Pentair or Generic SWG ?

[Ronson_321]

A week or so ago I resurrected an old IC40 that was attached to my pool but not used for the last few years and I got it generating chlorine again and I'm now a fan of SWG technology.

However the IC40 was not used for 5+ years and has a few problems:
- It constantly shows 'very low salt level' and doesn't generate chlorine when this happens even though testing shows salt to be at 3600, I can bypass this problem by adding salt to my spa and have the pump take water from my spa during the IC40 startup and then switch back to take water from the pool once it is happy and it will then generate chlorine for the next 12 hours. The problem with this 'workaround' is that I have to add 2-3 pounds of salt to the spa to fool the IC40 and eventually that will lead to too much salt and I will have to start back washing everyday or draining water from the pool every few weeks to prevent this being an issue

- The 'flow light' stays green even when the pump is off. This may be a wiring issue but my checks didn't show anything obvious and I suspect this may also be a unit issue

Anyway: I did the math and assuming I can't fix the first problem it looks like it makes sense to replace the unit (the cost of wasted salt + replaced water are less than the depreciation costs of a new unit, not even counting the haste of the current workaround)

My questions are:

- What are advantages/disadvantages of generic IC40 unit V Pentair IC40 unit other than cost?
- Amazon has Pentair IC40 units described as 'like new' for $899 from a company called The TiendaStore. Anyone had any experience as to whether these are worth buying as they are $100 cheaper than from Pentair ?

 

[Jimrahbe]

Ron,

Both the salt level and flow light are controlled by the Flow Switch assy. It is really the only thing you can DIY replace....

I would replace that before replacing the whole cell.

You can buy them at Amazon and many other on line pool stores.

Thanks,

Jim R.

 

[Ronson_321]

Thanks. Sounds like that's worth a try.

 

[Ronson_321]

Thanks. Sounds like that's worth a try.

I changed the switch and it fixed the low salt issue so I can generate chlorine again! The flow light still stays on even when the pump if off so that seems likely to be a wiring issue.

I'm not too worried about it because I have the timer set so the IC40 is only ever on when the pump is on but it still feels like something I should fix.

Does anyone have any idea what kind of wiring issue it could be ? Is this the sort of thing a standard electrician could fix or would I need an IC40 specilaist?

Thanks,

Rob.

 

[Newdude]

Any chance you bent the flow switch flap ? It’s terribly flimsy and would be easy to bend when shoving the new one in. It’s 4 wires and you seem handy so I’m pretty sure you didn’t accidentally short them somehow. I’d pull the unit and check to make sure the flapper isn’t touching the pole/peg thingy.

 

[Ronson_321]

Thanks. I'll check that

 

[Jimrahbe]

Ron,

What color is the flow light when the pump is running??

What color is the flow light when the pump is off???

When the pump is off, the cell should have no lights at all, because the AC voltage to the SWCG power center should be off when the pump is off...

Thanks,

Jim R.

 

[Ronson_321]

Ron,

What color is the flow light when the pump is running??

What color is the flow light when the pump is off???

When the pump is off, the cell should have no lights at all, because the AC voltage to the SWCG power center should be off when the pump is off...

Thanks,

Jim R.

The flow light is always green whatever the pump status. It is wired separately to the pump and has its own timer.

 

[Flying Tivo]

It is wired separately to the pump and has its own timer.

This is a big No for safety reasons. If the cell is producing while there is no flow, you risk an explosion.

 

[Jimrahbe]

Ron,

This a bigger issue then you realize... A green flow light means the cell can try to make chlorine with no water flow.. This can cause the cell to explode...

If the cell is wired to a timer, then the timer should be off when the pump is off. If you are turning the pump off manually, then you need to turn the timer off manually.

The cell should not have any power when the pump is off.. But if it does, the flow light should be red..

Turn off the timer and see if all the cell lights go off...

Thanks,

Jim R.

 

[Ronson_321]

Ron,

This a bigger issue then you realize... A green flow light means the cell can try to make chlorine with no water flow.. This can cause the cell to explode...

If the cell is wired to a timer, then the timer should be off when the pump is off. If you are turning the pump off manually, then you need to turn the timer off manually.

The cell should not have any power when the pump is off.. But if it does, the flow light should be red..

Turn off the timer and see if all the cell lights go off...

Thanks,

Jim R.

I have the timer on the SWG set so that it is only ever on when the pump is on (The pump is a Pentair inteliflow with its own timer and I have it on for 12 hours a day and the SWG for an 8-hour window within that). If nothing goes wrong the SWG can never be on when the pump is off.

I recognize there is some (I hope small) risk that the the pump could turn off for some random reason and cause the SWG to be at risk of explosion - hence this post.

 

[Newdude]

Every system has some risk. Mine was because of the SVRS pump. It would sense a disturbance in the force and shut off. Like a million pools suddenly cried out and were silenced. The SWG and pump would remain on with power but no flow. At those times the flow switch would be the fail safe until I realized the pump stopped.

If you can’t otherwise find the problem, it could very well be a defective new switch. Quality went to crud across the board once all the suppliers ramped up production to resupply the country and the flow switch is chintzy at best. We’ve seen tons of brand new duds across all equipment lately.