SWG operationg cost?

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I will give my $.02 here because it seems that most of the responses are in favor of SWGs.

I manually dose my pool and wouldn't have it any other way. Why? Because my chlorine usage is low. Period. I don't see how you can get around the fact that SWGs make the most sense financially with pools that use a substantial amount of chlorine.

And honestly, what's the big deal with "handling" Clorox? I keep hearing that over and over and just don't get it. If there is anything I don't like handling, it's MA. But you still have to use acid with an SWG, no?

Also, as someone mentioned above, I don't test my water everyday. Don't feel I need to. I know from experience testing daily initially how much chlorine my pool uses, so I pour in a little each day. It's true I've been having some problems lately with PH stability, but the chlorine usage is rock solid. Pour in a little and leave...what could be more trouble free than that? And as for the feel, I've dosed with both borates and salt, so my water is as luxurious as it could be.

In my very humble opinion, in cases like mine it seems to me that adding an SWG would be just adding another layer of complexity.

FWIW,
Dave
 
JasonLion said:
These results can be very misleading. This calculation assumes that your chlorine usage is uniform year round. Most pools are actually open perhaps six months of the year, and use less chlorine in the spring and fall. Correcting for that, it then assumes that the cell lasts for twelve years, with is not plausible. It also fails to take the cost of acid into account (most SWG pools use more acid than other pools), or the cost of paying for the unit up front, instead of over time.
Click to expand...

just curious, why do you say it's not plausible?
if the cell lasts 20000h it will last 20000h regardless of whether you have it on a shelf for 10 years and then put it in, have it in a pool for 10 years not turned on and then turn it on and use it, or use it only for half a year in every year for 10 years.

as far as additional costs go, like waterbear said - acid is probably another 60 bucks for a year
there are also additional costs with using just bleach, which will probably offset the ones for SWG
 
How long cells last in practice varies quite a bit. Still, we are seeing a large number of SWG cells failing after three to six years of service. Available evidence points to cell lifetimes of 3 to 9 years with a large peak in the middle somewhere around 5 or 6 years. There is evidence that cell lifetimes have been increasing, and newer designs might last even longer. However, none of the manufacturers have been making any major claims in this area, so I don't expect any dramatic increases in lifetime.
 
yeah, but it depends on how much the cell is used

autochlor cells are designed to last 5-7 years when used about 8-12h per day for example
obviously if you use it 4h per day it will last longer, if you use it 24h/day it won't last as long

life of anodes is usually expressed in hours of operation, not calendar days

hence why it doesn't matter whether you calculate for 5 years of all year operation, or 10 years of operating for only half a year

another important factor is what load you apply to the cell
if you have a cell running at 10% of it's capacity - it will last you for very long
 
I guess i dont see the problem with a shelf life for a cell being 5 years or so. Ok, so replace it for what, $300-400 maybe. As someone stated on here before, owning a pool IS still a luxury item. Not to step on toes here, but, if the cost and expense of owning a pool and maintaining the equipment is an issue, then maybe owning a pool should be re-thought. We all like to save money, but worring about a little cost here and there for a luxury item like a pool in your backyard is not what someone who is out of a job in this economy wants to hear.

Ok, rant over :rant: :lol:

I put in a SWG not for the cost, but for the ease of use. My pool, BTW, use very little chlorine either. I actually had to cut down from 15% because it was getting a bit high. Granted, we havent had much sun the last week o so either. But..I never have to add bleach, or remember to add it, not going to the store and lugging home crates of the stuff, not to mention where to store it. It keeps a constant and consistent level of chlorine in my pool. I test the water daily for chlorine and pH. The chlorine never varies much on any given day, rain or shine, swimmer load, etc. If it gets low, i just bump up the % for a couple hours and im done. My on time in a 24 hour period is about 2 hours when you factor in the % setting and my pump run time. Yea, $1000 bucks for the thing was kinda expensive, but when a pool is north of 30 grand, $1000 is not much.
 
