Salt Water Generator Question

[sleepingrudi]

Hey Everyone,

I have a couple questions about Salt Water Generators. My understanding is that no matter what, the cell will eventually fail. Apparently this is not a matter of if, but when. Anyway I started researching various topics like how to clean it and service it over time. I eventually came across a video or post on the internet where someone suggested it would last longer if you cleaned it with vinegar instead of acid. What they proposed was taking the SWG out and letting it soak in vinegar for apx. 24 hours to soften/descale, and suggested that doing this would greatly improve the lifespan of the SWG over using acid.

I started thinking about this and thought to myself, what if you could continue running your system for the 24hr period while the SWG was soaking. What I assumed was that I would go on ebay and find a bunch of broken SWG devices that no longer operate as they should, and that I would be able to buy one of these dead/broken SWGs and reinstall it while the other one is soaking in vinegar. The purpose of this would be to simply close up the system and continue to run the pump for X amount of time temporarily until the working SWG is clean and ready to reinstall. To my surprise, there are no used/broken/dead SWGs on ebay or anywhere else I can find.

So this leads me to a series of questions surrounding this topic:

1. Is there any real world advantage to cleaning a SWG with vinegar instead of acid and will this really prolong the life of the SWG?

2. What does a SWG replacement look like, do people normally just buy a new one and trash the old one, or is there something else to this like mfg. core swaps for remanufacturing/refurbishing purposes?

3. Why are there no broken/dead SWGs for sale on eBay?

4. In my research I came across something called a Winterizing Cap that looks like it would work to fill the empty slot where the SWG goes. Basically it looks like an empty SWG with no chlorinator inside, would this work to fill the gap, and allow the pump to run while the dirty SWG is soaking in vinegar or is that winterizing cap not meant to hold any pressure in the line. I live in Florida so I don't think I would ever use a winterizing cap.

As always, any guidance is greatly appreciated, thanks in advance!

 

[generessler]

1. Is there any real world advantage to cleaning a SWG with vinegar instead of acid and will this really prolong the life of the SWG?

No personal experience here, but TFP wisdom is "yes." All acid degrades the exotic coating on the plates. Vinegar is weaker than muriatic acid. The trick is to maintain your water so there's nothing to clean. Or at worst be able to poke minor scale off with a Popsicle stick or similar. Unless your fill water has very high calcium, this should be possible. (I have never acid cleaned my SWG. It's always been free of scale, knock on wood.)

2. What does a SWG replacement look like, do people normally just buy a new one and trash the old one, or is there something else to this like mfg. core swaps for remanufacturing/refurbishing purposes.

I believe it's always "replace and chuck the old one." I've not heard of cores for any kind of pool equipment. The economics are unlikely to work. My strong guess is that manufacturing costs are a small part of retail prices of pool stuff.

3. Why are there no broken/dead SWGs for sale on eBay?

I expect not enough people want to buy them.

4. In my research I came across something called a Winterizing Cap that looks like it would work to fill the empty slot where the SWG goes. Basically it looks like an empty SWG with no chlorinator inside, would this work to fill the gap, and allow the pump to run while the dirty SWG is soaking in vinegar or is that winterizing cap not meant to hold any pressure in the line. I live in Florida so I don't think I would ever use a winterizing cap.

Yes I've heard them called "spools" also (this is for my AquaPure).

The bigger picture is that 24 hours of down time should be no issue. I'd just get FC to the high end of target range or even a few ppm above so one day's depletion will be no problem. If it's really sunny, add some LQ around noon and stir it with a net.

 

[ajw22]

1. Is there any real world advantage to cleaning a SWG with vinegar instead of acid and will this really prolong the life of the SWG?

Yes. Read SWG How It Works - Further Reading

2. What does a SWG replacement look like, do people normally just buy a new one and trash the old one, or is there something else to this like mfg. core swaps for remanufacturing/refurbishing purposes?

SWG's are a consumable. The chemical reaction in the cell uses plates coated with rare earths that are depelted as the cell runs.

Some folks have tried buying plates and rebuilding cells but for most folks they buy a replacement cell.

3. Why are there no broken/dead SWGs for sale on eBay?

No real value in them except to use as a dummy cell during the winter.

4. In my research I came across something called a Winterizing Cap that looks like it would work to fill the empty slot where the SWG goes. Basically it looks like an empty SWG with no chlorinator inside, would this work to fill the gap, and allow the pump to run while the dirty SWG is soaking in vinegar or is that winterizing cap not meant to hold any pressure in the line. I live in Florida so I don't think I would ever use a winterizing cap.

You could but most folks think it is a waste of money. A pool can sit idle for 12-24 hours with no ill effects.

 

[sleepingrudi]

Awesome, thanks for the answers guys! Much appreciated!

 

[Bperry]

Awesome, thanks for the answers guys! Much appreciated!

No one mentioned that theres no reason to clean it at all if the water is managed well. I havent needed to clean mine in 4 years and it looks the same as when it was new.

 

[Homebrewale]

I've never cleaned my SWG but I don't live in a high CH fill water state.

 

[sande005]

CircuPool sells a dummy pvc pipe with the quick disconnect fittings, so it just replaces their generator. Kinda pricey.
Being new to that world, I got it to use as part of winterizing. Kept it in place all winter, and took the generator indoors. Mostly unsure whether it was unkind to it by blowing it out with the rest of the system, and then leaving it outside in -30F with residual moisture in it. Might be handy if the cell ever fails, and I have to wait for the postman to bring a new one.

 

[reggiehammond]

@sleepingrudi - In Florida, exactly how long do you expect your pool water to be under ~55-60ºF? You probably have 9+ months of SWCG use, no? No reason for you to remove cell in "winter", nor should you ever have to clean it if you properly manage CSI.