Startup SWG chlorinator salt for new pool

[FIESTA62]

maybe there's nothing to do.

i have cut them back already about 6 weeks ago neighbour is cool, but they grow fast , but yep i will do it again and i guess thinking about it that has to be the only possible leaves i would get unless some are blown in from a fair distance away which would be rare

so i will hold off a bit on the robotic and see how things go, still tweaking everything,

i slowed pump down to the heat pump yesterday from 1900rpm to 1500, Evoheat tells me slow it down to i get around 90 LPM so the water is in the heat pump longer to heat up properly, and check that i have 2 degree difference between inlet temp and outlet, i now have 28 coming in and 30 going out, so better heating and slower pump, less power costs, there is a lot to learn owning a pool , thanks again for all your advice.......

 

[mgtfp]

gum leaves are notorius for staining, especially lighter colour finishes

Yep, gum trees have all sorts of "advantages". Non-Aussies might think that we are lucky that our trees don't drop their leaves in autumn. No, our gums can do much better, they just keep dropping their leaves all year - especially in summer...

 

[Dirk]

so i will hold off a bit on the robotic and see how things go, still tweaking everything,

Does your pool have a vacuum port? I'm quite happy with my vacuum cleaner. It's the kind that connects to the pump via a vacuum port in the side of my pool. Robots are all the rage at TFP, and it does sound like they do a great job, but I have plenty of reasons why I think my suction vac is better for me, and my pool. Just a matter of preference. Plus, they are half the cost, or less.

If you don't have a dedicated port, you can connect them to your skimmer, but then you have to remove them when they're done vacuuming, and that negates a lot of what I like about them. But still better than brushing and vacuuming by hand.

 

[mgtfp]

I'm also quite happy with my suction cleaner. Just stays in the pool, really only take it out when my son is having more than just one or two friends over. From what I hear, robots certainly do a better job cleaning, but they are also double the price as Dirk mentioned.

There are those cheaper creapy crawly style suction cleaners, Aldi got one in their specials this week. I took one of these over from the old house owner, but they are annoyingly noisy and constantly get stuck in corners. Having one with wheels now (see signature), much better.

 

[CRAD_oz]

Fiesta
Sorry for jumping on your thread... I just wanted to see how the Watermaid RP9 WAS going.
My Dad's SWCG just died (I think it was hit by lightning by one of our recent storms) and so I was thinking of replacing it with a Austral VX or the Watermaid. I like that the Watermaid is locally made and has a decent warranty. How have you found the control of output % during the startup of your new pool and during maintaining FC? Do the 5 output buttons allow enough control? Do you find the FC under or over shoots your desired FC by much?
Do you use any of the other features on the Watermaid?
It might be raining but my kids are still swimming!
Enjoy the rest of your weekend.

 

[FIESTA62]

Does your pool have a vacuum port?

hi, sorry i been off the forum didn't see these reply's, anyway no vac port i been hooking up my manual vacuum head on a pole to the skimmer but it is a bit of work, i brush all the sides and bottom first, i use the whale tail on sides and the standard brush on bottom, after the dust has settled i then manually vacuum the bottom of pool, its work but so far once a week keeps it looking great
but i wonder over time am i going to get a build up of slime or dirt on the sides , from what i read these robotics give the pool a good scrubbing probably better than im doing, i am still thinking about the robotic but looking at 3k for a good one

 

[FIESTA62]

Just stays in the pool

hi just seen your reply sorry for my late response just logged on for the first time in awhile, i dont have a suction port as Dirk mentions just my skimmer box so i assume i dont have any way to leave a suction cleaner in pool full time, but i guess i just plug it in once a week to the skimmer box and let it do its thing if i went the suction cleaner way, i have not thought about a suction cleaner at all till now, i just assumed the robotic cleaner is the way to go these days , i will give it some more thought

 

[FIESTA62]

just wanted to see how the Watermaid RP9 WAS going.

