SWG Acting Weird

[SPKNout4CHRIST]

I have added my salt and it is around 3500-3600ppm. This is my first year with the pool and I have just started using the SWG in the past few days. The cell shows -3000 instant salinity, but will drop rather rapidly sometimes to -600. The amps and voltage (I believe those are the right readings) are off a little. One is 26 when it should be under 25 and the other is 1.8 when it should be, I believe, between 4 and 7. I have cleaned the cell with acid and the plates seem to be in good shape. They are white, but not a crusty white, it seems like they are made this way.

It shows it is generating, but I know the numbers are off, so I am wondering what could be the cause of this? Thanks in advance for the help!!

 

[Poolschoolgrad]

Mineral Springs MS-10 is an Aquarite with a BioGuard label on the front.

Sequentially press the diagnostic button and post the following
1. Temp
2. Cell voltage
3. Cell current
4. output %
5. salinity
6 produt name
7. Software revision level

How old is the cell?
The OEM Goldline cells have a 3 year warranty.

Cell voltage should be 22 to 25 volts when generating otherwise 30-35v
Cell current is normally between 4.5 and 7.8

Normally, when the cell starts to fail, the cell voltage will increase and the cell current will decrease.

If the cell is clean, a sudden decrease in the displayed salt concentration can be a sign of an aging cell.

Be sure to order the correct size replacement cell for your controller.

 

[SPKNout4CHRIST]

The sticker on the flow switch says that it was manufactured in 2005. I did not see a sticker that said the manufactured date on the cell itself. The only sticker on the cell was the one with the serial number on it, so I am not sure how old the cell is.

1. 69
2. 28.1
3. 1.89
4. 75P
5. -600
6. AL-2
7. r1.40

I have posted two pictures below of the cell. Do you think that it is going bad based on the numbers above even though it still says generating sanitizer? If so, where is a good place to get a new one and based on the picture below of the name on the cell, what size cell do I need? Thanks!!

[attachment=1:gu5jhcdv]IMAG0163.jpg[/attachment:gu5jhcdv]

[attachment=0:gu5jhcdv]IMAG0159.jpg[/attachment:gu5jhcdv]

 

[Poolschoolgrad]

The inside of the cell looks good. You did a good job cleaning it with the acid wash.
The unit may be generating chlorine, just at a reduced rate.
How much longer it will last is anyone's guess.
Is the unit able to increase the Free Chlorine by 2+ ppm per day?

The last cell that failed on my system failed in the exact same manner.
The volts increased and the amps decreased. The salinity reading became erratic.
The chlorine output declined until it could not keep the chlorine level up even at 100% output.
Soon the 'inspect cell" LED remained illuminated and the unit stoped generating chlorine.

Please contact Goldline controls. They can diagnose the problem over the phone. 1-888-921-7665
The T-cell-15 should be the exact replacement, but it would be best to verify this with Goldline before you spend $$$.

Hope this helps

 

[SPKNout4CHRIST]

Yes, that helps a lot! I don't believe the unit is increasing the chlorine by 2ppm a day. I don't know that is accurate though since my CYA is not at the recommended level yet. It is probably around 30-40ppm now and I plan to add the rest of the required CYA in the next day or so. I will probably test the CYA this evening since it will have been a week since adding it.

I will call Goldline and see what they say, but if I do need a new cell, where do you recommend I purchase one? I found this listed on eBay from another thread on here. Will this one work and is that a good price? http://cgi.ebay.com/T-Cell-15W-Aqua...246?pt=LH_DefaultDomain_0&hash=item53e529202e

Thanks for the help!

 

[JasonLion]

It is very very easy for your water chemistry to be off enough that you lose chlorine faster than the SWG can add more, even if the SWG is working perfectly, especially if your CYA level is low.

That said, high voltage, low amps, and inconsistent salt levels are all signs that the cell is wearing out, and if it is wearing out, it will be producing less chlorine than it was before.

 

[SPKNout4CHRIST]

It is very very easy for your water chemistry to be off enough that you lose chlorine faster than the SWG can add more, even if the SWG is working perfectly, especially if your CYA level is low.

That said, high voltage, low amps, and inconsistent salt levels are all signs that the cell is wearing out, and if it is wearing out, it will be producing less chlorine than it was before.

The SWG is consistently keeping the volts around 27-28 and the amps below 2. The instant salt level is usually -600, but I know there is over 3000 in the pool (640lbs added 1 week ago).

With that said, it does seem the cell is failing. The link posted above is the cheapest I have seen the cell ($354). It comes with a 1yr warranty and others that I have seen that cost $500 or so come with a 3yr warranty. Would it be better to get one with a 3yr warranty for $150+ more or am I looking at these incorrectly?

 

[JasonLion]

The warranty is always pro-rated, so you don't get that much back if it fails in the second or third year. On the other hand I've seen the 3 year warranty version for $440. I tend to not get extended warranties because you usually save money that way, but it does mean risking a low chance of an expensive replacement.

 

[Poolschoolgrad]

There are 2 types of Genuine Goldline replacement cells

The GLX-CELL-15W (sometimes sold as a CELL-15W) and the T-Cell-15
They are both the same cell, but the GLX-Cell-15W has a 1 year warranty and the T-Cell-15 has a 3 year warranty.

Here is the link where I purchased a cell a few years ago.
http://www.poolsupply4less.com/st_main.html?p_catid=189

The 1 year warranty cell is $348 and the 3 year warranty cell is $439. BOth include shipping.
You simply need to decide if it is worth $91 more for the longer warranty.

