Converting from Hayward Chlorinator to a Stenner System

[Stang70Fastback]

Hello everyone. We are brand new to pool ownership. I maintained a pool when I was a kid at a house we lived in (my only job was really to just keep refilling the chlorinator when the tablets disappeared), but now I'm all grown up, and we just bought a house with a pool, and dove right into everything (pun intended.) Previous owners had let the pool go. it's a 36,500 gallon, concrete, in-ground pool. We just had it chemical washed, just had a new IntelliFlo VSF pump installed, I just rebuilt the entire bottom end of the Pentair filter with parts off amazon, new filter cartridges, a new cleaner robot... and we just finished refilling it with filtered water. We're currently in the process of balancing everything, and I was googling what settings to use for the tablet-based chlorinator, and immediately fell down the rabbit-hole learning about how the tablet-based system is awful, and how it'll drive up CYA, etc...

So now I'm annoyed because we thought we had gotten everything up to snuff, and I don't want to start ruining our perfect water. I've done some research, and I kind of want to try a liquid chlorine thingie (as opposed to an SWG for the time being). I see that a Stenner system is a popular choice. As far as I understand it, I could get one of the Stenner pump and tank combo thingies, hook that up, and then it would just be a matter of keeping Chlorine in the tank (I'm already aware of the downsides of this setup - mainly transporting chlorine, and how chlorine breaks down over time, etc...) but my main question, which I can't see to find a straightforward answer to, is this: could I literally just use the existing plumbing going to our Hayward dispenser? It pulls water after the pump, and dispenses it into the line after the heater right before everything goes back underground. Would the stenner system be as simple as running the Stenner system to those existing points, eliminating the need to really do anything other than plop the new system down, plug it in, and then figure out the settings?

Many thanks in advance, everyone!

 

[ajw22]

my main question, which I can't see to find a straightforward answer to, is this: could I literally just use the existing plumbing going to our Hayward dispenser? It pulls water after the pump, and dispenses it into the line after the heater right before everything goes back underground. Would the stenner system be as simple as running the Stenner system to those existing points, eliminating the need to really do anything other than plop the new system down, plug it in, and then figure out the settings?

Welcome to TFP.

No, it is unsafe to mix liquid chlorine in the dispenser that contained trichlor. The Trichor contains acid and any residual trichlor and chlorine can mix to create toxic gas.

It is unsafe to mix any chemicals.

You can remove the Hayward dispenser and use the hole it used in your pipes for the Stenner pump injection valve.

 

[Stang70Fastback]

You can remove the Hayward dispenser and use the hole it used in your pipes for the Stenner pump injection valve.

That's actually what I was asking. Sorry if I was unclear in my wording. I was asking if I could simply swap out the Hayward dispenser with the Stenner setup, and use the existing holes, essentially making this a somewhat plug-and-play swap as far as the integration with our pool system was concerned

Does this seem like a good option?

Stenner Single Head Adjustable Pump with 15 Gallon Tank #1 Tube 0.3 - 5 GPD System

Stenner single head adjustable pump system is perfect for accurate and repeat injection of chemicals or liquid. This pump is built with three detachable components: the motor, feed rate control and pump head. Application: All Stenner pumps have a 3-point roller design in the pump head, which...

www.freshwatersystems.com

 

[randytsuch]

You only need one hole for injection. So the one past the heater. You fill the tank and it injects into that point, it doesn't need an intake from the pool.

I got a Stenner beginning of winter, and am very happy with it. I normally let the pool go over the winter, but the stenner has kept the chlorine level good.

I found an open box deal, 7.5 gal tank and the 45MFL3 - 22 gal/day fixed output 25 psi pump.

I have a diy automation system, and my stenner is powered through a wifi smart switch. I turn on the stenner for a little while every day, an hour after the pool pump starts. I stick a ruler in the tank once a week to monitor how much chlorine its dosing, and have adjusted the run time based on these measurements, and chlorine levels in the pool.
I don't know how you would do this with a normal pool automation system.

I heard the stenners with adjustable flow rates are noisy. But I don't have firsthand experience.

One other thing I've been doing is to dilute the chlorine in 1/2 in my tank. It will keeps its strength longer this way. I might go to full strength over the summer when usage goes up.

