ProLogic low salt level

[wehuddleston]

We recently bought a home with a saltwater pool. I've had pools in the past but this is my first salt water experience. The system is a ProLogic/AquaLogic with a T cell 15. I originally checked the salt level (after I got the pool clear again...previous owners let the water go completely green in the balmy Texas spring temps) with the system and with a salt water tester my father-n-law purchased for his pool. They were pretty close in their readings. Over the last few days I have noticed my salt level reading on the system dropping from approx 3200 down to 2600. I have added no water and we have had no rain. Checked again with the electronic tester and 3800 while the system reading 2600. I also recently cleaned the cell. One thing I have noticed is that when I have had to add water, I have added salt through the skimmer and it has shown very high salt readings and will automatically turn off the chlorinator until the level gets regulated. I don't know if this could have caused the cell to fail or if there are other possibilities. I did also pull the board from the main control panel and did not see any burned spots like I have read sometimes occur on these systems (burned soder or something). Anyway, not sure if I need to clean cell again or have the cell tested. Of course I am a little concerned the pool store will just tell me the cell is bad to sell me another one. As for my current cell, it appears to be clean but part of the inside of the cell housing is somewhat orange from the minerals in the water but it doesn't appear to have in calcium built up in the cell...thanks in advance for your help.
Will

 

[Bama Rambler]

Welcome to TFP.

It's common for the systems to read the salt low when the cell nears the end of it's life. Id' clean it just to be sure. You can also have the pool store test it but I suspect it's going bad.

Now a few comments:
1. Pouring salt through the skimmer when the cell is on is very bad for the unit. Even though it shut itself off it still had to be on long enough to sense the high salt and therefore the cell drew very high current for that short time. Any time you add salt you should just distribute it in the pool and shut the swg off for 24 hours.

2. You need a good test kit if you don't have one. It's just as, or more important to keep all the chems balanced in a pool with a swg as it is in a normally chlorinated pool.