Liquidator Still the Best Option?

[Alex_H]

Was considering a SWG to simplify life (glad I found TFP, was about to pull trigger on the Tablet Chlorinator System), but I have Travertine decking and my spa spillover is Travertine, the coping is not.

I guess I could seal the Travertine and hope for the best, but I'm thinking that a liquid chlorine system would be better.

Is the Liquidator still the main choice?

 

[woodyp]

There's always the Stenner pumps...............

 

[chiefwej]

Salt damage to stone is mostly limited to dryer climates. If you were in Texas or AZ the SWG with travertine might be more of an issue. You are is "Sunny Florida" where in summer you often get rain every afternoon, that will keep washing away that salt. Travertine, although it's not impervious to salt damage, is much more resistant than any flagstone or Texas limestone.

There is no easier and cheaper way to chlorinate than SWG. And while I'm at it I would recommend the Hayward AquaRite T-15. About $1000 upfront cost and cells replace at $400. I've had one for over ten years now and love it.

 

[BKJ]

I purchased a Liquidator this season and I must say its OK, but I am going to move to a Stenner pump next season. Not enough chlorine/control with a Liquidator for me. I am going to get a Stenner Pump (45MHP2 - [3GPD]) with a 15 gallon drum.

 

[Alex_H]

Well my spa spillover is a travertine paver, that's my concern

 

[chiefwej]

Well my spa spillover is a travertine paver, that's my concern

If it were me, I would just seal that one piece of travertine, but that may not even be an issue. Salt erodes stone by the salt laden water drying on the stone and over time the salt drying forming crystals that breaks down the stone. In very dry climates the splash out builds up more and more salt that never gets washed away. The more porous and softer the stone is, the faster it's eroded. Travertine isn't very porous and if it is sealed would be protected. If the spill over stays wet, it's never a problem. I think it would take years for this to become an issue and with sealing, maybe never. Even if it starts eroding, that's one piece to replace. Short answer. Go with SWG.

 

[miketennille]

I just put in a stenner 45MHP10 with a 15 galling drum. Got the pump from Locke Well & Pump and drum off eBay. These were the best places I found with the lowest price. The pump beats pouring chlorine in by hand and even though I know this is not recommend I test my pool usually once a week now that everything is dialed in. Glad I went with the larger pump it runs for 15 minutes right now about 4 times a day during my 6 hour filter time. I heard mixed reviews about running the stenner during the whole filter time but was more concerned with having the ability to put larger amounts of chlorine in the pool if necessary to ever slam the pool. Hopefully someone near you sells bulk chlorine I got luck and found a pool store that only sells liquid chlorine near me at 15%. I looked at a swg but decided the maintenance and cost of replacement cells was not worth it to me but it may benefit you and your particular setup.


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[chiefwej]

I just put in a stenner 45MHP10 with a 15 galling drum. Got the pump from Locke Well & Pump and drum off eBay. These were the best places I found with the lowest price. The pump beats pouring chlorine in by hand and even though I know this is not recommend I test my pool usually once a week now that everything is dialed in. Glad I went with the larger pump it runs for 15 minutes right now about 4 times a day during my 6 hour filter time. I heard mixed reviews about running the stenner during the whole filter time but was more concerned with having the ability to put larger amounts of chlorine in the pool if necessary to ever slam the pool. Hopefully someone near you sells bulk chlorine I got luck and found a pool store that only sells liquid chlorine near me at 15%. I looked at a swg but decided the maintenance and cost of replacement cells was not worth it to me but it may benefit you and your particular setup.


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Just as a price comparison my upfront front cost for the unit was right around $1000, which in my case was included in the pool build. The replacement T-15 cells cost $400. My first cell lasted well over 7 years. So once the SWG is in place my ongoing cost to supply chlorine to a 19,000 gallon pool here in very sunny Tucson, where out pool is open year-round works out to less than $57 per year.

Just by way of comparison, what was the total upfront cost of your system and if you know it, the ongoing cost for the chlorine.

 

[JoyfulNoise]

Just as a price comparison my upfront front cost for the unit was right around $1000, which in my case was included in the pool build. The replacement T-15 cells cost $400. My first cell lasted well over 7 years. So once the SWG is in place my ongoing cost to supply chlorine to a 19,000 gallon pool here in very sunny Tucson, where out pool is open year-round works out to less than $57 per year.

Just by way of comparison, what was the total upfront cost of your system and if you know it, the ongoing cost for the chlorine.

