Arizonall,
A couple of things to keep in mind. First the cell you had was a warranty cell the "W" in the model number indicates this. These cells were, at the time, designed to last 3 years. So if your cell was 2 to 4 years old it was due to fail. Next there are a lot of web pages that tout regular cleaning of cells. In theory if you maintain your pH properly and you stay on top of your water balance you shouldn't have to "acid wash/clean" your cell. The Aqua Rite has a self cleaning function built into it. However, it is important that you inspect the cell when the "inspect cell" light comes on to ensure that there isn't any debris that might block the flow of water through the blades of the cell. When you see debris flush the cell with a garden hose, this is not damaging to the cell's plates. However, this blockage could allow scale to form and require an "acid wash."
"Acid washing" is detrimental to the cell coating and will shorten the life of the cell, so avoid it if at all possible. The other thing I want to point out is when you run your diagnostic test make sure you are at 100% output. The unit will only give you results if the cell is producing chlorine. Your unit was set at 65% (output), the percentage is the percentage of time the unit will run in its predetermined cycle. I believe the cycle is 200 minutes. If that is the case your unit would be off or 70 minutes and if you ran your diagnostics during that 70 minute cycle it would read exactly like yours did. However, since it failed 3 times at the store your cell was probably done anyway.
Good luck with your new cell.
Jim Garrison
The Guru Of Pools at Discount Pool Warehouse.com
