IC40 Newbie Help

Jump to latest Follow Reply
J

Jfish303

Active member
Jun 4, 2020
35
Denver, CO
Surface
Fiberglass
Chlorine
Salt Water Generator
SWG Type
Pentair Intellichlor IC-30
New pool owner with new Fiberglass in ground pool / hot tub combo. I have been operating the pool for 1 - 2 months

Left for vacation seven days ago all chemicals and pressures were fine.

Since taking over I have been using screen logic app to move the salt chlorine generator from around 3-6% output to keep the chlorine in the 2 - 4.0 range. I have been using pH down to keep the pH level between 7.2 and 7.6.

The salt level has not dropped below 4700ppm even though I have never added salt. I do have some on hand if needed.

Two days ago the chlorine dropped to 0.5. I increased the output of the salt chlorine generator to 8% and measured again the next day. This time the chlorine registered at 0%. Last night I adjusted the output to 15% and this morning the level remains at 0%.

This morning when I first looked at the IC40 the cell and output light were off. I looked later and they were both on. The third time I looked the output light was on but the cell light was off. The salt level indicator is flashing green. Flow light is solid green.

The only other change I've noticed is the pressure in the filter has moved from 12 psi to 15psi which I plan to address today by cleaning the filter and strainer baskets. I will also vacuum the pool which was done last week.

Other factors:

  • I am in Colorado so the pool has been operating in freeze mode where it goes back and forth between pool and spa when cold, but the weather has been nice so this is only happening at night and this was going on prior to the change in levels. I believe it only chlorinates in pool mode.

  • I was using dry acid to adjust pH which after reading the manual is not advised. I have only used about four cups total in the last 4 -8 weeks

Any thoughts or help is appreciated.
 
Last edited:
Please provide how you are testing your water.
Also, what is your water temperature and air temperature? Per the IC40 manual -
"Ensure the water temperature is above 52° F. The IntelliChlor will not produce chlorine
below 52° F."

Additional Note in Manual
Operating IntelliChlor in Water Temperatures below 52° F When the IntelliChlor is operated in water temperatures 52° F and below, the CELL light will remain off. This feature extends the blade life. To verify the cell is in this cold water cutoff, press and hold the MORE button for three (3) seconds until the lights scroll across the display. The CELL light will be red to show it is in cold water cutoff, or green for normal operation
 
J,

A salt level over 4500 will make the green salt light flash indicating the salt level is too high.. It is just warning and the cell should still work.

You did not tell us the most important thing.. What is your CYA level.. An FC level between 2 and 4 may be good or it may not depending on your CYA.

Tell us if your water is cloudy or clear.

Thanks,

Jim R.
 
  • Like
Reactions: BowserB
I am new so thanks for your patience.

For testing I am using water guru backed up by Taylor K-1004 test kit. The result always seem to match.

Water temp is at constant 79 degrees unless kids are actively using the hot tub in which case it is around 102-104

Air temp is between 20 - 55 degrees. You can see from the picture is going back and forth between pool and spa due to freeze protection. The rest of the time it runs a schedule to prevent freeze.

I'll have to read up on how to test CYA but the water is clear.

IMG_2679.PNG
 
J,

The main reason for a salt cell not increasing the FC of the water is that you have algae. This applies even when the water is not green.

Salt cells make very little chlorine at any one time. Algae can consume all the chlorine the cell can make not leaving any FC increase in the pool water. Algae does not tend to grow this time of year, but in your case, it sounds like you are constantly heating the pool, so the algae does not know it is winter. :mrgreen:

If you have a very low CYA level, then the sun will consume the FC almost as fast as you can make it.

Pump/cell run time is another factor. Tell us how long you run your cell each day.. Also how big is the pool in gallons?

Show us some pictures of your equipment pad. I'd like to know if your cell is plumbed to provide chlorine to both the pool and spa or just the pool.

Thanks,

Jim R.
 
  • Like
Reactions: BowserB
The pump runs 24/7 during the winter to prevent freeze. Assume that means the cell is also running all the time, but I'm not sure.

Pool is approximately is 15,000 gallons.

Since it is winter pool is covered approximately 95% of the time so very little sun.

Here is a pic from during construction

IMG_2095.jpeg
 
J,

With an autocover, that stays closed most of the time, CYA is not as important because the pool is not seeing constant sunlight. I would run a CYA level of 30 ppm.

If your Spa output was set to zero then your chlorine production is cut in half when the freeze mode is running.

I would still check for a low-level algae bloom, by doing an overnight Chlorine Loss Test. Overnight Chlorine Loss Test

I would use liquid chlorine to bring your FC up to 5 or 6 ppm and then wait for a couple of hours and check it again and see how much FC has gone done. At night, or with the cover closed, you should not lose any FC.

Thanks,

Jim R.
 
Last edited:
  • Like
Reactions: BowserB

Enjoying this content?

Support TFP with a donation.

Give Support
J,

An FC of .5 is way low no matter what your CYA is.. I suggest that you add some Liquid Chlorine to get it back up to at least 4 ppm.

If it will not come up, that is a sign of algae..

If your filter pressure quickly comes back up to what it was before, that is another sign of algae.

Thanks,

Jim R.
 
You must log in or register to reply here.
Thread Status
Hello , This thread has been inactive for over 60 days. New postings here are unlikely to be seen or responded to by other members. For better visibility, consider Starting A New Thread.
Top Bottom
Back
Jump to latest Follow Reply