Thinking About Converting

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planoattorney

planoattorney

0
Jun 12, 2017
53
Plano, Texas
I have considered a SWG for years. Local pool store talked me out of it many times. This year I drained and converted to the TFPC method, found a good source for liquid bleach and bought all the borax at Wal-Mart and Target. Then bought a good test kit. I am very happy with that choice which has me questioning salt again?

i get that the #1 reason is convenience. I don't travel much and could hire a service if I do take a trip, or super chlorinate if I am gone for a weekend, etc. I was reading about chlorine pumps and well ... Here I am.

My filter is DE but the tank is stainless. It has provided 20 years service and I think for some reason it will not survive a salt system. Since the local pool store has provided so much bad advice ( read - self-serving Baloney Sandwich ) over the 12 years I have owned this pool: can anyone who has converted tell me if you had to replace some or all equipment? How long can I expect a stainless tank to work with salt? What about pumps.. Replaced my old Pentair pump with a Hayward hi-flo several years ago. At the same time I changed all the Jandy valves, new timers and freeze switches, and installed a new high efficiency heater. Basically all the equipment except the filter was replaced. So, on one hand it has provided good service, but on the other it must be a decent unit to still be working. I also put new grids in it this year, but that is not really a factor.

My real concern is timing. Do I wait for the filter to fail and add a SWG at that time, or add a SWG now and prepare for it to eat up the stainless tank? When a DE filter tank fails, will it be gradual or sudden? Will it be catostrauphic or will I see a leak and hear the gurgling when the pump kicks on and still have a week or two to find a good deal on a new unit?

I also expect to need new plaster within a couple years. We just had the tiles replaced two seasons ago and reset all the coping stone. Speaking of coping stone - it is Oklahoma Flagstone which I think is a porous. Do I have to have it pulled out to use salt? Will salt destroy soft coping stone? Can I use any plaster with salt? Is Pebbletek okay? I have diamond bright now and it has made 12 years with my ham-fisted pool maintenance (I.e. 12 years of constant too much or too little chemical, bouncing PH, etc) but the wife wants blue PebbleTek which is pretty but I have heard stories about medium to dark colored plaster in the Texas sun. I am willing to heat a couple times a year to extend the season but not too keen on having to procure ice to use my pool. So I will probably stick with the Diamond Bright plaster, unless a SWG affects the choice.

so.... Salt or no salt? Should I wait? What equipment and surface issues should be considered?
.
 
All chlorine pools contain salt, added with all forms of chlorine, muriatic acid, sweat, etc. If your pool had been in service for 12 years, I would not be surprised if you already had close to the SWG required level of salt before this refill.
 
This is my second saltwater pool, 6th summer. I will never have another pool that isn't saltwater. There is already plenty of salt in your pool and it isn't eating your filter. Maybe not right now since you recently drained it. Every source of chlorine, muriatic acid, tap water and people all add salt to the pool. It is not unusual for a pool to have 1000 or more PPM of salt. SWGs want around 3200 ppm of salt and the ocean is 35,000 ppm salt. If your flagstone isn't flaking now salt won't change that. I know folks with non-SWG pools whose flagstone is flaking. I have flagstone away from my pool that is flaking. Almost all of my flagstone coping looks exactly the same as it did in the summer 2012. The filter will most likely develop a slow leak for a while before it lets go. Any pool surface will work fine with saltwater. Diamond Bright is a good choice. Blue or black plaster will start to fade to gray in a few years due to the sun. Mine is black Pebblesheen and is more than 60% faded to gray on horizontal surfaces, less on vertical surfaces, especially the north facing sides. If you like a natural and changing surface then blue or black is fine. If you want a more uniform product then a French gray quartz or Aquabright would be a better choice. Nothing to do with salt though.

Lots of pics in my pool thread, link in sig.
 
pa,

I love my saltwater pool, and like pooldv, will never have a non-saltwater pool again!!!

In my mind the biggest drawback to having a SWCG is that you have to run your pump for a relatively long time. This is not an issue if you have a variable speed or 2-speed pump, but can be costly if you running a big single speed beast.

Thanks for posting,

Jim R.
 
To make you decision that much more difficult :)

I started out with saltwater and then converted my spa into saltwater.. never own anything else... the way I look at it, if the warranty is 10 years, take a year off, so it should last about 9 years... most everything will outlast the warranty if taken care of...
 
pa,

I would think that 6 hours would be the minimum... A 40K SWCG in your pool should increase your FC by 12 in 24 hours at 100%, or by 6 in 12 hours, or 3 ppm in 6 hours at 100%

Most pools use 2 to 4 ppm per day, so since you are in Texas, my guess is you will be at the upper end of that range.

For me, I like to generate a little chlorine over a longer period of time, others like to run at a 100% for the shortest period of time possible. The cell does not care either way..

My statement was more general in nature and was not directed at your specific pool. With a 1/2 HP pump you will not have the same costs to run your pump for 6 hours that someone with a 2 HP pump might have, but it will still be more than a variable speed pump running at 1,000 RPM..

Thanks,

Jim R.
 

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Do owners have to augment a SWG in the winter or hottest part of summer? For some reason I think they do not work when the water cools, but that could be based on information related to areas where the pool is closed off, drained, or ... Honestly I don't know if pools in colder areas are treated different in winter. Here in North Texas I think most owners do as I do, install a freeze switch so the pump circulates if the temp gets below 34F and just stop getting in the pool until Spring returns.

i know I use less chlorine in the winter, if I install a SWG what do I do in the winter that is different than the rest of the year?

also, how much and how often is acid added to salt pools?
 
