer’s ratings are based on running the cell at 100% 24 hrs a day, which is not something you want to do if you want the cell to last any length of time. All swg cells have a finite life span of 8-10k hours at 100% so the bigger the cell, the less u need to run it, the longer it will last.
- Jun 1, 2018
- 13,765
- Pool Size
- 26000
- Surface
- Vinyl
- Chlorine
- Salt Water Generator
- SWG Type
- Hayward Aqua Rite (T-15)
All the UV machine will do is double your UV problem and eat the chlorine to death. Ask me how I know this, customers pool couldn't keep enough chlorine till the fuse was pulled and then all went smooth.
I am installing a Jandy AquaPure 1400 for my 15k gal pool. The electrical is very minimum to do. If you remove your UV system it may require a little plumbing modification. I will have the SWCG connected to the iAquaLink Automation.
Currently my salt level is 2800ppm and that is just via using liquid chlorine (which has salt in it) and I have not had any issues with Texas flagstone.
It is best to go SWCG - good luck.
@Jimrahbe above is the once a week pool boy at his two rental houses. But unlike the pool service, he's never had a problem.
Once you've learned your system and how your pool responds to it, you can show up once a week and walk around for 15 minutes and be done.
This is never given the gravity it deserves.
Mom,
One of my rent houses is in Farmers Branch TX, a suburb of Dallas. My oldest daughter "rents" the house from me. It is more of an investment in her future than rent. In any case, she takes care of keeping the skimmer clean, the water level where it needs to be, and running the robot.
My point is that I often don't make it over there to look at the pool for three or four weeks in a row. I know I can do this because saltwater pools can take care of themselves for an extended period of time. She knows to let me know if any of the lights on the cell turn red, which is not very often. Not sure why but the pH on that particular pool is pretty stable.
Again, not something that I would feel comfortable doing if it were not a saltwater pool.
Thanks,
Jim R.
One of my rent houses is in Farmers Branch TX, a suburb of Dallas. My oldest daughter "rents" the house from me. It is more of an investment in her future than rent. In any case, she takes care of keeping the skimmer clean, the water level where it needs to be, and running the robot.
My point is that I often don't make it over there to look at the pool for three or four weeks in a row. I know I can do this because saltwater pools can take care of themselves for an extended period of time. She knows to let me know if any of the lights on the cell turn red, which is not very often. Not sure why but the pH on that particular pool is pretty stable.
Again, not something that I would feel comfortable doing if it were not a saltwater pool.
Thanks,
Jim R.
Pool: 15,000 galons Spa: 778 galons
Current Equipment in contract:
Filter System: Jandy CL580 Cartridge Filter Pool Pump (s): Jandy VSSHP 2.7 E Pump; Jandy 1.65 Electronic Controls: Aqualink RS6 with web smart phone connectivity Sanitization Equipment: In line Chlorinator; Paramount ultra UV sanitation Heater: Jandy JXI 400nk natural gas Air Blower: Jandy 2hp Pool