Have had to add 120 lb salt to pool in one year

[tplee]

I would like to add that a T-3 cell is absolutely way too small (undersized) for your pool volume. At a minimum your pool would have a T-9 cell or, since the incremental cost is not all that much, a T-15 cell. TFP recommends always getting a cell that is rated for 2X your pool volume and your installer will tell you that your cell is perfectly sized to your pool volume ... you can listen to whoever you want but installers and the industry are wrong on this point. A small cell means it needs to run at nearly 100% output all the time. That is very bad for cell life and can lead to premature cell failure. But, like I said, the Industry has it's opinion on the subject...

Thanks for pointing that out. I was just guessing; it has Blue Haven stickers all over it so I don't know the model number. Most of last year I ran my SWCG between 4-7% which kept my chlorine between 2.5-7 ppm all year. It's been a screening hot summer so far, so just bumped it to 10% the other day.

 

[ajw22]

I tried a pipe wrench, but stopped before I tear something up.

A strap wrench is the best to use on those unions as they don't gouge them when using force on it.

 

[ajw22]

A small cell means it needs to run at nearly 100% output all the time. That is very bad for cell life and can lead to premature cell failure.

Running at the % needed to generate the chlorine needed does not lead to premature failure.

It depletes the cell of the chlorine capacity that was bought.

Buying a small cell is false economy. Initial cost is lower but replacement comes sooner then a larger capacity cell.

A T-3 cell is specified to have a generation capacity of 193lbs of chlorine while a T-9 is 354 and a T-15 is 580.

Polytecpools prices for cells are:

• T-3 - $430 or $2.22/lb CL
• T-9 - $679 or $1.92/lb CL
• T-15 - $899 or $1.55/lb CL

Using the T-15 cell is the clear winner at a cost/lb of CL 30% less then the T-3 and should last three times as long.

 

[Steve-D]

According to others here (thank you @Texas Splash & @PoolGate ) the K-1766 Salt test is only accurate to +/- 400 ppm so don't expect the results to match your SWG. If your SWG is working correctly it should read somewhere near the same +/- 400 range as the test.

 

[ajw22]

it has Blue Haven stickers all over it so I don't know the model number.

Blue Haven and other vendors white label the Hayward Aquarite system and put their branding in it.

Do you have a cover on your pool?

I am surprised you can run a T-3 cell at between 4-7% on a 14.5K pool.

What is your daily pump runtime?

 

[JoyfulNoise]

Running at the % needed to generate the chlorine needed does not lead to premature failure.

It depletes the cell of the chlorine capacity that was bought.

Buying a small cell is false economy. Initial cost is lower but replacement comes sooner then a larger capacity cell.

A T-3 cell is specified to have a generation capacity of 193lbs of chlorine while a T-9 is 354 and a T-15 is 580.

Polytecpools prices for cells are:

• T-3 - $430 or $2.22/lb CL
• T-9 - $679 or $1.92/lb CL
• T-15 - $899 or $1.55/lb CL

Using the T-15 cell is the clear winner at a cost/lb of CL 30% less then the T-3 and should last three times as long.

@ajw22

This is not true. Cells should never be run at 100% all the time. That will absolutely wear out the coating faster. Your assumption is that the electrolysis of the pool water and formation of chlorine is uniform across the cell plates. It is not. You’re welcome to move this post to Agree to Disagree or The Deep End if you want to have further discussion.

 

[ajw22]

@ajw22

This is not true. Cells should never be run at 100% all the time. That will absolutely wear out the coating faster. Your assumption is that the electrolysis of the pool water and formation of chlorine is uniform across the cell plates. It is not. You’re welcome to move this post to Agree to Disagree or The Deep End if you want to have further discussion.

Followup thread at...

Running a SWG at 100%

From ... https://www.troublefreepool.com/threads/have-had-to-add-120-lb-salt-to-pool-in-one-year.254219/post-2251405 @JoyfulNoise said: This is not true. Cells should never be run at 100% all the time. That will absolutely wear out the coating faster. Your assumption is that the...

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