hi sorry late reply have not been on the forum, well i am a newby and still getting used to owning a pool, i have never owned any other swcg chlorinator so cant compare, i been messing with pump run times, pump rpm speeds, night running , now day running, getting the CYA test sorted all that and still sorting stuff, but at this point i been running pump during the day from 9am to 3pm so 6 hours at low 1600 rpm, my RP9 is set to 70% output and when i check in the afternoon at 3pm pool is at FC5
i scrubbed my pavers just 2 days ago with Jiff to get them clean so i can brush on the paver sealer, pool FC is real low today at 1.4 must be from the Jiff that washed into pool, i have added liquid chlorine so working on getting it back to FC5
my plan is to get it to to FC 5 when i test in afternoon at 3pm when RP9 ( SWCG ) switches off, then check at 9.am just before RP9 turns back on to see where it drops to from the 3pm off to 9am on time, thinking if i can keep it between 3 at lowest to 5 it should be ok.....maybe

i think the 5 buttons is ok as i can just set the run time to adjust levels, my 70% for 6 hours seems to be ok, i was even thinking to set SWCG to 100% output and just control level of FC by run time, i think that's how Aussieta a much more knowledgeable forum member than me on here runs there SWCG

using other features nope, but it has that boost button i have not got into that as yet, just running it 70% for 6 hours basic stuff, im sure some final tweeking on the run time will sort overshooting or under of FC levels

anyway i am a newby no question but i do my research much more than most and after lots of looking i think hands down its hard to beat the Watermaid all reviews are very solid, but you probably bought one by now i guess.....

 

[mgtfp]

i dont have a suction port as Dirk mentions just my skimmer box so i assume i dont have any way to leave a suction cleaner in pool full time,

I also don't have a vac port, have to plug the cleaner via vac plate into the skimmer. I keep my pump running during the day, 10-12 hours. I just plug the cleaner in when needed, sometimes it runs most of the day, sometimes not at all. When skimming, I usually leave the cleaner in the pool in a corner where it doesn't bother and tie the hose along the side. As long as I connect it at least every second day, the chlorine level in the hose stays high enough so I don't get algae in there.

When there's a big mess after a storm, I often use the manual vacuum to get the pool clean faster.

I guess, eventually I will get a robot, but there are other things to pay for first...

 

[FIESTA62]

I keep my pump running during the day, 10-12 hours

hi, wow 12 hours pump time seems a lot, i am running only 6 hours at slow 1600rpm and pool looks sparkling, i think in the end i will try a robotic, researching now and looking into the "Robo-tek robo plus" its interesting and reviews so far are faultless , but lots more to look at yet....

but something i noticed yesterday there are tiny bubbles coming from the return, i have never noticed that before i am sure there wasn't any bubbles before, they are very tiny bubbles, i guess air is getting into the system from somewhere , is this normal and no issue ?

i had bubbles a few months ago and pool builder said just backwash that should fix it, and it did and bubbles were gone, but now they are back so i backwashed twice today but no change, bubbles still there, i checked plumbing in filter box cannot see any leaks....

 

[mknauss]

i noticed yesterday there are tiny bubbles coming from the return

SWG How It Works - Further Reading

www.troublefreepool.com

SWCG creates chlorine and hydrogen gas. The chlorine immediately goes into solution with the water. The hydrogen does not.

 

[FIESTA62]

SWG How It Works - Further Reading

www.troublefreepool.com

SWCG creates chlorine and hydrogen gas. The chlorine immediately goes into solution with the water. The hydrogen does not.

ok so the bubbles are hydrogen? but why now , i never had bubbles before, would PH effect it in any way to cause bubbles? anyway bottom line i guess is are the bubbles a concern i was thinking i might have a air leak somewhere

 

[mknauss]

pH will not effect their creation.
If the SWCG is generating chlorine, it generates bubbles of hydrogen.

 

[DanF]

Turn your SWG off and see if you still have bubbles. If not, air is getting into the suction side of your system somehow. It could be a worn O-ring on your pump basket lid.

 

[FIESTA62]

Turn your SWG off and see if you still have bubbles. If not, air is getting into the suction side of your system somehow. It could be a worn O-ring on your pump basket lid.

ok good idea i will set swg to 0 output and see what happens, i should have any worn parts pool is only a few months old, i might check that lid is on tight enough on the pump but i think it is ok

 

[Dirk]

You might have just not noticed the bubbles before. If you have your SWG setting anywhere less that 100%, then for X minutes the SWG will be producing chlorine and hydrogen, and for Y minutes it will produce neither, cycling back and forth, on and off, for the duration of its runtime. How often that cycle happens varies by brand. So even while the SWG is powered on, sometimes you'll see the tiny bubbles, and sometimes you won't. That is expected behavior.

Does your SWG have an indicator that lights up when the cell is producing chlorine, and turns off when it's between cycles? That should coincide with the bubbles.

