As promised, here's an update on my newly installed CircuPool Universal 40 SWG.
The installation was mostly straightforward, as I had an open breaker in the sub-panel near my pool equipment. I changed the voltage in the controller to 110v, and wired it to a Tork TU40 timer. The controller and timer installation was a breeze.
Moving on to the cell and flow switch, I decided to purchase the CircuPool Vertical Installation Kit to make things a bit easier. This would have allowed me to install the cell assembly in place of my Pentiar puck chlorinator. Unfortunately, CircuPool pre-assembled some of the parts, and I wish they hadn't. The top 90 degree elbows were out of alignment, so much so, that installing the cell assembly in my original planned location wasn't an option. As such, I had to do more plumbing than I anticipated because I refused to go to Home Depot
, but using the measure 3 times, cut once rule, I was able to get the assembly installed without issue. I'm OCD, so the misalignment bugs me, but functionally, it's 100%.
I fired the system up on Monday, and after the system settled in, the controller was reading 3,400ppm salt, and all other parameters were within spec. It immediately started generating chlorine, and has been doing so since I fired it up. Because I miscalculated my pool volume, I had to revisit the SWGCalculator to adjust run times. To replace 2ppm, I'm running the system for 8 hours at 50% currently. When I originally bought the system, I sized it for a 25,000 gallon pool, whereas my volume is really around 18,000 gallons. The reduction in pool volume reduced my run-times substantially, to the point that I can run the SWG at 50%, rather than 100%. The pump is running at 1,800 RPM's.
For the price, I'm quite pleased with it. It's a basic system, performing a basic function, and has a cell output equal to competitor's 60K gallon units. If the cell only lasts 50% of its advertised 10,000 hour life, it should run for over 3 years at this rate. I'm sure I'll have to run it at a higher rate during the summer, but after spending over $1K/year on bleach and other chemicals, even a 1 year service life will reduce my maintenance expenses by 2/3rd's.
At the moment, so far, so good!
The installation was mostly straightforward, as I had an open breaker in the sub-panel near my pool equipment. I changed the voltage in the controller to 110v, and wired it to a Tork TU40 timer. The controller and timer installation was a breeze.
Moving on to the cell and flow switch, I decided to purchase the CircuPool Vertical Installation Kit to make things a bit easier. This would have allowed me to install the cell assembly in place of my Pentiar puck chlorinator. Unfortunately, CircuPool pre-assembled some of the parts, and I wish they hadn't. The top 90 degree elbows were out of alignment, so much so, that installing the cell assembly in my original planned location wasn't an option. As such, I had to do more plumbing than I anticipated because I refused to go to Home Depot
, but using the measure 3 times, cut once rule, I was able to get the assembly installed without issue. I'm OCD, so the misalignment bugs me, but functionally, it's 100%.I fired the system up on Monday, and after the system settled in, the controller was reading 3,400ppm salt, and all other parameters were within spec. It immediately started generating chlorine, and has been doing so since I fired it up. Because I miscalculated my pool volume, I had to revisit the SWGCalculator to adjust run times. To replace 2ppm, I'm running the system for 8 hours at 50% currently. When I originally bought the system, I sized it for a 25,000 gallon pool, whereas my volume is really around 18,000 gallons. The reduction in pool volume reduced my run-times substantially, to the point that I can run the SWG at 50%, rather than 100%. The pump is running at 1,800 RPM's.
For the price, I'm quite pleased with it. It's a basic system, performing a basic function, and has a cell output equal to competitor's 60K gallon units. If the cell only lasts 50% of its advertised 10,000 hour life, it should run for over 3 years at this rate. I'm sure I'll have to run it at a higher rate during the summer, but after spending over $1K/year on bleach and other chemicals, even a 1 year service life will reduce my maintenance expenses by 2/3rd's.
At the moment, so far, so good!
Early indications are that I'll probably be running the system at 30% or less over the summer. I turned it completely off, so it's not producing any chlorine today. My test this morning showed an FC of 11.5, so I'm going to test again tonight, at the recommendation of another TFP Expert, to try and determine my loss for the day. Hopefully I can get it "dialed in" over the next several days.