Easy Touch 4P vs Easy Touch 4 L

[iamtexmax]

Hello - we are currently constructing a pool - while talking with my PB today he mentioned in passing that he was installing an Easy Touch 4 and that it was an L - I got into an argument with him telling him that he should have been clear when giving me the quote that he should have mentioned that he would be installing a L version. He got annoyed with me and said there is no difference between the regular and the L version except for the load sensor - and that is the way he installs it keeping the breakers separately so that when his clients are looking for the breakers they are all neatly in one panel. He said since you are only doing a pool it really does not make sense to install that full scaled version because the L version does the same thing. he said if we were also building a spa it would be then make sense.

To keep things short the conversation became heated and my PB snapped at me said "whatever I will give you the full version but it will do the same thing". (he was pretty rude - since I told him he should have been clear in the quote that it was a L - I incidentally had asked him for the part numbers and that time too he never told me it was a L)

Would appreciate if anyone can chime in with your thoughts

Thanks!
Max

 

[mknauss]

You do NOT want the Lite version.

I will let Jimrahbe give you specifics -- he will chime in soon!

 

[Jimrahbe]

Max,

If you want some personal feedback, talk with Dirk...

Your pool builder is correct when he says the lite version does not have a load center... I see having a load center as a giant plus rather than a negative like your pool builder.

After that your pool builder's comments are anything but true... the lite version can only support 4 programs or schedules, the real ET has 12... the lite version only has one Feature circuit, the real ET has 8. Not sure if you are getting SWCG or not, but the lite version does not have a built-in salt power supply. If you buy the ET with the Salt cell, it comes with an internal salt cell power supply.,

I think there is something else that I can't put my finger on at the moment, but for me, not have a load center alone is enough reason not to by the lite version...

What else are you having at the equipment pad that will need it's own circuit breaker panel... "where they all can be together???"

Thanks,

Jim R.

 

[Dirk]

The "who pays for it aside," do not get the "L." Even if you have to pay for the upgrade. Jim has already mentioned the two main drawbacks, the allowed schedules and the load center. I hate looking at the external circuit breaker box, but I can live with that because once I walk away from the pad, it's out of mind.

But the scheduling is a huge deal, for me. I got the same spiel: you just have a pool, no spa, so what are you going to program? Well:

1. filter mode
2. cleaner mode
3. pool light
4. skimmer mode (a high-speed version of filter mode, that can clear the floating leaves quickly)

That's it for the lite version. And maybe you're thinking, well, that's enough. Not.

The ETs have two very cool additional scheduling features:

- A one time schedule, like if you want the light to go a little later for a party, but don't want to mess with the normal schedule.

- And egg timers. So say you notice some leaves floating around just before guests arrive. So you manually invoke "skimmer mode" to polish the surface, and the egg timer schedule knows to shut off the high speed skimmer function 30 minutes later. Set it and forget it!

Here's the rub. All those count against the measly four allowed schedules. So if you fill your schedules like above, 1-4, you can't use egg timers, and vice versa! I don't use the one-time scheduling much at all, so I'm not sure they count against the four. I could check, but I bet they do.

And how I'd really like to be able to run my pool if I wanted to:

1. filter mode egg time
2. cleaner mode egg time
3. pool light egg time
4. skimmer mode egg time

and then the regular schedules:

5. filter mode
6. cleaner mode
7. pool light
8. skimmer mode

and then if that didn't adequately clean my pool, I'd like the option of adding more:

9. split the filter mode into two times a day (morning and night)
10. a second vacuuming session during leaf-dropping season
11. a second skimmer mode, so one in the morning, one in the afternoon and
12. a third skimmer mode, another in the late afternoon

Boom, 12 right off the bat. Don't stop me now!!

I'm not even explaining what I'd like to be able to do with my solar heater!! I could probably use four more!

I actually have the SPA version, which I make great use of even though I don't have a spa.

