Any regrets?

[Beez]

I didn't have to replace the entire unit, just the cell at a cost of $500. $500/6 years= $83.33 per year chlorine cost. What am I missing?

:lol: but the unit had to be purchased before it could generate your chlorine, so you have to factor in that cost!

So when someone asks how much per year it cost to heat your house do you include the cost of a furnace and duct work in your response?

This thread was begun with a simple request of SWG owners to share their experience of owning/operating the device. I do not own one, therefore should not have interfered in the discussion. It was my Achilles Heel of cheekiness that I gave in to, when I detected a hint of rationalization of SWG based on cost. SWG needs no rationalization. Its merit stands on its own. It just cracks me up when I see an attempt at justification based on cost, when the math will never support it.

Note to the OP: Go for it! You will have no regrets.

 

[amati5]

How much do you all spend on chlorine per month?

Last year I spent $350/year on chlorine. That comes out to under $30/month. I use 1 gallon/day of 10-1/2% during the summer months and 1gallon/week during the winter months.

I haven't bought Chlorine for a while but that's a lot of $. It sounds like you're using liquid Chlorine? They don't have condition, do they? thus won't last long in the sun.

 

[OperatorX]

No regrets. I just manage pH on a daily basis. For me it's convenience and I like feel of the water better than chlorine. Having grown up with a chlorine pool, I much prefer the feel of salt. Plus, my french fries taste better when I dip them in the pool.

 

[jasonknox]

How much do you all spend on chlorine per month?

Last year I spent $350/year on chlorine. That comes out to under $30/month. I use 1 gallon/day of 10-1/2% during the summer months and 1gallon/week during the winter months.

I haven't bought Chlorine for a while but that's a lot of $. It sounds like you're using liquid Chlorine? They don't have condition, do they? thus won't last long in the sun.

Yes it is liquid chlorine. I pay $1.70/gallon. You are right is does not have contioner/stabilizer, I add CYA(stabilizer) separately as needed. It would appear by my numbers that I may not have to add any CYA this year. During the summer months my pool loses 3ppm/day.

 

[ntxpool]

Cells are expensive but I'm going to guess they more than pay for themselves over time

No, they won't quite do that. Bleach is pretty much the cheapest way to sanitize your pool. SWG's should be considered because of the convenience and ease of use they provide, but not cost savings.

What Dave said......don't try to justify a SWG with math. It's a convenience issue. Another key thing people always leave out of the equation is electricity: a SWG also takes electricity to run.....it's the equivalent of a pretty big lightbulb (I think mine is 300w).

Having said that, I like mine alot....it keeps things pretty balanced. All I do is add 20oz of muratic acid a week and I'm good (SWGs cause your Ph to rise). I still add bleach if I really need to kick the system up quick (rain, party, etc). Putting my SWG in "BOOST" mode is a power hog method of generating alot of chlorine fast, when I can just dump some bleach in. It's the best of both worlds

 

[amati5]

I am just currious as bleach was mentioned in quite a few posts above. I always thought using bleach was never acceptable as a sub for chlorine as I heard before. Was I wrong or what am I missing?

 

[linen]

I am just currious as bleach was mentioned in quite a few posts above. I always thought using bleach was never acceptable as a sub for chlorine as I heard before. Was I wrong or what am I missing?

Plain unscented bleach is liquid chlorine at a lower concentration of sodium hypochorite. It is usually 6% sodium hypochlorite verses 10% or 12.5% sodium hypochlorite in liquid chlorine. See: http://www.troublefreepool.com/pool-school/types_chlorine_pool

 

[amati5]

Thanks! that helps alot to understand different type of chlorine.

 

[chem geek]

I spend around $15/month on 12.5% chlorinating liquid for a 7-month season so around $120 per year if we count the winter chlorine as well (much lower rate of consumption). I have a 16,000 gallon pool, but a mostly opaque pool cover that even with 88ºF water temp keeps the chlorine loss rate at around 1 ppm FC per day. For your 15,300 gallon pool, figure around double my cost so around $30/month during swim season as being more typical if you keep your pool uncovered or use a clear cover. James' numbers at 3 ppm FC per day loss are on the high side (maybe his CYA level should be higher) and his pool is larger than yours. More typical daily chlorine loss is closer to 2 ppm FC per day, though this obviously varies.

 

[bostonbruins59]

Cells are expensive but I'm going to guess they more than pay for themselves over time

No, they won't quite do that. Bleach is pretty much the cheapest way to sanitize your pool. SWG's should be considered because of the convenience and ease of use they provide, but not cost savings.

What Dave said......don't try to justify a SWG with math. It's a convenience issue. Another key thing people always leave out of the equation is electricity: a SWG also takes electricity to run.....it's the equivalent of a pretty big lightbulb (I think mine is 300w).

Having said that, I like mine alot....it keeps things pretty balanced. All I do is add 20oz of muratic acid a week and I'm good (SWGs cause your Ph to rise). I still add bleach if I really need to kick the system up quick (rain, party, etc). Putting my SWG in "BOOST" mode is a power hog method of generating alot of chlorine fast, when I can just dump some bleach in. It's the best of both worlds

good info here for me. I did not know why my PH tends to rise and getting that right has been the secret to a crystal clear look for me. I wasted money excessively shocking last week to open the pool when it really was lowering the PH that proved to be the key.

