Help!!! Cloudy with Dropping Chlorine

[jecomer]

Your signature shows a SWCG as Aquapure Ei. Jandy has Aquapure 700 or 1400 or the Truclear/Ei. Which do you have?

CYA dropping can create sudden spikes of FC loss. With a SWCG, there is almost a breakover point. At 70 CYA, you may be fine, but at 60 CYA your FC loss spikes. My pool is that way. As you get rain, it is imperative you test CYA at least monthly. And keep it at 70 - 80 ppm.

Thanks for the quick reply. Hopefully you are right about the CYA. Maybe it just got away from me...again The problem that I have is that it feels like I am constantly adding stabilizer to the pool. I have been trying to monitor the CYA levels weekly.

5/21 - 65 (added 10 oz stabilizer)
5/23 - 65 (added 8 oz stabilizer)
5/29 - 70
5/31 - 65 (added 8 oz stabilizer)
6/10 - 50 (added 30 oz stabilizer)
6/14 - 70
6/28 - 60 (added 20 oz stabilizer)
7/5 - 70
7/12 - 55 (added 20 oz stabilizer)

If you exclude yesterday, I have added 76 oz of stabilizer to the pool in the past month and a half. Based upon my reading and the information you guys have provided, this is unusual. I know the rain will dilute the CYA but we did not receive a significant amount of rain until the last two weeks. I have been trying to hold my CYA around 70. Based on this information, should I try and hold my CYA closer to 80?

Lastly, I am still trying to find my SWCG product information, but here is a link to the model that I have. I am trying to get the exact model number.

Jandy AquaPure Ei

 

[jecomer]

Check on that. Is that with pump running? Is your filter clean so your flow switch is closed for the SWCG?

I will do some further investigation on why this message is triggering. The filter pressure is currently about 10 psi, which is only a little above the clean level. I'm not sure what the SWCG flow switch is. The flow light on the SWCG control panel is not illuminated. Therefore, it appears the SWCG has the proper flow and pressure, and therefore is operating. The flow light does illuminate if the pump is off and the SWCG is powered. I hope this answers your question.

 

[mknauss]

Thank you for the SWCG info -- that is the same as the Truclear. So will generate 0.92 lbs of chlorine gas per day. That can add 7 ppm FC to your pool if run at 100% for 24 hours per day. So your minimum run time is most likely 12-14 hours per day (at 100%) right now.

CYA drops by rain / overflow and water temperature/UV degradation. Up to 10 ppm loss per month in the summer due to degradation is normal. Add on any overflow.

I would suggest taking your CYA closer to 80 and trying to maintain your FC near 8 ppm.

That is good the SWCG appears to be operating. A flow switch keeps it from generating without flow through it. A SWCG can explode if that happens. Does your SWCG power completely off when the pump is off?

 

[jecomer]

mknauss is great.
I'm not sure I understand if you are adding chlorine daily, or if you're using SWG exclusively and running 24/7 (I don't have a SWG and don't know if you're supposed to run it 24/7. If I'm wrong, you can ignore me.
When you write "the FC crash" do you mean the FC levels won't stay at 6.5 when you are running the SWG 24/7? Are you adding chlorine daily?

Thanks so much for the reply. Yes, mknauss has been very help throughout this whole process. Hopefully we can get to the bottom of the issue. To answer your question, the SWCG is currently set to run from 6am to 6pm at 80%. Therefore, it is generating chlorine 80% of the time during that time period. I have not added any liquid chlorine to the pool since the last SLAM/Shock. And yes, when I say the FC crashes, I mean that it rapidly drops (i.e. the SWCG can not keep up.) I'm assuming at this point, there are some organics/algae that are depleting the chlorine faster than it is being produced.

 

[jecomer]

Thank you for the SWCG info -- that is the same as the Truclear. So will generate 0.92 lbs of chlorine gas per day. That can add 7 ppm FC to your pool if run at 100% for 24 hours per day. So your minimum run time is most likely 12-14 hours per day (at 100%) right now.

CYA drops by rain / overflow and water temperature/UV degradation. Up to 10 ppm loss per month in the summer due to degradation is normal. Add on any overflow.

I would suggest taking your CYA closer to 80 and trying to maintain your FC near 8 ppm.

That is good the SWCG appears to be operating. A flow switch keeps it from generating without flow through it. A SWCG can explode if that happens. Does your SWCG power completely off when the pump is off?

Thanks for the information. Since the last SLAM, I have been able to maintain the FC at or around 15 with the SWCG running 12 hours a day at 80%. As I monitor the FC levels, I might adjust the time just slightly or increase the to 100%. But I have found that sweet spot at 12 hours and 80%. I will adjust my plan of attack to hold the CYA closer to 80 with the associated higher FC.

My pool definitely takes a beating this time of year from the temperature, UV, rain and family. Obviously, the overflow is a unique variable, but based on my usage, do you think my levels are all that unusual?

It is a long story, like most of mine, but right now the SWCG does not power off when the pump is off. Like many systems, I have a mix of old and new components. My pump is fairly new and has a wifi controller. Unfortunately, after a lot of research, it appears my pump and it's controller do not have the ability/circuitry to control the power to the SWCG. Therefore, the SWCG is connected to an old mechanical timer. I have had some doubt in the reliability of the mechanical timer, so after the FC crashed in May, I decided to take the mechanical timer out of the equation. Therefore, I set the mechanical timer switch to ON, which in turn causes the SWCG to be on 24/7. What are your thoughts on this? Is it bad? Should I replace the mechanical timer with a new one, maybe a wifi timer so that I can set the SWCG time to exact the same time as the pump?