I'd also like to add that a Liquidator/Stenner pump would never work for me. Chlorine is both temperature and UV sensitive. My equipment is located such that it gets blasted by the hot AZ afternoon sun for many hours. Temps easily soar over a 100F.

So if you want to use a liquid chlorine pump, I would suggest trying to shield it as much as possible from the heat and sun exposure.


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[chiefwej]

I'm not about to convert to a liquid chlorine system. I'm very happy with the SWG. I am just curious as to the comparative cost to install and maintain the two systems.

 

[Cajun]

Just as a price comparison my upfront front cost for the unit was right around $1000, which in my case was included in the pool build. The replacement T-15 cells cost $400. My first cell lasted well over 7 years. So once the SWG is in place my ongoing cost to supply chlorine to a 19,000 gallon pool here in very sunny Tucson, where out pool is open year-round works out to less than $57 per year.

Just by way of comparison, what was the total upfront cost of your system and if you know it, the ongoing cost for the chlorine.

Chiefwej. I have a similar sized pool. The stenner pump and barrel was probably $250. I use about 50 oz of chlorine a day in Texas for probably 7 months out of the year (that's on the high side). so that's roughly 7x30x50=10,500 oz of bleach per year. A 121 oz container is just under $3 at Walmart/target. so that's 87 containers or $260 per year in bleach. I have no clue the lifespan of a stenner pump as I have only had it for 2 years.

Based on your numbers the salt system sounds cheaper.

 

[JoyfulNoise]

Chiefwej. I have a similar sized pool. The stenner pump and barrel was probably $250. I use about 50 oz of chlorine a day in Texas for probably 7 months out of the year (that's on the high side). so that's roughly 7x30x50=10,500 oz of bleach per year. A 121 oz container is just under $3 at Walmart/target. so that's 87 containers or $260 per year in bleach. I have no clue the lifespan of a stenner pump as I have only had it for 2 years.

Based on your numbers the salt system sounds cheaper.

For Stenner pumps, I believe it is the tubes and the check valves that typically go and are the biggest recurring expenses. The pumps are usually pretty solid as long as they are not mounted directly over the chlorine container. I've read that the Pentair IntelliPH systems (acid Stenner pumps) tend to have pump failures on the order of every 18 months or so because the pump is mounted on the acid container.


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[chiefwej]

Assuming minimal maintainence on the pump, the SWG only gets cheaper after about three years, due to the higher initial cost. There are also a couple of minor additional cost that weren't included in SWG. About $50 one time cost for salt and the cost of the electricity to run it.

 

[Cajun]

I like the stenner because I get a precise dose. I have a variable speed pump and all other chlorine solutions seemed to have issues or require extra consideration when you run your pump at different speeds through the day.

I figure I may spend a little more in bleach but I save in electricity and have more flexibility. My pool pump runs 24×7 but most of the time it's using under 200 watts.

 

[miketennille]

Just as a price comparison my upfront front cost for the unit was right around $1000, which in my case was included in the pool build. The replacement T-15 cells cost $400. My first cell lasted well over 7 years. So once the SWG is in place my ongoing cost to supply chlorine to a 19,000 gallon pool here in very sunny Tucson, where out pool is open year-round works out to less than $57 per year.

Just by way of comparison, what was the total upfront cost of your system and if you know it, the ongoing cost for the chlorine.

I paid $279 for the stenner pump and about $35 for the tank. I buy 15% chlorine locally and it is $15.99 for 5 gallons. Now I didn't need the 15 gallon tank so that could have saved me some money and I could easily put the stenner into the 5 gallon chlorine jug. So far this year and this was since he end of April I have purchased 45 gallons still have about 13 gallons left so my chlorine cost with what I still have on hand is is just under $145 for the year. My pool size is about 26,000 gallons and is in full sun all day. There are many factors for chlorine consumption but these are what I have for my pool. What I do like is due to work I am not able to worry about the chlorine addition each day so it does benefit me. Now for me I also added a second timer not sure exact cost but was around $50 for that. Did all the work myself so that saved money as well. If the swg benefits you that is great I really did look into them nothing against them but not many people carry parts for them near me or their selection was limited for smaller sized pools.


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[Alex_H]

Quick Reality check.

My online research looks like Liquidator is, install on pad with a few screws, run some pipes and tap into the PVC. Appears to use gravity and suction to flow?

Stenner looks like another contraption with a motor, a need for electrical, and a whole production (and would probably need a second small pad in my case).