I also have no regrets, although we'll see how happy I am when I need to replace the cell. I like the ability to "set it and forget it" but I still find myself tweaking the generation level as I strive to keep the pool fully balanced. I will try going to a small weekly dose of muriatic acid this year.

 

[ej76az]

I have a hard time answering this question because after a year I'm still not sure if I like mine or not. My city water is very hard (CH 300-400), so the SWG builds up calcium really quickly. Every 2-3 months I have to remove it (big PITA) and soak the plates in diluted muriatic acid. I bought an Intellichlor Acid Cleaning Kit, so that helps a little. It's amazing how dense and hard the calcium build-up is. So I'm not sure if the convenience of not having to add chlorine is outweighed by the inconvenience of the frequent SWG acid-washing.

 

[amati5]

I have a hard time answering this question because after a year I'm still not sure if I like mine or not. My city water is very hard (CH 300-400), so the SWG builds up calcium really quickly. Every 2-3 months I have to remove it (big PITA) and soak the plates in diluted muriatic acid. I bought an Intellichlor Acid Cleaning Kit, so that helps a little. It's amazing how dense and hard the calcium build-up is. So I'm not sure if the convenience of not having to add chlorine is outweighed by the inconvenience of the frequent SWG acid-washing.

Not sure if this is the case with you but I used to ignore the PH level during the cold months and let the PH level went way up. Don't know if that was the cause but there was quite a lot of deposit in my cell. Now I always check the PH and the problem seems to go away. The water in my city is very hard too.

 

[WestSidePool]

No regrets on mine.
Once everything is in balance, the pool pretty much takes care of itself.
I haven't had to clean the cell yet. I do buy bleach to have on hand if I need to get the levels up quick (after a big swim party or rain) but other than that, it's a great convenience. Especially since I used to forget or ran out of time to check and add chlorine on a daily basis before I installed the SWG.

 

[Rangeball]

What Dave said......don't try to justify a SWG with math. It's a convenience issue.

My 21,200 gal IG pool uses 2ppm chlorine daily on average. It costs me $1.50 per day. We have a 5 month season (Mid-may to Mid-October) so roughly 150 days. An oversized SWG for my pool would cost right at $500. Following is a comparison of bleach to chlorine-

Year 1- bleach $225 SWG- $500
Year 2- bleach $450 SWG- $0
Year 3- bleach $675 SWG- $0

Seems like if I can get 12 months out of a cell, which the one I’m looking at is warranteed for 3 years, possibly longer since I’d be oversizing and running on a lower output, SWG is a cheaper option.

Maybe next year.

 

[chiefwej]

What Dave said......don't try to justify a SWG with math. It's a convenience issue.

My 21,200 gal IG pool uses 2ppm chlorine daily on average. It costs me $1.50 per day. We have a 5 month season (Mid-may to Mid-October) so roughly 150 days. An oversized SWG for my pool would cost right at $500. Following is a comparison of bleach to chlorine-

Year 1- bleach $225 SWG- $500
Year 2- bleach $450 SWG- $0
Year 3- bleach $675 SWG- $0

Seems like if I can get 12 months out of a cell, which the one I’m looking at is warranteed for 3 years, possibly longer since I’d be oversizing and running on a lower output, SWG is a cheaper option.

Maybe next year.

Well my unit cost about $1k initially. The cell lasted 6+ years and cost $500 to replace. So if I have no additional repairs $500/6 years =$83 per year. You do have to add a little extra for the electricity it uses and maybe a bit for some additional muratic acid due to rising pH. But I'll bet these factors don't compare to the time, and gas cost that goes with hauling bleach home and dumping it in the pool. Convenience and cost effective! If my whole SWG died tomarrow, I would have a new one installed the next day.

 

[x2rider]

I just installed mine this year. I got injured from a jetski collision, a friend of mine ran into me and crushed my leg. Nothing broken, but the tissue inside got mashed and lots of internal bleeding, and bruising. I'll be home for 3 weeks sat least recovering.

I can't imagine with everything else my wife has to do, adding shipping for chlorine and doing a lot more testing. It's not her thing, so the convenience of the swg is worth it's weight in gold right now.

 

[chiefwej]

I did have a lot of scale building up in my cell the first year or two. We have very high CH and high TA. Once I found TFP and learned how to lower the TA and why I would want it lower, problem solved. Now, every time I check it there is no buildup. And no scale on my pool, even when my CH got up to near 1,000 last year.

 

[ej76az]

Not sure if this is the case with you but I used to ignore the PH level during the cold months and let the PH level went way up. Don't know if that was the cause but there was quite a lot of deposit in my cell. Now I always check the PH and the problem seems to go away. The water in my city is very hard too.

Very possible. I bought an Intellichlor dummy pass-through so next winter I'll remove the SWG to prevent calcium buildup. The SWG doesn't function in cold water but the calcium still built up last winter.