Shop around on the net, you may be able to beat these prices.

 

[SPKNout4CHRIST]

There are 2 types of Genuine Goldline replacement cells

The GLX-CELL-15W (sometimes sold as a CELL-15W) and the T-Cell-15
They are both the same cell, but the GLX-Cell-15W has a 1 year warranty and the T-Cell-15 has a 3 year warranty.

Here is the link where I purchased a cell a few years ago.
http://www.poolsupply4less.com/st_main.html?p_catid=189

The 1 year warranty cell is $348 and the 3 year warranty cell is $439. BOth include shipping.
You simply need to decide if it is worth $91 more for the longer warranty.

Shop around on the net, you may be able to beat these prices.

Do you remember how long it took to get the cell from them? I didn't see an option to select shipping times during ordering, just that shipping was included. Thanks!

 

[mr.rongilbert]

Post up how long it takes to ship and if it fixes your issues. I am fighting (basically) the same battle. Good news is that mine (T-Cell-15) has about 8 years. After some reading it seems as if I am fortunate that it has lasted this long. I have to wait a few weeks before I order the cell so I will be tuned in to this thread.

Best of luck!

 

[Poolschoolgrad]

I think it came Fed-Ex ground from California. Should take about a week from CA to NC.

Mr.rongilbert -- 8 years service life out of a salt cell in those hot Houston Summers is much better than average.

 

[SPKNout4CHRIST]

I received my tracking number today after placing the order this morning, so it was very quick. It says I should receive it on Saturday which is fine by me since shipping was included! I will let you know once I get it and will give an update.

BTW, I did swim in the pool Saturday!! The water temp was around 70, but felt good to finally start the season!! The FC was 8, so I guess the cell is working some, which is what I thought since sometimes it seems to work right, but others it does not.

 

[mr.rongilbert]

Mine will work only if I set the instant salt within range. If the pump starts up when I am not around it will kick the cell due to low salt level (showing 1900 when actually 3400) I will have to add chlorine at night to keep it in range until I can get a new cell. What is weird is that it is clean and it tested "OK" at the pool store yet it simply will not read salt levels correctly.

 

[SPKNout4CHRIST]

Mine will work only if I set the instant salt within range. If the pump starts up when I am not around it will kick the cell due to low salt level (showing 1900 when actually 3400) I will have to add chlorine at night to keep it in range until I can get a new cell. What is weird is that it is clean and it tested "OK" at the pool store yet it simply will not read salt levels correctly.

What do you have to do to set the instant salt level in range? It may help me between now and Saturday to keep chlorine in the pool.

 

[mr.rongilbert]

Mine will work only if I set the instant salt within range. If the pump starts up when I am not around it will kick the cell due to low salt level (showing 1900 when actually 3400) I will have to add chlorine at night to keep it in range until I can get a new cell. What is weird is that it is clean and it tested "OK" at the pool store yet it simply will not read salt levels correctly.

What do you have to do to set the instant salt level in range? It may help me between now and Saturday to keep chlorine in the pool.

Does yours look like this? (if not then perhaps it may help someone with an Aqua Logic setup )

If so
When the pump starts running there is a one minute delay - during that time it verifies flow then tests the salt level (I think.. ) if I am not around and it is allowed to do it automatically I will get this message along with the little yellow trouble light

I go to the "Diagnostics" page and scroll to the page that shows the Volts/Temp/Amps/salt readings:

Press the + button and it starts a 15 second count down:

Scroll to the next page - this is what the page looks like before the countdown is complete:

Once the salt level starts testing (high to low) you can press the + button again to "save" the instant salt setting when it gets to the correct number - mine is right at 3400 so when it gets to 3400 I press the + and it works fine until the pump is turned off.

It was counting down and between the 3500 and 3400... I pressed the button at the same time that I took the pic, it caught it as it was changing. You can see that it says "Saved"... before that it says "press + to save".

Life is good as long as I can get in there and save it before it reads it on its own... .

It will have to do until I can get another one... I don't mind adding chlorine for the next week or so.

Best of luck getting your troubles worked out.

 

[SPKNout4CHRIST]

I wanted to post an update. I received my cell a little over a month ago and it read the salt levels without a problem and produced chlorine nicely. I noticed, though, that the system would have high amps (just over 25), but ran fine. It eventually would show no instant salt and the amps and volts would go to low levels as if the system was off, even though the lights still showed it was generating. I could turn off the sytem and back on and it would work fine for a while and sometimes didn't have a problem at all.

Well, when I checked it today the lights were off, but the LCD was still on. I wondered if it could be the fuse, but figured it probably was not since the LCD was working. I took off the cover and remembered reading on here about the current resistor (the black quarter-sized disc) going bad. I found that on the board and sure enough it is black where it connects to the board and is cracked along the top of it. I went ahead and ordered 2 from Digi-Key as instructed on the other thread.

I will keep you updated, but it seems that is the issue for the current problem and more than likely the problem I was having before. Does that make sense? BTW, the pool is feeling nice!!!

PS - I will make sure I keep some bleach on hand for the next day or two until the resistor arrives.

 

[SPKNout4CHRIST]

I received the current limiter yesturday and installed it last night and the SWG is working! I left it on through the night to get some chlorine back in the pool and when I when out this morning I was happy to see bubbles at the returns!!

I checked the numbers and all seemed good. They had not dropped to 0 as it has done in the past after running for more than a couple of hours. Ahhh, now to enjoy the pool for a while!