Randy

 

[borjis]

I disconnected and plugged the pipe holes from the chlorinator when I bought the house. Someday I might do a stenner too. Using the existing pipe hole.

 

[Stang70Fastback]

You only need one hole for injection. So the one past the heater. You fill the tank and it injects into that point, it doesn't need an intake from the pool.

I got a Stenner beginning of winter, and am very happy with it. I normally let the pool go over the winter, but the stenner has kept the chlorine level good.

I found an open box deal, 7.5 gal tank and the 45MFL3 - 22 gal/day fixed output 25 psi pump.

I have a diy automation system, and my stenner is powered through a wifi smart switch. I turn on the stenner for a little while every day, an hour after the pool pump starts. I stick a ruler in the tank once a week to monitor how much chlorine its dosing, and have adjusted the run time based on these measurements, and chlorine levels in the pool.
I don't know how you would do this with a normal pool automation system.

I heard the stenners with adjustable flow rates are noisy. But I don't have firsthand experience.

One other thing I've been doing is to dilute the chlorine in 1/2 in my tank. It will keeps its strength longer this way. I might go to full strength over the summer when usage goes up.

Randy

Thanks for the clarity. Sounds like I'm headed in the right direction. Our pool guy set our pump up to run 24/7. I know that's the "ideal" state, but not necessarily the most cost-effective state, but we calculated the energy cost, and it really doesn't cost all that much to run it all the time, so I think we might actually stick to that plan (I still need to do some more thinking about wear and tear, though). Assuming we go that route, I wouldn't mind the adjustable Stenner pump so that we could just figure out what setting it needed to sit at to just continuously keep chlorine levels good. Noise isn't really an issue since the equipment sits in a pool shed. The new pump is surprisingly quiet, but not THAT quiet, so I'm sure this little thing isn't as loud as that!

Sounds like I should find the best price online somewhere and buy it!

They have a LOT of pumps to choose from. I think I've narrowed it down to one of their classic, single head, adjustable pumps, which is their 85MX models. The issue I'm having is figuring out which "X" They have 85M1 through 85M5, and it looks like the only difference is the flow rate, with the lowest being 0.3 - 5.0 GPD, and the highest being 4.3 - 85 GPD. I obviously don't need something on the high end. Is the low end once sufficient for my use case, do you think, or should I go with something in the middle? The options are:

85M1: 0.3-5.0 GPD
85M2: 0.8-17 GPD
85M3: 2.0-40 GPD
85M4: 3.0-60 GPD
85M5: 4.3-85 GPD

And I'll pair that with either their 7.5 or 15 gallon tank. Essentially, this is what I've configured below. Does this seem right to you guys?

 

[randytsuch]

Do you know how much liquid chlorine you use now? Its likely to increase in the summer when the sun is out and the pool is in use.

I would think the 0.3-5 g/d model will work. There is no way you would need 5 gal per day, and that's the lowest you can go.
You could also put the stenner on a timer if you stop running your pump 24/7. And you really don't need to run it all the time. That might change the model stenner you need, depending on how long you run your pump for.

People usually use grey tanks and black tubing because the light will degrade chlorine, but maybe not as much of an issue since your stuff is in a shed.
I'd at least get a grey tank, although it makes it harder with grey to see the chorine level. That's why I got a cheap plastic ruler, and stick the ruler inside to measure my levels.

 

[Stang70Fastback]

Do you know how much liquid chlorine you use now? Its likely to increase in the summer when the sun is out and the pool is in use.

I would think the 0.3-5 g/d model will work. There is no way you would need 5 gal per day, and that's the lowest you can go.
You could also put the stenner on a timer if you stop running your pump 24/7. And you really don't need to run it all the time. That might change the model stenner you need, depending on how long you run your pump for.

People usually use grey tanks and black tubing because the light will degrade chlorine, but maybe not as much of an issue since your stuff is in a shed.
I'd at least get a grey tank, although it makes it harder with grey to see the chorine level. That's why I got a cheap plastic ruler, and stick the ruler inside to measure my levels.

