Time for a new Salt Cell?

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browerjs

Active member
Oct 30, 2019
39
Beavercreek, OH
I have a Hayward aquarite T-15 salt cell and when I opened the pool (~20k gallons) the cell was reading 1900. I put in 6 bags of salt and after about 24 hours it read 2800 (I've also seen this number drop depending the time of day) This seemed a little low to me as I was expecting more around 3200-3400. Rather then just buy more salt, I decided to buy the Taylor K-1766 kit to make sure my numbers were accurate. I just did the test (only used 10mL of water) and came up with 4400 PPM.

The salt cell was cleaned just prior to opening and the plates looked pretty good, but I know I'm at the upper age of cells. I've ran the cell at 45% for 12 hours during the day and 20% for 12 hours during the night for the last couple of years (not sure if this maintains life of the cell). I'm pretty sure I'm genearting chlorine since my level has stayed constant since I opened the pool a week ago.

Is it time for a new salt cell? Should I just wait until next year as long as I'm generating chlorine? Any reason to calibrate the Hayward to show the accurate number?
 
Keep running the cell until it dies.

When the cell salt reading declines to where it shuts down with a low salt error you can squeeze a bit more life out of it by resetting the cell to a T-9.

There is no calibration for Aquarite systems. The salt level is calculated based on the volts and amps the cell draws.

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browerjs said:
What reading do I need to get from the system for it to still be producing chlorine? Is it producing as long as the light for low salt is blinking and not solid?
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The ‘Check Salt’ and ‘Inspect Cell’ LEDs will flash when the cell reports a salt level between 2400 and 2700ppm. In this condition, chlorine is still being produced.

The ‘Check Salt’ and ‘Inspect Cell’ LEDs will be ON when the cell reports a salt level of 2300ppm or less. In this condition, chlorine production is interrupted.
 
ajw22 said:
The ‘Check Salt’ and ‘Inspect Cell’ LEDs will flash when the cell reports a salt level between 2400 and 2700ppm. In this condition, chlorine is still being produced.

The ‘Check Salt’ and ‘Inspect Cell’ LEDs will be ON when the cell reports a salt level of 2300ppm or less. In this condition, chlorine production is interrupted.
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Thanks for that. So once I start seeing 2300, I should just change to T-9 on the controller? If I understand everything correctly, this will produce the same amount of salt and I shouldn't need to change my output %'s, it will just read at a higher level to allow for continued generation. Once it's on T-9 and is reading at 2300 or below, it's time for a new cell. It's also my understanding that it's not worth messing around with the generic salt cells that are 1/2 the price of the Haywards.
 
browerjs said:
Thanks for that. So once I start seeing 2300, I should just change to T-9 on the controller? If I understand everything correctly, this will produce the same amount of salt and I shouldn't need to change my output %'s, it will just read at a higher level to allow for continued generation. Once it's on T-9 and is reading at 2300 or below, it's time for a new cell. It's also my understanding that it's not worth messing around with the generic salt cells that are 1/2 the price of the Haywards.
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You can try going down to T-5 after T-9.

You will get less chlorine output and you will need to watch your FC level and increase your %.

Use the cell as long as you can squeeze enough chlorine out of it for your needs.

It's up to you whether you want to experiment with generic cells. There are a few good ones and many bad deals, but I believe you get what you pay for.
 
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