The ET can automate different SWG outputs for pool and spa. I don't have a spa, but the ET doesn't know that. So I'll have 7 hours of filter mode, with SWG, that's what my pool needs chlorine-wise. But the solar heater is a complete wild card based on weather and if I'm even home. So I set up a SPA mode, with SWG output of zero, which I can turn on manually. So come 3:00PM and my filtering is done, and my SWG has delivered all the chlorine I need, I can engage SPA mode, which will then continue solar heating, but with no extra SWG runtime. Otherwise, if I wanted extra heat that day, I'd also end up with extra chlorine. (There's now an IntellipH in the mix that makes that ability even more important.)

And I'd love to be able to program that SPA mode thoughout the week. And even have an egg timer for it, so I could just push a button, get extra heat that afternoon (for my late night swim-a-go-go) and know that it'll shut down three hours later without me thinking about it. But nope, I only get four schedules.

So I make do, but I have all this great convenience equipment that I can't use fully because of my ET lite. I curse my PB all the time!! He (and yours) are thinking in terms of filter, maybe cleaner, light. That's it. But I paid a lot of money for automation. I want to automate!!

Think about what you might want to program, how many schedules you might need, then double that number!! (Or at least 150%). I didn't even get into running landscape lighting, water features, fountain pump, bistro lights, etc, etc.

I'm guessing an ET4 would have a very discounted resale value. A 4L would be way less, unless you're willing to pass along that unfortunate junk to a stranger. Point being, if you buy too small, you're going to be stuck buying a new one and recouping little from the mistake.

If I had it to do again, I get the ET8, with SWG and power center and spa mode, too (not sure they even come without that). And I'd probably max that out...

 

[iamtexmax]

Thank you all for responding - I will insist on the non Lite version.

 

[Jimrahbe]

Thank you all for responding - I will insist on the non Lite version.

I,

The only downside to the "real" ET is that it does not normally come bundled with ScreenLogic2... You have buy it separately.. About $360 at Sunplay...

Having an EasyTouch without ScreenLogic is kind of like having a car without air conditioning... it works, but...... not much fun...

Thanks,

Jim R

 

[Dirk]

+1 for ScreenLogic.

Jim, is there a bundle that includes an ET8, the power center, an SWG and transformer and ScreenLogic? It if were me, I'd negotiate with the PB the price of what he was including, and then pay the difference to get that bundle, if there is such a thing...

 

[ogdento]

since you're digging up the yard and building the pool now anyway... shoot a cat6 cable (or two) in conduit out to your pool equipment station and you won't have to mess with any wireless transmitters for screen logic - or any other fun stuff you might want to add in the future.

you can find just the screen logic protocol adapter (without the wireless interface) for 200 bucks

 

[Dirk]

since you're digging up the yard and building the pool now anyway... shoot a cat6 cable (or two) in conduit out to your pool equipment station and you won't have to mess with any wireless transmitters for screen logic - or any other fun stuff you might want to add in the future.

you can find just the screen logic protocol adapter (without the wireless interface) for 200 bucks

I'm a big believer in hard-wiring, so +1 for this idea. I'd run cat6 everywhere if I was building a house or yard from scratch. You can use if for all sorts of fun stuff. But...

My protocol adapter is inside, warm and dry, by my router, connected with just a short run of cat6. I ran a four-wire cable from it to the pad, to hardwire to my ET controller's comm port (which does not accept an ethernet cable). You can decide where the adaptor is going to live, but either way, I'd run both cat6 and the proper four-wire cable in the conduit, and keep your options open.

 

[ogdento]

omg i wasn't thinking! if nothing else, definitely do the 4-wire cable like Dirk suggested +100 for his idea

 

[Dirk]

But do still run the cat6, too, you never know what might get added someday that will need it. cat6 can support computer signals, of course, but can be used for video, audio, intercom, phone, etc.

 

[iamtexmax]

Thank you all for this suggestion - sorry I have been travelling and just saw these suggestions - do I ask my PB to run the cat6 and 4 wire cable (sorry I am technologically dumb) or do I contact a cabling guy to come and do that?

 

[Dirk]

See it the PB will do it before you hire another contractor. Unless the PB will want some exorbitant price to pull two cables.