One poster here claimed he was able to hold a flame over the bubbles and get them to pop (hydrogen being flammable and all). Sounds silly, who would fall for that and try it! (Certainly not me! )

 

[FIESTA62]

my swg has 5 lights, 0-25-50-75-100, i have it set to 75 and the blue light is on when its running....i didnt realize light will go off between cycles? as u say, i got it set for 75% for 6 hours and thought light stays on for the full 6 hours , no cycles .....

BUT i have noticed something yesterday inspected just to see all is running ok and only the 50 light was on and it was flickering, i watched for a few minutes then the 75 came on, all good, this sounds like a cycle you mention maybe ? but i called watermaid they made no mention of it go thru a cycle

today i had another look and only the 25 light was on, i watched for a minute or 2 and the 50 came on, waited a bit longer and the 75 came on, i rang watermaid they said check the salt level, i checked a month ago it was 3200, the unit runs between 3000 to 4000, i will check salt later this afternoon, but unit has a low salt warning light, i told watermaid the light is not on, watermaid said it wont come on at these levels, ok so i thought why have a low salt light.....

yesterday the FC was 1.4 yes very low, i thought it was cleaning products that got into pool that caused the low FC, now thinking the unit has not been producing 75% output consistently....next step check salt level

 

[Dirk]

That all sounds odd: both your description of what's going on, and their explanation for it. Sounds defective to me, but I know nothing about that brand.

Mine has similar lights for output percentage, but they don't change during normal operation. They are always on, to whatever setting I've set. They represent the settings and so I would not expect them to change at all, unless I change the setting. I also have a "Cell" light that tells me when the SWG is actually producing chlorine. When in standby mode, the Cell light is off. I also have low salt and low temp indicators.

If your percentage lights indicate something other than the percentage setting, then that should be explained in the manual. Otherwise, it's fair to assume something is wrong with the unit.

 

[CRAD_oz]

hi sorry late reply have not been on the forum, well i am a newby and still getting used to owning a pool, i have never owned any other swcg chlorinator so cant compare, i been messing with pump run times, pump rpm speeds, night running , now day running, getting the CYA test sorted all that and still sorting stuff, but at this point i been running pump during the day from 9am to 3pm so 6 hours at low 1600 rpm, my RP9 is set to 70% output and when i check in the afternoon at 3pm pool is at FC5
i scrubbed my pavers just 2 days ago with Jiff to get them clean so i can brush on the paver sealer, pool FC is real low today at 1.4 must be from the Jiff that washed into pool, i have added liquid chlorine so working on getting it back to FC5
my plan is to get it to to FC 5 when i test in afternoon at 3pm when RP9 ( SWCG ) switches off, then check at 9.am just before RP9 turns back on to see where it drops to from the 3pm off to 9am on time, thinking if i can keep it between 3 at lowest to 5 it should be ok.....maybe

i think the 5 buttons is ok as i can just set the run time to adjust levels, my 70% for 6 hours seems to be ok, i was even thinking to set SWCG to 100% output and just control level of FC by run time, i think that's how Aussieta a much more knowledgeable forum member than me on here runs there SWCG

using other features nope, but it has that boost button i have not got into that as yet, just running it 70% for 6 hours basic stuff, im sure some final tweeking on the run time will sort overshooting or under of FC levels

anyway i am a newby no question but i do my research much more than most and after lots of looking i think hands down its hard to beat the Watermaid all reviews are very solid, but you probably bought one by now i guess.....

Thanks for the reply, Yes we ended up with the Austral unit only because we were able to get it wholesale. It sounds like you have the hang of the settings v runtime time.
I'm not far from you and was also running at 70% for 6hrs but with the increase in hot weather and kids in the pool most afternoons I have just bumped it up to maintain 5ppm for 6hrs runtime.
Enjoy the pool and the Summer ahead!

 

[FIESTA62]

Thanks for the reply, Yes we ended up with the Austral unit only because we were able to get it wholesale. It sounds like you have the hang of the settings v runtime time.
I'm not far from you and was also running at 70% for 6hrs but with the increase in hot weather and kids in the pool most afternoons I have just bumped it up to maintain 5ppm for 6hrs runtime.
Enjoy the pool and the Summer ahead!

yes all good, i might try 100% and bring hours down a bit if it overshoots too much, maybe 5 hours at 100%, and from what i have learnt here even if it goes say 6 or even to 7 max its no issue gives room to drop back without going to low....my FC did drop to 1.4 but i know now it was because of low salt, the unit was not putting out 75% consistently, i put some salt in today and liquid chlorine should be all good soon....