IC40 IntelliChlor reading high salt when not

[Dan-H]

About a week ago, the IC40 started flashing high salt and was listed at 4500 indicated on the Easytouch diagnostic screen.

Today I measured with salt test from a TF-100 kit and it is reading 3000ppm

I'd read it might need an acid clean so I removed it for a cleaning, and this is what I found.




After cleaning it is still showing 4500 salt.

Questions:
Does the chlorinator still run when high salt is flashing? I shocked yesterday with bleach because we've had some late spring rains knocking all sorts of debris into the pool and it wasn't looking stellar like it normally does.

I did a quick rinse but did not have enough acid. Should I soak the cell?
What percentage of water to muriatic acid?

 

[Ajayabb]

I believe the Pentairs still produce chlorine when reading high salt levels. That's one of their advantages. Some people clean the plates with household vinegar otherwise use about a 10:1 water to acid mixture

 

[JamesW]

The blue deposit/scaling looks like it contains copper. The copper is probably from the heater.

I would recommend an acid cleaning. Try 3 parts water to 1 part muriatic acid. Follow safe cleaning procedures when working with acid.

Plug one end of the cell and fill the cell with the acid mix. Don't plug both ends as carbon dioxide is produced and could build excess pressure.

 

[Dan-H]

Thanks. I'll watch the pool chlorine and see if it is still working and I'll try the acid cleaning tomorrow.

I knocked the blue crystalline deposits out with a bamboo skewer. A few hours later the diagnostic salt reading was down to 4250, still 1200+ over the test. Last summer, the salt readout from the IC40 was a couple hundred PPM above the the test kit which seemed within a reasonable margin of error.

 

[pooldv]

Yes the intellichlor will continue to produce chlorine in high salt condition.

 

[Dan-H]

I believe the Pentairs still produce chlorine when reading high salt levels. That's one of their advantages.

Yes the intellichlor will continue to produce chlorine in high salt condition.

Thank you both !