I'd have to agree with Brad S on this. I posted my numbers just out of curiosity and that it might help the OP.

I did not purchase my SWG to save money. Honestly it never entered my mind. I was just tired of dealing with pucks, and bleach with their associated issues. My neighbor had a SWG and never had to worry about any of it. I also found that when manually dosing vacations were a pain, I do consulting for a living so I have to travel frequently at times and I found these two things don't play well with manual dosing.

If I had known about the liquidator when I purchased my SWG I would have looking into one. It seems to bring most of the convenience of an SWG at very little cost, plus the PH stability of bleach.

A cost savings over bleach is just icing :p
 
Beez said:
I will give my $.02 here because it seems that most of the responses are in favor of SWGs.

I manually dose my pool and wouldn't have it any other way. Why? Because my chlorine usage is low. Period. I don't see how you can get around the fact that SWGs make the most sense financially with pools that use a substantial amount of chlorine.

And honestly, what's the big deal with "handling" Clorox? I keep hearing that over and over and just don't get it. If there is anything I don't like handling, it's MA. But you still have to use acid with an SWG, no?

Also, as someone mentioned above, I don't test my water everyday. Don't feel I need to. I know from experience testing daily initially how much chlorine my pool uses, so I pour in a little each day. It's true I've been having some problems lately with PH stability, but the chlorine usage is rock solid. Pour in a little and leave...what could be more trouble free than that? And as for the feel, I've dosed with both borates and salt, so my water is as luxurious as it could be.

In my very humble opinion, in cases like mine it seems to me that adding an SWG would be just adding another layer of complexity.

FWIW,
Dave
Click to expand...

After reading several threads on different sites about SWGs, I have to agree with Dave. We are buying a home with a pool that has an SWG. From what I have found, an SWG in working order can't be beat. But, when a sensor, cell, circuit board, etc fails, then all the "help me" questions come. I am leaving a home where pool maintenance was super easy. As long as the water is balanced, less than 5 mins to test and add chems. Oh yeah, add a few mins to brush. I suppose you need to brush when you run a SWG? I don't think I could trust my pool to what a remote keypad reads. I do trust what my test kit and what I have learned about pool chemistry. I do enjoy the hands on maintenance of the pool. I learn all I can about the equipment as well, so when there is a problem, I can usually figure it out before panicking and going to a pool forum and type "HELP"! I am in no way putting down forums. I have gleaned so much information from them and I am thankful.

I plan on leaving the SWG out of the equation when we move. "Old School" Chemistry has worked for me. I like to keep it simple. An SWG is another piece of pool equipment to maintain &/or fail. IMHO.
 

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Brad S said:
So you have never actually used a SWG before?
Click to expand...

No. The pool we are aquiring has been empty and some minor repairs are needed. The plumbing has not been run in a long time. I plan to get the basic filter, cleaner systems operating properly. I will probably see if the SWG system "works" W/O adding salt. (check electronics and if sensors all work) If they work, then we'll see about getting it running. We have been enjoying out electric bill running the pump on our existing pool 2 hrs a day. The SWG, from what I have read, needs to run 4 to 5 times longer to create the proper levels of chlorine. I would rather spend my electricity dollar keeping my family's home comfortable.

If the SWG system works, and I decide to see how well it works, I will likely do a power usage test just as some here have done. I kind of chuckled when I read in a post that the electrical usage is minimal. I wonder if that was for the cell only. Maybe people are used to running the pump 8-10 hours a day. I did too. Then I slowly cut back the pump/filter running time until 2 hrs a day and the pool is clean, clear, and still trouble free. (40,000 gallons) I hope the new to us pool is just as trouble free and as economical. You can have both. Only time will tell.
 
How long you need to run the pump varies dramatically from pool to pool. Don't count on being able to run the pump for only 2 hours on a different pool. It might work out that way, or it might not, depending on the relative size of the pump and the pool. Likewise, the minimum pump run time required to keep the SWG happy varies from pool to pool rather dramatically, depending on the relative size of the SWG and the pool. Some SWGs will be fine with short run times, others won't.
 
