How much does salt level effect chlorine production?

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W

wbrady

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May 15, 2007
22
Maryland
I have a pool pilot with the SC-48 cell, run 24 hour a day and have 30,000 gallon gunite.
With the pool pilot on level 2 at 75% I was only getting 1-2 chlorine.
I moved to level 3 at 50% a few day ago and am still around 1.5-2 chlorine. no combined chlorine.
Checked salt level with test strips last night and am at 2400-2500.
Manual say ideal is 3000, but the unit will not alarm untill 1900.

Will adding salt to get to 3000 effect my chlorine output?

Thanks
 
Old chlorinators didn't have control over production, so the salt level change was affecting chlorine production, however in modern models there is automatic control, which adjusts production according to changing conditions. I'm no expert at pool pilot systems, however i believe that it wouldn't affect the chlorine production. Although the higher the salt level, the longer your cell will last, and the smaller your electricity bill will be.
 
Yeah it's true.
The higher the salt level - more conductive the water is, so you need less voltage to achieve same chlorine production (and subsequently you require less power to generate same amount of chlorine. High voltage is (along with high water temperature and few other factors) what kills the cells.

I am not going to give advice on the correct salt level for anything but AutoChlor, since i'm not familiar with those units design, and also i'm not familiar with pool equipment and materials used in USA.

Our residential SM chlorinators, on Australian swimming pools are happy to run anywhere from 4,000 to 34,000 ppm salt (@ 25 deg C water temperature). We have a model for US market which starts from 3,200-3,500ppm if i remember correctly. Our commercial salt water generators are happy anywhere from 2,500 to 350,000 ppm, the higher the better.
 
Different brands are designed for specific salt ranges. Some can compensate for a very wide range, other require a fairly narrow range. You should check the manual for your unit to see the optimal salt range for that model. The total electrical usage of the SWG is trivial compared to the pump, so the variations in efficieny are not particuarly significant.

I don't see any reason to stray from the basic recommendations of your manufacturer. If you do want to try higher salt levels, keep in mind that the corrosion risks from salt increase (slowly) as the salt level goes up and increase a bit extra between 5000 ppm and 6000 ppm. I wouldn't go above 5000 ppm unless your pool was designed for that level in the first place or you know enough about materials to understand the risks.
 
The Pool Pilot can actually run in salt levels as high as seawater but it seems to work very well with a salt level between 3000-3500 ppm. How high is your CYA? CYA level is often overlooked in salt pools but it is a VERY IMPORTANT water chemistry parameter that will directly effect the level of FC in the water! If it is not at LEAST 60 ppm I would increase it to about 70-75 ppm. This will allow you to run the cell at a lower output and will also lengthen cell life and will also help with pH stability since there will be less outgassing of carbon dioxide.
Also, pH is extremely important. High pH tends to decrease chlorine production. Keep it at about 7.6! (When it hits about 7.8 then lower it back to 7.6)
 
I have not tested the cya in a while, try to do that this weekend.
I have to add 2 pints od acid every other day to keep my pH at 7.6
Still have not added salt, but tested the chlorine last night and it was 3.0
I have the pool pilot on cell power 3 at 50%, maybe after I add the salt I can go back to cell power 2?
Thanks for the responses
 
I have not tested the cya in a while, try to do that this weekend.
I have to add 2 pints od acid every other day to keep my pH at 7.6
Still have not added salt, but tested the chlorine last night and it was 3.0
I have the pool pilot on cell power 3 at 50%, maybe after I add the salt I can go back to cell power 2?
Thanks for the responses
 
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