Salt Consumption

[happipoolguy]

As a new pool owner I’m wondering why pool stores seem to stock (and sell) so much salt when consumption appears to be minuscule.

After the PB exited stage left the pool tested at 4800ppm. A few months later and it still tests at 4800ppm. This prompts a couple of queries:

a) I assume this type non-existent consumption is normal? (we’ve just come through the first couple of weeks of swimming weather)

b) Pool math suggests I need to lower the value but is there any real benefit of draining the pool to lower this down to 4000ppm?

 

[happipoolguy]

Correction: it wasn’t pool math that suggested the 4000ppm... not sure where that target came from. Either way, question is 4800ppm OK?

 

[yann]

Hey mate

good to see another Aussie here.

Re salt stock I would assume people will start adjusting their levels now the season is starting. Salt pools are extremely popular in Oz, so stores are getting ready.

Re your salt levels, check the recommended levels in your SWG manual, and add 200-400ppm to account for water loss (back washing, splashing). My SWG is also AstralPool, but a different model and salt recommendations are 4000ppm, my pool is at 4600ppm.
At 4800 for a recommended level of 4000ppm I would not drain on purpose. Back washing and splashing will take care of your excess salt.

Take care

 

[Jezza]

Yep you always know that an Australian summer is on its way when you see salt by the bucketload being stocked in the shops. Most of us particularly in the south will be be replenishing all the salt we drained out when our pools overflowed with the winter rains and needed draining.

Yann's got you covered but the most important thing is if your SWG is happy producing chlorine (i.e. you don't have any low salt messages) then generally you should be fine. The CCL kit should give you a fairly accurate reading on your salt level and this serves to see that your in the ballpark. Also remember that salt doesn't evaporate. You'll will find with lots of summer splashing and the odd backwash then that level will come down over time.

 

[aussieta]

as you have a cartridge filter you are not backwashing your filter which washes out the salt
i use 1 bag per year and took 7 bags with fresh fill
dont forget all those intex style seasonal pools that pop up in december, some probably have swg

 

[happipoolguy]

Cheers, that all makes perfect sense.

 

[Bama Rambler]

Another salt usage driver is that (you may already know) as a salt cell ages they tend to read lower and lower salt concentrations, and given that most people just take that reading at face value, they naturally go out and add a few bags of salt to the pool until they figure out what's happening. Then after replacing the cell they have to drain out a lot of water to get the salt level back to normal operating level.

And as aussieta said, those Intex pool people consume a lot of salt each year.