Pentair says the SWG won't make chlorine below 53 degrees. But, mine starts giving me false low salt errors in the 60s. So, I turn mine of when the water is consistently below 70 and switch to bleach. FC use is significantly lower with colder water. Maybe a jug a week in fall and a jug every couple of weeks during winter. I just keep it around 10 so I can test pH.

During summer, once I get my SWG dialed in for the heat of summer I don't mess with it. If we're having a party I add a couple of jugs of bleach if kids are swimming, each adds 4ppm of FC in my pool. Or a jug before and a jug after. If FC dips for some unknown reason like a bird drive by or some squirrels taking a a swim or kamikaze frogs then I just add a jug. Sometimes I'll do the super chlorinate mode at 100% for 24 hours.
 
planoattorney said:
Anyone willing to offer suggestions on type, brand, what to look for or avoid?
Click to expand...

If you like Pentair the intellichlor IC40 is the one, especially if you have Pentair and want to use Pentair automation in the future. If not then the Aquarite AQR15 with a T15 cell is a good choice. It is probably the most popular SWG around here.
 
planoattorney said:
I have considered a SWG for years. Local pool store talked me out of it many times. This year I drained and converted to the TFPC method, found a good source for liquid bleach and bought all the borax at Wal-Mart and Target. Then bought a good test kit. I am very happy with that choice which has me questioning salt again?

i get that the #1 reason is convenience. I don't travel much and could hire a service if I do take a trip, or super chlorinate if I am gone for a weekend, etc. I was reading about chlorine pumps and well ... Here I am.

My filter is DE but the tank is stainless. It has provided 20 years service and I think for some reason it will not survive a salt system. Since the local pool store has provided so much bad advice ( read - self-serving Baloney Sandwich ) over the 12 years I have owned this pool: can anyone who has converted tell me if you had to replace some or all equipment? How long can I expect a stainless tank to work with salt? What about pumps.. Replaced my old Pentair pump with a Hayward hi-flo several years ago. At the same time I changed all the Jandy valves, new timers and freeze switches, and installed a new high efficiency heater. Basically all the equipment except the filter was replaced. So, on one hand it has provided good service, but on the other it must be a decent unit to still be working. I also put new grids in it this year, but that is not really a factor.

My real concern is timing. Do I wait for the filter to fail and add a SWG at that time, or add a SWG now and prepare for it to eat up the stainless tank? When a DE filter tank fails, will it be gradual or sudden? Will it be catostrauphic or will I see a leak and hear the gurgling when the pump kicks on and still have a week or two to find a good deal on a new unit?

I also expect to need new plaster within a couple years. We just had the tiles replaced two seasons ago and reset all the coping stone. Speaking of coping stone - it is Oklahoma Flagstone which I think is a porous. Do I have to have it pulled out to use salt? Will salt destroy soft coping stone? Can I use any plaster with salt? Is Pebbletek okay? I have diamond bright now and it has made 12 years with my ham-fisted pool maintenance (I.e. 12 years of constant too much or too little chemical, bouncing PH, etc) but the wife wants blue PebbleTek which is pretty but I have heard stories about medium to dark colored plaster in the Texas sun. I am willing to heat a couple times a year to extend the season but not too keen on having to procure ice to use my pool. So I will probably stick with the Diamond Bright plaster, unless a SWG affects the choice.

so.... Salt or no salt? Should I wait? What equipment and surface issues should be considered?
.
Click to expand...
I just went through the same process of deciding whether to switch over to a SWG, or stay with the liquid chlorine method. I ended up deciding to make the switch and so far it's been a very easy changeover and I am glad I made the switch. I also added a new VS pump so that made it easier to make the decision. After doing a lot of research, I went with the Curcupool RJ Plus SWG and I have been happy with my choice.
 
I started with salt and would never switch. Have convinced a few neighbors as well. So much easier. Budget for a new cell every four or five years though, if you don't, it can be a big surprise when you need to get a new one. Also, you have to keep the CYA in the proper range, they really don't like it when it drops too low.
 
As I understand CYA doe snot really degrade or burn off, and while it may be a constant challenge in the spring, rain is sort of rare here from mid-June to early September (this year June was an exception) so my CYA dialed in for the summer should be pretty consistent (IF I understand the way CYA behaves).

My biggest question now is the acid demand. I am seriously confused about how SWG can be more convenient than liquid bleach if I have to test and add acid every day. That seems like trading one chemical chore for another. Of course, I don't know how often SWG owners have to add acid. I have just seen a lot of references in the Stenner Pump threads and non-TFP web pages about using it to balance PH or add acid for salt water pools. With so much of the chemical injection pump information being dedicated to the addition of acid to a salt pool, I suspect (hopefully incorrect) that acid must be checked and added daily.
 
I put a little acid in about every 3 or 4 weeks but my ph didn't fluctuate much before SWG either. much better than adding chlorine daily and carrying/buying so many jugs. best things I've done to the pool were 2 speed pump, SWG, and Active 20 cleaner. my maintenance time/effort has decreased tremendously this season.
 
CYA degrades at a rate of about 3-5 ppm per month. Ph can be managed much easier than daily acid additions. Two things cause pH to rise aeration and high TA. Lowering your TA to 50-60 and not running aerating water features like bubbles, waterfalls, etc will go a long way toward slowing pH rise. I generally add acid once a week during summer, less the rest of the year. My primary pH increaser is when my wife wants to run the waterfall all weekend. Which I am happy to accommodate by adding some acid. PH in no way is an inconvenience for us compared to the ease of life chlorinating the pool with an SWG.
 

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