Preparing Water for SWG

[mjbarr99]

I am converting from liquid chlorine to a SWG and need to get my CYA and salt up to the recommended levels. Can I add both CYA and salt at the same time or is it better to do them individually?

 

[mknauss]

Same time is fine. Use the sock method for CYA. Do both in increments. Add half what is needed and let that dissolve and circulate, test, then add what is needed to get to goal.

 

[Brett S]

It’s not a problem to add them at the same time, but do measure your current salt level with a reliable test before you add the new salt. Chlorine and some of the other chemicals that we routinely use will add salt to the pool and if your pool is several years old it’s quite likely that it already has a significant amount of salt in the water. If you don’t measure and assume it has 0 salt you will likely overshoot and need to drain some water to remove the extra salt.

 

[eublet]

Ditto what everyone said above. I just recently converted back to a salt pool after about 3-4 years of bleach chlorination. My salt was definitely low from those years of splash out and some leaks. It took less than it would if I had zero salt, but I still had to add a lot.

My CYA was also really low. Sock method over a return jet works great and dissolves quickly. Tie the sock to a string and suspend it over the jet with something big and heavy, like a large brick or cinder block. I just had to bump my CYA way up after converting back to salt, and I used a cotton pillow case instead of a sock so that it could hold more stabilizer and dissolve overnight. Definitely undershoot your first treatment, and then titrate the level up to 70-80 ppm over 2 if not 3 or 4 different dosages.

 

[Rattus Suffocatus]

It’s not a problem to add them at the same time, but do measure your current salt level with a reliable test before you add the new salt. Chlorine and some of the other chemicals that we routinely use will add salt to the pool and if your pool is several years old it’s quite likely that it already has a significant amount of salt in the water. If you don’t measure and assume it has 0 salt you will likely overshoot and need to drain some water to remove the extra salt.

My pool is, what, 8 months old? and I was very surprised to find the salt level with a K-1766 measured 800 ppm. Twice. So yeah, measure it first. I am also preparing my water for a new SWCG that should be here later this week...