chlorine or salt water please help

[john johnson]

i have a in ground pool in southern California, the chlorine buildup on my tile is terrible, i am thinking of converting to a salt water pool, will there be less buildup of chlorine on my tile? i don't mind learning how to maintain the salt water style pool or the price to convert it, i just don't know if it will help. i only use the tablet style chlorine in a floater, maybe that's a problem and i should be using liquid chlorine. i hear a lot of conflicting opinions on which system to use so any help would be greatly appreciated, thanks, john.

 

[Smykowski]

Welcome to the forum!

The buildup you're talking about isn't chlorine, it's likely calcium scale. Scale happens as a result of improper water balance - calcium hardness too high and pH too high.

Also, to be clear, a saltwater pool IS a chlorine pool, the difference is how the chlorine gets in there.

Do you have a recent set of test results?

 

[jblizzle]

Welcome to TFP!!!

Even with good water balance, you can still end up with a ring around the tile if you evaporation rates are high. When the water evaporates off the surface it deposits the minerals on the tile.

Going to a SWG will have no impact on preventing getting this ring or worse calcium scaling. In fact, a SWG ends up driving the pH up faster, so unless you keep an eye on the pH and keep it in range, you could end up with getting scaling faster.

Post up a full set of test results, if you CH is high and your pH gets high, that could be most of your problem ... which is totally independent of your source of chlorine.

Also, start reading Pool School to get a little better idea about the chemistry:
ABCs of Water Chemistry
Recommended Pool Chemicals
How to Chlorinate Your Pool