IC-40 SWG: Is Cleaning necessary

[CFlaPool]

My IC-40 SWG is almost three years old. The unit has never told me to clean it. I have never removed it. It has no problem generating chlorine. I usually set it around 25%. The last two salt tests pretty much matched the Screenlogic salt level, although in the past the IC would read lower. Salt level is 3000. Reading here on TFP makes me think I should take it out and inspect it. I bought the pentair cleaning stand. Is there a simple way to disconnect power to the IC without taking off the interior panel to expose the circuit boards (assuming this is where the connector connects to the intellicenter)? The panel has the disconnect and the SWG breaker.

 

[Jimrahbe]

C,

Your cell just plugs into the bottom of your EasyTouch's cabinet.

You should be looking at your cell at least once a year. If it looks ok, you just put in back in, you don't need to clean it.

Just because it is making chlorine does not mean it is not full of scale.

Thanks,

Jim R.

 

[CFlaPool]

C,

Your cell just plugs into the bottom of your EasyTouch's cabinet.

You should be looking at your cell at least once a year. If it looks ok, you just put in back in, you don't need to clean it.

Just because it is making chlorine does not mean it is not full of scale.

Thanks,

Jim R.

Thanks Jim. I went back out and saw it there on the lower left underside of the panel. There is a warning tag on the cable that indicates to turn off main power before disconnecting the SWG cord. So should I turn off all power to the intellicenter before disconnecting it?

Adding: I do have a separate breaker panel that has a power breaker that feeds the intellicenter panel.

 

[Jimrahbe]

c,

Yes... Most likely nothing would happen if you did not shut off the power, but it is the best practice..

It won't shock you, but the cell gets com port data through that plug and connecting and disconnecting with power on "could" damage the communication chips.

Thanks,

Jim R.

 

[CFlaPool]

c,

Yes... Most likely nothing would happen if you did not shut off the power, but it is the best practice..

It won't shock you, but the cell gets com port data through that plug and connecting and disconnecting with power on "could" damage the communication chips.

Thanks,

Jim R.

OK, thanks again for the help. I will check the cell tomorrow and proceed with cleaning if necessary.

 

[pjt]

If you think you need to clean the cell, follow this guide:

SWG How It Works - Further Reading

www.troublefreepool.com

 

[CFlaPool]

If you think you need to clean the cell, follow this guide:

SWG How It Works - Further Reading

www.troublefreepool.com

Thanks. I’ve read several threads on cleaning and will definitely read this one before starting.

 

[CFlaPool]

c,

Yes... Most likely nothing would happen if you did not shut off the power, but it is the best practice..

It won't shock you, but the cell gets com port data through that plug and connecting and disconnecting with power on "could" damage the communication chips.

Thanks,

Jim R.

If I cut all the power from the intellicenter, is there any reason to unplug the SWG plug from the intellicenter? I ask this because the plug is not cooperating witth removal. Does it turn to lock onto plug connector? Or is it just 3 years of aging without being unplugged?

Never mind. I found the locking washer and loosened it to get plug off the socket.

 

[JJ_Tex]

I check mine every year, but am pretty good at keeping my CSI 0 or slightly negative. In my 4 years I have not had to clean the cell so hopefully that means I will get many more years of life out of it.

 

[CFlaPool]

I check mine every year, but am pretty good at keeping my CSI 0 or slightly negative. In my 4 years I have not had to clean the cell so hopefully that means I will get many more years of life out of it.

Looking at it, it looked clean. There was some dirt trapped between plates and a hosing cleaned those out of there. The edges of the plates look silver, but plates are so close together it is tough to see any deposits. I assume that if it was needed a vigorous cleaning, the deposits would be easy to see.

 

[Jimrahbe]

I assume that if it was needed a vigorous cleaning, the deposits would be easy to see.

C,

Yes... very obvious!!

Thanks,

Jim R.

 

[CFlaPool]

C,

Yes... very obvious!!

Thanks,

Jim R.

Great! I got the pentair stand. It sure made it easy. I did a vinegar treatment, got little reaction. So I went ahead and did a 10:1 acid soak for five minutes. Small initial reaction. Reinstalled and repowered, all is running well. Cell is reporting 3200 where it was 3000 before cleaning. Salt test yields 3300-3400 so I guess that small difference is good.

Thanks again to all. This place is awesome.

 

[CFlaPool]

Great! I got the pentair stand. It sure made it easy. I did a vinegar treatment, got little reaction. So I went ahead and did a 10:1 acid soak for five minutes. Small initial reaction. Reinstalled and repowered, all is running well. Cell is reporting 3200 where it was 3000 before cleaning. Salt test yields 3300-3400 so I guess that small difference is good.

Thanks again to all. This place is awesome.

This is weird. The cell was reading 3200. I added a 40 lb bag of salt, and it didn’t go up at all. Four days later, after an inch of rain, it now reads 3150. The salt test kit says 3400, which would be accurate given 3200 plus the salt. Is there a problem with the cell, and maybe needs more cleaning?

 

[Turbo1Ton]

This is weird. The cell was reading 3200. I added a 40 lb bag of salt, and it didn’t go up at all. Four days later, after an inch of rain, it now reads 3150. The salt test kit says 3400, which would be accurate given 3200 plus the salt. Is there a problem with the cell, and maybe needs more cleaning?

This sounds correct. The salt reading is not instantaneous. The cell will only check salinity every 12hours if on continuously, or each time it is powered up. The 3150 salt reading from the cell and the 3400 test result are within the 500ppm accuracy of the cell. Everything looks good to me.

--Jeff

 

[BDY]

This is weird. The cell was reading 3200. I added a 40 lb bag of salt, and it didn’t go up at all. Four days later, after an inch of rain, it now reads 3150. The salt test kit says 3400, which would be accurate given 3200 plus the salt. Is there a problem with the cell, and maybe needs more cleaning?

Each time you clean the cell with vinegar or acid it reduces the life of the cell (as it strips off some of the rare earth on the plates). So be sparing with the cleaning unless it’s really obvious it needs it

 

[CFlaPool]

Thanks all.