Aqua Rite "No Flow"

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w2whitaker

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Jun 21, 2010
11
Cant say enough about how great this swg system is . . . but . . . Have a glowing "No Flow" indicator lite for my AQUARITE T-CELL-15 40K cell. Went through all of the self-diagnosis steps (acid wash, water blast/rinse) and appears to be a bad cell.

Question - what is the usual life span of cell? My swg equipment was installed July 2004. Have I reached the life expectancy of the cell?

Anything else you can think for diagnosing the the problem?

Thanks for your expertise and experience. -Wally
 
Are you sure its not the flow sensor? That is separate from the cell. Someone else had a flow sensor go out and just replaced the inner unit of the sensor...
 
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Welcome to TFP!!

The flow sensor has a gray wire coming off a reduced 'tee' after the cell and into the bottom of the main unit. (it has a phone cord connector)

I've seen a lot of them that have been severed by a weed whacker or have simply been installed backwards - and as I think was mentioned earlier, one that 'fell apart' while in service.

Please see if the cord is still in tact and let us know, we'll help further from there :cool:
 
w2whitaker,

Your problem is not with the cell but with the flow sensor. The no flow would tell us that the switch is not engaging. Check the wire going from the flow sensor in the pipe to the control box, if the wire is cut (either chewed by an animal, hey it happens, or weed wacked by careless grounds keepers) then you can try a splice. Make sure you use water proof tape if it is outdoors and make the wrap as tight as possible. If that does not fix the problem you will have to replace the flow switch.

The average life of a T-Cell 15 that has a serial number that stars with either a 3 or a 5 is 5 years. How long the cell will last will depend on what percentage you run the unit on the (higher the percentage the shorter the life of the cell will be), how long your pool season is, how many hours a day you run it, how well you maintain your water chemistry and how well the cell was manufactured.

The Guru Of Pools at
www.discountpoolwarehouse.com
 
Checked the wire and RJ11 jack connection to the flow sensor and condition is good. Cell voltage readout = 30.9 and Cell current = 0...indicating, per your comment, that cell has shut down. Have not removed the Flow Sensor yet...is the sensor the entire brass fitting? Or a part that connects/attaches to the brass fitting?
 
By the way, the serial number of the cell begins with 5 and is going on 6 years old, small pool (10k gal.), keep after the chemistry and test weekly(ish) from April to October, located in Plano (Dallas) Texas.

I'm leaning towards bad cell. Your thoughts?
 
I don't know jack about the brass fitting you speak of :)

It should be a gray or black hex head unit that has the gray phone cord coming off it.

First make sure that the arrows on the hex head line up with the flow to the pool!

With a 'No Flow" light on or flashing, you won't get any readings from the diagnostics, nor be generating any chlorine :cry:

Any chance of a pic?
 

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In the link that Gordiec posted above, there's a picture of the sensor. Your cell is old and could be near the end of its life, but a worn out cell wouldn't cause the issue you're seeing (it would be a solid "check cell" light that would not go away even with cleaning).
 
Ordered new flow sensor today from:

Harwil Corporation (Oxnard, CA)
website = http://harwil.com/
Phone = 805-988-6800
Part Number = Q-12DS-C2 (Description = Goldline-2/No Tee)

Price = $68.45(without Tee) + $13.00 UPS Ground shipping

Will update you with results upon new install.

Thanks to everyone for your advice and expertise...
 
UPDATE-

Ordered new Flow Sensor on Monday, arrived on Thursday = S U C E S S. :-D

After pulling the old Flow Sensor, the grey wire was nicked which caused the NO FLOW indicator light to glow.

Looks like I will try to sell the old flow sensor on Ebay to someone that can splice...

Thanks to all who helped and offered advice!
 
OK that superbe and complete information.

I'm chantal from Canada and I do have the "no flow" problem.

I'm getting ready to have the cell tested on Monday but now I would like to know how to bypass this problem for a while as I don't want to go without chlorine for too long.

And just how do you take the grey wire out of the cell (pulling on it???)

These questions might be stange but I just want to make sure I'm not damaging the cell.

Thanks again all :wave:
 
Welcome to TFP!!

The gray wire shouldn't come out of the hex-headed adapter - you can unplug it from the bottom of the control box.

I could tell you how to 'jump out' the flow switch, but you're better off just adding some bleach to the pool to provide adequate chlorine until you have the cell, etc., tested Monday. :wink:

We are here top help you with any pool issues you may encounter, however- some things are best left to the pro's :cool:
 
Ted thanks for your answer. I just opened the bottom part of the cell and figured out the wires for the cell and the one for the flow.....it looks like it inbeded in some kind of waterproof stuff. Is there a way to open this round piece? The flow device I've seen on this post was with a telephone plug and not the grey plus that goes into the bottom right of the control panel. Can someone tell me the part number I'm looking for or I can just call the number liste above and customer service will help me there?

Thanks again for such a quick answer (pardon my English...I'm French)
 
I have found the problem!

Since I have an above ground pool, the cell I am using does not have a metal flap to read the flow. Therefore, a simple bypass trick is possible buy using the output for a telephone wire on the bottom part of the control panel and therefore the cell is generating. Since the cell is mounted vertically, there is no consequence to bypassing the cell as there is always flow going and extra gas will not build up as there is place to exit and will not be trapped inside the cell.
 
just be careful if you are using a sand filter and have the valve set to a waste / or backwash setting --then you have no flow in that instance especially if you are drawing down the water or vacuuming to waste for longer periods of time .
 
I just ordered a flow switch from my pool guy and he told me two weeks. I have constant flow and can verify it with no worries about harmful vapor build up. Can someone please tell me can I use an old phone cord to bypass the flow swtich.. Well I know it can be done what I need to know is if the switch is closed when there is flow or is it open? Which wires do I need to cross or can i just plug one end and leave it be and it will simulate the flow switch being activated. Thank you.
 
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