 

[mknauss]

The SWCG can explode if powered on with out flow through it. It is rare, but there are examples documented here on the forum.

Explosion near the SWG

We were watching TV and heard a major explosion after exploring in the backyard I went into my pool equipment should and found about a 16 in PVC pipe shredded 8in on one side 8in on the other side of where my SWG Is located. I have no Idea what to think. It appears the SWG somehow was not...

www.troublefreepool.com

12 hours at 80% is less than 3 ppm FC being generated per day. In your climate, that is low. It might work some day, when it is cloudy, but get a string of clear, sunny days with lots of pool use, and your FC will drop.

 

[jecomer]

The SWCG can explode if powered on with out flow through it. It is rare, but there are examples documented here on the forum.

Explosion near the SWG

We were watching TV and heard a major explosion after exploring in the backyard I went into my pool equipment should and found about a 16 in PVC pipe shredded 8in on one side 8in on the other side of where my SWG Is located. I have no Idea what to think. It appears the SWG somehow was not...

www.troublefreepool.com

12 hours at 80% is less than 3 ppm FC being generated per day. In your climate, that is low. It might work some day, when it is cloudy, but get a string of clear, sunny days with lots of pool use, and your FC will drop.

I was afraid you were going to say that. I have to go to the pool store to get some chlorine. I will look into the options available for replacing my mechanical timer.

With your experience, do you have an average life expectancy for SWCG? I looked at the label on my control unit and it says it was manufactured in 2013. Thanks!

 

[mknauss]

I would say you are close to end of life. Most have ~10000 generating hours. But environmental factors can decrease that.

 

[MITBeta]

How often do you check your chlorine levels? Your first post this morning suggests that you're checking weekly? With all the issues you've had, if I were you I'd be checking at least once per day, if not twice.

Maybe your SWG is operating intermittently, or maybe the flow drops below the minimum operating level due to the filter getting dirty.

I'd watch FC like a hawk.

 

[JJ_Tex]

How often do you check your chlorine levels? Your first post this morning suggests that you're checking weekly? With all the issues you've had, if I were you I'd be checking at least once per day, if not twice.

That was my thought as well. There could have been a drop in between your readings. I test mine daily and caught myself flirting with the minimum on Sunday and had to hit it with liquid chlorine to get it back up to the target range.

 

[jecomer]

How often do you check your chlorine levels? Your first post this morning suggests that you're checking weekly? With all the issues you've had, if I were you I'd be checking at least once per day, if not twice.

Maybe your SWG is operating intermittently, or maybe the flow drops below the minimum operating level due to the filter getting dirty.

I'd watch FC like a hawk.

After the SLAM in May, I was checking the chlorine pretty much every day. As it appeared the levels were holding stable, the testing may have dropped to more like every other day. This past week, I failed and did not check. There were several reasons, but ultimately, a week went by. I was planning on letting the chlorine levels drop into the normal recommended range, from the levels I had been holding, so I did not think it was a huge deal. Obviously, I was wrong. As mentioned above, the drop in the CYA may have caused a rapid drop in the chlorine levels. So it looks like I need to be more meticulous when it comes to monitoring the chlorine levels, especially after large loads or rain.

I agree, the SWCG maybe suspect. I just checked and the manufacture date on the unit is 2013. I believe the cell may have been replaced under warranty a few years after installation, but that still means that the cell may have 3 or 4 years of year round operation on it at this point. I am heading to the pool store to get some chlorine, so I'm going to have them check the original installation date and the date of the cell replacement. I maybe looking at a cell that is starting to go bad.

Thanks so much for your help!

 

[jecomer]

That was my thought as well. There could have been a drop in between your readings. I test mine daily and caught myself flirting with the minimum on Sunday and had to hit it with liquid chlorine to get it back up to the target range.

Thanks! I definitely need to be more vigilant when it comes to monitoring my chlorine levels. Is it common to add liquid chlorine to a salt water pool if you see the chlorine levels start to drop below the recommended levels?

 

[JJ_Tex]

Thanks! I definitely need to be more vigilant when it comes to monitoring my chlorine levels. Is it common to add liquid chlorine to a salt water pool if you see the chlorine levels start to drop below the recommended levels?

This is my first summer with a pool, but I always like having a gallon or two of liquid chlorine on hand. In the winter the SWCG shuts down, so I used the liquid chlorine much more then than I do now, but there have been a couple of instances where I have added this summer.

This weekend was just a comedy of errors and the closest I have been to falling below the minimum. It is crazy how quickly it can happen even with a SWCG and daily testing:
- Saturday AM, I did the full battery of tests and was at FC 4.5
- Saturday during the day we had a really full bather load (2 groups of 4-6 people, for the majority of the day)
- I was playing around with the schedule earlier in the week and bumped the pump runtime down to 12 hours a day instead of 24, I increased the SWCG % from 40 to 60%
- Sunday morning I slept in and missed my normal testing window, and had to run some errands when I woke up. By the time I got back and could test, the kids were already in the pool. I tested with the K1000 kit (my daily tester) and it was a FC of 3-ish which is the minimum for my CYA of 70.
- I quickly dumped 1/4 gallon of liquid chlorine to get the FC back to 5ish
- This morning (with no swimming so far) my K1000 shows it is still 5ish or maybe a bit higher

Had I missed my Sunday test and supplemental chlorine, I could be looking at a cloudy pool as well.

 

[mariane]

Well it looks like you are getting to the root of the problem - FC needs daily testing, low SWCG output, therefore daily chlorine addition.