Hello all. This is my first year with a pool (10500 gallons) and I am stumped with my saltwater/chlorine levels. When I first started the pool up, I added 240lbs of salt per the instructions and the FC level held at about 1 ppm. Since then we have received a lot of rain and my SWG has shut off due to low salt. The FC was below .5 ppm and the salt level was around 1000 ppm. I added 120lbs of salt, waited a day and the SWG turned back on, the FC increased to about .5ppm but the salt level increased minimally. Is there something Im doing wrong? It shouldn't be requiring this much salt to allow the SWG to work to max efficiency, should it?
low salt level
- Thread starter ObWan
- Start date
Do you have a test kit? I use the TF100 in my signature and the Taylor K-1766 salt test. If you could run an actual test for salt, then you would have a better idea of what you are dealing with.
Yes, Ive been testing the salt levels the entire time. I cant get the salt level over 1000ppm. Using Aquacheck test strips.
So are you saying that your SWG is working effectively now- no low salt warnings etc?
Different SWGs recommend different levels of salt so it is important to work within that range. Having said that if your SWG is making chlorine happily and without any error messages then go with that. The Taylor K-1766 is the way to go if you want to test for salt levels.
Different SWGs recommend different levels of salt so it is important to work within that range. Having said that if your SWG is making chlorine happily and without any error messages then go with that. The Taylor K-1766 is the way to go if you want to test for salt levels.
Oh and how long has your pool been up? How long did you add your salt? And in the mean time, you should add some bleach manually to avoid any algae problems while you figure it out. See Pool math link in my signature to determine how much you should add.
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I have found (and most here would agree) that test strips are typically not accurate. How long has the salt been in there? It does take a few days to dissolve.
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I have found (and most here would agree) that test strips are typically not accurate. How long has the salt been in there? It does take a few days to dissolve.
So I have added 11 total bags (440lbs) of salt now. The last 4 bags were added 3 days ago. I added some bleach to avoid any algae problems in the time being. Today the low salt light came on on my SWG. Where is all of this salt going? We have had some rain, but I wouldn't think I would have to add 5 bags of salt to compensate.
We have an intex SWG also. Our pool requires 320lbs of salt to work. This is our fourth year to run it and we had the same problems. Test strips were worthless. After doing a lot of reading, the low salt light is a common problem with the intex SWG after the 2 or 3 year. Our electrodes looked fine-no mineral deposits-but the copper bars were extremely worn. Apparently with intex SWG this is a necessary part for the generator to work right. We purchased a new copper bar @ the intex site for around $30 and haven't had any problems since.
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