Hi all LQ users.
I just closed the pool, after four months of LQ running 12 hours a day without a hitch.
The calcium carbonate deposits (aka the “white stuffâ€, or WS) started to accumulate after a few days and in no time the line from the LQ to the pump, including the flow meter, looked so white as if this were a part of a dairy line, not a pool system. The WS started to deposit also on the hinges of the Out float.
Like many other users here I was concerned about performance compromises, flow blockage, and what not. A lot of time, mental energy and bandwidth was spent here by so many of us dealing with the WS issue. IMHO no other place on the planet had so much discussion of the WS, and as a “fringe benefit†it was a successful community team work.
After four months of unhindered operation I can say “Who’s afraid of the WS?â€
Don’t get me wrong. Sometimes the WS can cause problems, but not all WS would cause problems all the time. The only modification I did was replacing the ¼†flow valve by a 3/8†one following Rabbit’s line re-sizing ideas, in order to prevent any possible blockage. After about two months of running the pressure of my DE filter went up so I backwashed it. I noticed calcium carbonate particles in the backwash, and the CH went down by 20 ppm. This was the only effect of my WS!
Although the black ball in the flow meter didn’t move as freely as it would have had the water been clear, it wasn’t a problem. I was already familiar with the settings and could eye ball them, and anyway, the FC level depends not only on the flow rate but also on the level of bleach in the LQ, which fluctuates regularly. I could maintain the FC according to the charts very easily, and my CC was always below 0.5.
My conclusion: WS doesn’t necessarily mean an eminent disaster. If you’re a new LQ user, see if you can live with it for a month, and if it causes problems seek the mechanical and chemical solutions suggested in this forum.
For those users who may need it, it would be nice to have one sticky with all the possible
remedies, including borates, anti-scaling agents, etc.
I just closed the pool, after four months of LQ running 12 hours a day without a hitch.
The calcium carbonate deposits (aka the “white stuffâ€, or WS) started to accumulate after a few days and in no time the line from the LQ to the pump, including the flow meter, looked so white as if this were a part of a dairy line, not a pool system. The WS started to deposit also on the hinges of the Out float.
Like many other users here I was concerned about performance compromises, flow blockage, and what not. A lot of time, mental energy and bandwidth was spent here by so many of us dealing with the WS issue. IMHO no other place on the planet had so much discussion of the WS, and as a “fringe benefit†it was a successful community team work.
After four months of unhindered operation I can say “Who’s afraid of the WS?â€
Don’t get me wrong. Sometimes the WS can cause problems, but not all WS would cause problems all the time. The only modification I did was replacing the ¼†flow valve by a 3/8†one following Rabbit’s line re-sizing ideas, in order to prevent any possible blockage. After about two months of running the pressure of my DE filter went up so I backwashed it. I noticed calcium carbonate particles in the backwash, and the CH went down by 20 ppm. This was the only effect of my WS!
Although the black ball in the flow meter didn’t move as freely as it would have had the water been clear, it wasn’t a problem. I was already familiar with the settings and could eye ball them, and anyway, the FC level depends not only on the flow rate but also on the level of bleach in the LQ, which fluctuates regularly. I could maintain the FC according to the charts very easily, and my CC was always below 0.5.
My conclusion: WS doesn’t necessarily mean an eminent disaster. If you’re a new LQ user, see if you can live with it for a month, and if it causes problems seek the mechanical and chemical solutions suggested in this forum.
For those users who may need it, it would be nice to have one sticky with all the possible
remedies, including borates, anti-scaling agents, etc.