Just trying to understand my options:
SWG: $650 - $1200 depending on make & model, cell replaced every few years, board might need replacement from time to time
Runs when Pool is on, configure the amount of usage over time. When we have people over, can hit the shock button or pour in chlorine when people leave. Can dial-up or pour in chlorine before the kids come and attack the pool.
Downsides: Salt Related Issues? Replacing Circuit Boards from time to time? Possible desire to upgrade to new tech every few years. Runs on same circuit/timer as pump.

Stenner: $400 for Pump / Tank / Circuit / Timer
Advantages: totally configurable amount of chlorine
Downsides: Big, need electrical, needs a timer, etc.

Liquidator: $200
Advantages: Can pout 3 Jugs (7.5 Gallons) of chlorine in, refilled as needed with bulk jugs.
Downside: Not configurable (beyond a pinch valve), no "shock mode" -- increasing chlorine rapidly is manually

Stenner looks to be about double the price with a more complex install for a more powerful, but more complex, setup? SWG is about 4x-5x the price, but is super convenient, unless I run into salt related problems, in which case it's a disaster. Sealing the stone that water goes over should be trivial ($10 + 20 minutes of work), and should mitigate MOST of the salt related problems.

As a boat owner, I'm wary of salt water, but everyone that has an SWG loves it. Wondering if I go full out SWG, or play with the liquidator.

Pump timing is via time, with extra "on time" when we are using the spa and have company over, a time I WANT extra chlorine.

Weird downside, the flow control for SWG is supposed to be on the pool side, not the spa OR spa/pool. Well, the pipe between my "Spa/Pool" valve and my "Bubblers vs. Floor System" is about .25" -- so either the SWG only runs when the floor system is on or all the time. I might want to do that anyway, to not chlorinate the bubblers when kids are playing, but it is a slight concern.

 

[Agent99]

Liquidator is purely passive and runs with the pump. No screws. You might need to drill some holes in your pipe plumbing. Watch this video: The Liquidator - YouTube Install is quite simple. They recommend no more than 8 gallons of chlorine in the big one (4 gallons for the smaller one...which you might be able to use with your smaller pool size). LQ works best if out of the sun so the chlorine remains stable. The chlorine is somewhat protected by a layer of pool water on top. The chlorine is yellow and stays at the bottom. Filling with chlorine is kinda painful as you need to do it slowly so I go with the band aid approach and dump in 8 gallons a shot and then I can ignore it for 2 weeks plus or minus. My pool isn't in full sun so my chlorine loss is around 2 ish per day. But it depends on your pool, your FC daily loss, and the % of hypochloric acid your bleach/liquid chlorine contains.

 

[Alex_H]

Liquidator is purely passive and runs with the pump. No screws. You might need to drill some holes in your pipe plumbing. Watch this video: The Liquidator - YouTube Install is quite simple. They recommend no more than 8 gallons of chlorine in the big one (4 gallons for the smaller one...which you might be able to use with your smaller pool size). LQ works best if out of the sun so the chlorine remains stable. The chlorine is somewhat protected by a layer of pool water on top. The chlorine is yellow and stays at the bottom. Filling with chlorine is kinda painful as you need to do it slowly so I go with the band aid approach and dump in 8 gallons a shot and then I can ignore it for 2 weeks plus or minus. My pool isn't in full sun so my chlorine loss is around 2 ish per day. But it depends on your pool, your FC daily loss, and the % of hypochloric acid your bleach/liquid chlorine contains.

Okay, thanks! Right now it's the planning and budgeting, I'll be calculating my daily FC loss shortly.

Dealing with the out of the sun is a bit of an issue though, would be a reason to do the smaller one. Maybe I can hide it behind the header.

 

[chiefwej]

Don't think of a SWG pool with the mindset of a boat owner. The level of salt in the ocean is about ten times what would be in a pool. As far as problems with the control unit circuit board, I did have the usual failure after about eight years. It was the same input resistor everyone else reports. Cost of repair was $2.50 for the part and fifteen minutes with a soldering iron. Back in service, no problem.

 

[Cajun]

Stenner: $400 for Pump / Tank / Circuit / Timer
Advantages: totally configurable amount of chlorine
Downsides: Big, need electrical, needs a timer, etc.

Alex I just want to make sure you have the full picture....

I don't see the stenner as being any bigger than the liquidator, it can actually be much smaller to provide the same amount of chlorine because its not diluted. It just depends on the size tank you want to buy. As for electrical you probably have a 110 plug near your pump area and the stenner pump comes with a standard plug on it. Many people use a simple plug in electrical timer to control the pump.