Not really sure, as we just moved in, and only just got the pool filled a few days ago. We're currently in the process of getting everything balanced, and I'm hoping to just get this last thing sorted out. In the meantime we'll just dump chlorine directly into the pool. I kind of figured 5 gallons a day every day would be on the ridiculous side. I do prefer all the clear tank/tubing stuff since ours is in a shed with no windows. Should make it easier to see the level, and diagnose potential issues down the road.

The last question is what kind of Stenner pump, I suppose. I do like the idea of the adjustable one that we just have run constantly. Even if we don't run it constantly down the road, we could just bump the output closer to the 5 gal/day setting and run it for shorter periods off of a timer. My issue is I don't even have a general baseline for how much liquid we'd use daily, but I'm assuming it can't be THAT much, so even if we ran it at 5 gal/day, but for only 12 hours, that would still net us 2.5 gallons a day... and surely that's WAY more than we'd actually need!

 

[Rancho Cost-a-Lotta]

My issue is I don't even have a general baseline for how much liquid we'd use daily

During the hottest parts of summer, your pool should not consume more than 4 ppm of FC daily. For your pool, that equates to about 1 1/2 gallons of 10% chlorine daily.

 

[Stang70Fastback]

During the hottest parts of summer, your pool should not consume more than 4 ppm of FC daily. For your pool, that equates to about 1 1/2 gallons of 10% chlorine daily.

Perfect! That was the last piece of the puzzle I was hoping someone could answer. So sounds like the 0.3 to 5.0 GPM one is already overkill. I'll go with that adjustable one, and a 15 gallon tank, and sounds like that should be a great replacement for this god-awful (as I recently learned) tablet-based system. Thanks everyone!

 

[Rancho Cost-a-Lotta]

I don't know much about Stenner systems, which is why I was reading up. If it was my pool, I would factor in an 8 hour pump run time and consider bleach dilution.

 

[Stang70Fastback]

I don't know much about Stenner systems, which is why I was reading up. If it was my pool, I would factor in an 8 hour pump run time and consider bleach dilution.

I'm kind of considering the Econ T 15 GPD model now, and then just setting it to inject a few times a day.

 

[trivetman]

You can also easily change the flow rate if you need to. The only difference between those 5 different 85MX models is the size of the internal tube. If you find you need a capacity your pumps not handling, just buy the size tube you need and change it out.

 

[Rancho Cost-a-Lotta]

Let us know how it works out. Study up in Pool School to nail down the chemistry aspects and (if you haven't already) get yourself one of the recommended test kits. Most important will be a FAS/DPD chlorine test to provide accurate test results so you can properly calibrate the dispensing rate of your pump. The TF-100 is the best value along with a Smart Stir is the best value and gets you free shipping. Link in my sig.

With a fresh fill and new equipment, now is the time to start doing things right.

 

[march2012]

I just started up my pool. It is 15K gallons and will need about .3-.5 gallons of bleach per day in the summer.
Stenner makes pumps with built in timers so Im using one of those instead of using an external timer. It has 12 on/off pairs and can go as low as a minute and produces 8.5 gallons a day. For your large pool you might want 12 gallons per day or more so you can run it for 2 hours max (Im estimating that you need approx 3/4 gallon/day).

Stenner Econ T Automatic Dosing Peristaltic Metering Pump E10T2B 120V NSF 50: Amazon.com: Industrial & Scientific

Stenner Econ T Automatic Dosing Peristaltic Metering Pump E10T2B 120V NSF 50: Amazon.com: Industrial & Scientific

www.amazon.com

My puck tube has a 1/2" npt port at the top for a pressure gauge. I just screwed the stenner check valve into that. The duck bill extends into the puck tube so I added an extension so the check valve doesnt protrude into the puck tube at all.

Dont mix pucks and bleach so if you have pucks in there dont run the stenner.

 

[Mctwist937]

I have substantially the same system as the original poster. As such I’m wondering what the hundred psi pumps are for? I thought I remember reading in a prior post that they had some benefit that the 25 psi pumps didn’t have possibly leak detection or something I don’t recall.

 

[trivetman]

It provides some leak protection if your stenner tubing blows out. The pool water wont backflow through the blowout with the 100psi duckbill It also gives you another thing to clean out every year.