Circupool RJ-45 Production Test

[Texas Splash]

Fellow RJ-45 owners, I am curious to know what type of FC production you are seeing with your SWG - specifically an overnight GAIN test. For my pool, just under 18K, the PoolMath APP shows that my cell should provide ~3.9 ppm of chlorine in 7 hours at 100% output. I have conducted four overnight gain tests and I am not seeing that much production in 7 hrs. To maximize overnight gain potential, I cleaned my cell twice, water is crystal clear, and I passed two OCLTs. Never an error on the module. Still, the most I've gained in 7 hrs is 2.5 ppm, so I'm on the fence of whether to pursue a warranty claim. The reason I started this overnight gain testing to begin with is because some of my daytime FC tests seemed to be falling a bit, so I wanted to take the sun out of the equation.

I understand several variables can influence this overnight gain result such as FC testing, an acceptable OCLT loss of 1 ppm, programmed estimates of the PoolMath APP, and the cell itself, but I wonder if my overnight FC gains are typical of fellow RJ-45 owners. So if any of you have done am overnight gain test recently, or are curious about the performance of your own SWG and wish to share those results here, feel free. Below is a snapshot of my test.

UNIT: RJ-45+
AGE: 27 months
HOURS (Nighttime) TESTED: 7
OUTPUT SETTING: 100%
PROJECTED FC OUTPUT (per Poolmath) - 3.9 ppm
ACTUAL FC OUTPUT: 2.5

 

[markayash]

I am more curious how discount salt/ circupool will respond

 

[Texas Splash]

I am more curious how discount salt/ circupool will respond

I spoke to Sammy and they already provided me with an RMA return invoice to send the cell back for testing. They were not concerned with technical diagnosis such as module details or chlorine gains/losses specifically the way we test here at TFP, but they did ask about water chemistry.

 

[Rancho Cost-a-Lotta]

I'll work on this over the next couple nights. OCLT tonight.

Curious, did CP bring up phosphates? I haven't tested for years. Did they have any comments about your chemistry?

 

[Newdude]

Pat, do you feel as if something suddenly happened, or was it there the whole time going unnoticed ?

 

[Texas Splash]

do you feel as if something suddenly happened, or was it there the whole time going unnoticed ?

This season I felt as though my FC production diminished. I did need to increase my CYA a bit, but it got me to thinking and try the gain test. The gain numbers don't quite add-up to PoolMath expectations, so I'm hoping to compare my gains with fellow RJ-45 owners.

 

[HeyEng]

Ah, the Circupool production issue. This has been reported from some other members and there was a lengthy thread on it back in 2020. Mine doesn't produce nearly as much as it should, but thankfully it's a RJ 60 so it *can* keep up with my 14,000 gallon pool.

SWG run time calculations assistance

I've quadruple checked my calculations and tested and re-tested at least a half-dozen times over the last three days and there is something I'm clearly messing up or not understanding. I installed my first SWG over the weekend. It's a CircuPool RJ60+. The unit is advertised as capable of...

www.troublefreepool.com

 

[JamesW]

Can you measure the voltage and current going to the cell?

 

[JamesW]

 

[Texas Splash]

Can you measure the voltage and current going to the cell?

I wrote those numbers down previously. It was 12.4 volts and 5.90 amps.

 

[JamesW]

It was 12.4 volts and 5.90 amps.

12.4 is really low.

Can you check it again?

Is the unit wired for the correct voltage?

 

[Texas Splash]

12.4 is really low.

Can you check it again?

Is the unit wired for the correct voltage?

It is. I'm running it at the 110V option.

 

[JamesW]

Yours looks correct, but you should check the input voltage.

https://www.circupool.com/assets/doc/CircuPool-RJ-PLUS-Manual.pdf

Circupool RJ-45 Plus Install

This weekend I finally installed my RJ-45. I've been stalling on this for a long time, but the 2020 COVID-19 pandemic and resulting chlorine shortage finally pushed me over the edge. Plus, it was simply time. The Circupool Installation and Operation Guide is quite good, but here are some...

www.troublefreepool.com

 

[Texas Splash]

Okay, checked the manual and see the volts should be 21.0 to 27.0 volts when chlorine is being generated, otherwise 16-31V. Had Mrs. Splash activate the SWG and we are getting a volt of 21.8. Amps about 5.8.

 

[JamesW]

At 5.8 amps, the unit will make about 1 to 1.4 lbs per day.

To get to 2 lbs per day, you would need to be at about 8 to 9 amps.

 

[Texas Splash]

At 5.8 amps, the unit will make about 1 to 1.4 lbs per day.

That would seem to validate why I'm not seeing the "advertised" lbs per day amount. Perhaps each unit's amps can vary based on multiple factors, and of course the advertised 2 lbs per day is the marketed high-end (ideal) scenario.

 

[mknauss]

Likely have to have the salinity in the water at the max level to get the max output.

 

[JamesW]

21.8 volts is a little bit low.

I would expect about 25 volts.

The 5.8 amps is about what you would get from a T-9 Hayward cell which is 0.98 lbs per day.

 

[JamesW]

In my opinion, the 2 lbs per day is not a realistic number.

The system seems to be a clone of the Hayward, which makes only up to about 1.45 lbs per day for a T-15 cell.

Menu: Press sequentially to cycle through the following information:

1. Pool Temperature (xx degrees Fahrenheit or Celsius)

2. Cell Voltage (often 21.0 to 27.0 volts when chlorine is being generated, otherwise 16-31V)

3. Cell Current (often 2.50 to 7.80 amps when chlorine is being generated, otherwise 0 amps during normal rest cycles.)

4. Real-Time Salinity reading ( xxxx PPM or x.x grams/Liter.)

5. System ID

6. Software revision level

7. Cell Version.

NOTE: You may see a negative sign in front of some diagnostic numbers during normal operation.

This is normal and indicates the system is on one of its two Reverse Polarity cycles.


Ideal Salt Levels & Pool Size

The ideal salt level for operation is about 3500 ppm (parts per million), and it is suggested to keep the salinity between 3000-4000 ppm .

 

[Texas Splash]

Salt levels are fun:
Module Salinity - 4,400
Module Avg Salt - 3,200
Taylor K-1766 - 3,800

Nothing like consistency huh? Ha ha

But you gave me some good details about the votes/amps to monitor. I'll watch those closely for the next few days to see if they fluctuate well out of range. This could certainly influence a potential warranty claim from the cell to the module itself. My first two seasons I ran at 30% output 24/7 which according to PoolMath is 4 ppm per day. This was the first time (3rd season) 30% was struggling which prompted me to crunch numbers like this. I expect a cell to wear over time and slowly lose some of its production, but this seemed kind of sudden. I'll continue to monitor.