You can cut your pump run time by increasing the SWG % on time. Mine is on 100%, it is controlled by a timer separate from the pump timer. This assumes that the SWG control system is sophisticated enough to know that it has done its job for the day(like my Intex.)

The reason that a filter system is operated is to mix and clean the pool water. The same thing can be accomplished by running an electric cleaner, such as an Aquabot, Blue Diamond, Dolphin, etc..You can run one for a fraction of what a pump/filter costs.(Capital and maintenance costs excluded.) I have yet to hear of anyone using this-
http://www.aquatron.us/cobia.php
which combines a SWG with a cleaner, and runs with out the need for a pump/filter - and associated piping and capital costs! If I were building a new pool, I would seriously look into it!
 
Robotic cleaners don't last very long compared to the main circulation pump and filter. A typical robotic cleaner is designed to run for say four hours once a week for three to five years. If you run it every day you would be lucky to get two seasons out of it.
 
DerekS said:
Wow - momma told me not to ask about money, politics or religion. Prolly should add SWG in that...
Click to expand...
Yeah, I think you're right...although you started this thread simply enough by asking a specific question regarding SWG vs bleach( comparative costs between the two methods ), which Jason answered very succinctly in the second post, it quickly devolved into a "which is better" quagmire. To the extent that I participated, I apologize. My intent was to emphasize what had already been mentioned, namely, that in comparing costs only, chlorine usage is the key. All the rest, including my own post, is subjective preference.
 
I guess electrical usage varies depending on a lot of things. I figure my pump accounts for maybe $50 a month increase over baseline. Not sure what the SWG cost is, but maybe it draws 300 watts when its on, and its only on 2.5-3 hours out of every 24. My pump runs 15 hours a day, so im turning the water over maybe 5 times. But at $50 a month, i dont have to worry about too much about algea or dirty water. I figure one bad algea mess would cost more in bleach to clean up than the little extra in power usage. IMO, of course.
 
JasonLion said:
How long you need to run the pump varies dramatically from pool to pool. Don't count on being able to run the pump for only 2 hours on a different pool. It might work out that way, or it might not, depending on the relative size of the pump and the pool. Likewise, the minimum pump run time required to keep the SWG happy varies from pool to pool rather dramatically, depending on the relative size of the SWG and the pool. Some SWGs will be fine with short run times, others won't.
Click to expand...

So, not knowing how the SWG will work prior to installing the system on any given pool suggests that the system is for those who would rather have the ease of generated chlorine no matter the cost versus someone installing one because neighbor Jones has one and his pool costs went down then finding out his system needs to run 3 times as long at a higher cost than Jones' pool.

Also, if a pool builder sells an SWG with a pool to be constructed, will he mention the possibilities that JasonLion describes as well?
 
For myself, i didnt buy it for anything to do with cost. I bought it for ease of pool upkeep. Cost, higher or lower, was never the consideration for me. My pool builder never mentioned cost, or savings. What sold me was no need to mess with pucks, cal-hypo, liquidators, or bleach. With the exception of testing for FC and CC everyday, whish you would need to do anyway, i basically set it and forget it.
 
Everyone's situation is a bit different. Because I have an electric opaque pool cover, my chlorine usage in my 16,000 gallon pool is around 1 ppm FC or a little less per day, even with 1-2 hour pool usage every day. I add chlorine twice a week plus a small amount of acid every month or two. The chlorine costs around $15 per month. I get 4 gallons of chlorine roughly once a month -- exchanging bottles at my pool store. So lugging the heavy crate with the four bottles is the worst part, but that's only once a month. The pool is used for around 7 months a year so in the off-season the chlorine usage is far less at negligible cost. So that's a little over $100 per season operating cost. The pump electricity costs are far higher at around $700 per year, mostly due to high flow rates needed for solar heating.

So for me, I'm happy with this situation and cost would not be the reason to go with an SWG. The convenience factor is there, but not by as much as if I had to add chlorine every day or two.

Richard
 

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