Water Guru

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brownchristian

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Mar 7, 2011
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Houston, TX
I really want to give Water Guru a shot but first of all I am having a hard time reaching someone at WG to ask questions. So at first glance Customer Service seems lacking. But with the pandemic I am giving them the benefit of the doubt.

Maybe someone else could help answer my question. My skimmer covers are square and made out of stone. So I would not be able to just replace the skimmer cover with their device. I am wondering if there was another option. My first thought was to get a pool noodle and just float the Waterguru device in the pool. It appears the battery box is located in the skimmer cover so that would need to keep from being submerged in the pool but assume it is water resistant being designed for a wet envrionment.

Any thoughts?
 
I think most electronic FC measurements get screwed up by the presence of CYA. I note it doesn't clearly list FC range of operation or anything about CYA. My suspicion is that it would not work for the FC/CYA levels recommended here at TFP.

On second thought it appears it uses "pads", probably similar to test strips, that it measures color on. These probably would not be affected by CYA, but could limit the range to one that's too low for most TFP pools. And they'd have the same accuracy issues that cause test strips to not be recommended here. And can't measure CC's, either.

I still find it suspicious they make no mention of FC range or accuracy, what combination of FC/CC/TC it can measure (or not measure), or what effect CYA has (if any). As an engineer, I would personally avoid buying a product that refuses to list the specifications related to the primary function of the product!

Honestly I'd spend the money you'd spend on that and use it towards SWCG instead. Way less work than manual chlorine additions and from what I've read, after you get it dialed in you're probably good with testing FC/CC once a week due to the steady production of chlorine. (y)
 
jseyfert3 said:
I think most electronic FC measurements get screwed up by the presence of CYA. I note it doesn't clearly list FC range of operation or anything about CYA. My suspicion is that it would not work for the FC/CYA levels recommended here at TFP.
Click to expand...

Water Guru does not use ORP sensing that does not work well with much CYA in the water. Posts form TFP members have been pretty positive for what it does. It is too new to judge its long term reliability.

Check the prior posts about it as Maddie linked to.
 
ajw22 said:
Water Guru does not use ORP sensing that does not work well with much CYA in the water. Posts form TFP members have been pretty positive for what it does. It is too new to judge its long term reliability.
Click to expand...
Yup, which is why immediately below that I said that it probably actually wasn't affected by CYA.

EDIT: And I still stand by the rest of my post. I browsed the Google search results Maddie linked. A post from Matt makes it seem like 10 is pushing it for FC on that device...which goes in line with my comment on it may lack the range for a TFP pool.

Still found no info about exact range of FC/CC level. You would think the manufacture would list that. Again, I find that quite odd that for the primary purpose this is sold for (testing water) they don't spec range of testing ability or accuracy, at least in any remotely easy to find spot on their website.
 
Last edited:
WaterGuru is using an FC goal of 3% of CYA and a low phosphorous goal of <500. Looking at the graphs, it appears that the FC measuring range is 0-10.
Using TFP goals of 7.5% of CYA up to 60 for manually chlorinated pools and 70-80 for SWG pools, it would only need to measure up to 9 to handle minimum plus daily loss FC. If you need to SLAM or something special, use your test kit. Waterguru works well for daily monitoring of 3 things: FC, pH, and temperature. They analyze your water for other parameters. Waterguru works fine with the TFP CYA-FC recommended ranges.
 
I have owned and used the WaterGuru since November. It is very accurate for measuring the FC, ph, water flow through the skimmer, and water temperature on a daily basis. I currently test all other chemicals on a weekly basis using my Taylor test kits. Yes, I would purchase the WaterGuru again because it eliminates the need for daily manual testing. By the way, I have owned and maintained my pool for 24 years and this WaterGuru has been a godsend.
 
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H-12 1/2 Mike said:
I have owned and used the WaterGuru since November. It is very accurate for measuring the FC, ph, water flow through the skimmer, and water temperature on a daily basis. I currently test all other chemicals on a weekly basis using my Taylor test kits. Yes, I would purchase the WaterGuru again because it eliminates the need for daily manual testing. By the way, I have owned and maintained my pool for 24 years and this WaterGuru has been a godsend.
Click to expand...
wow! Now that is a good testament... I need to get one.... I do have a question though.. will it do TA, and CH etc... or do you just not trust it as much? I have a salt pool and ph is my main concern..thanks so much
 
Texgirl said:
wow! Now that is a good testament... I need to get one.... I do have a question though.. will it do TA, and CH etc... or do you just not trust it as much? I have a salt pool and ph is my main concern..thanks so much
Click to expand...

The Waterguru SENSE only does FC, pH, and temperature. The other chemistries are obtained by sending them a water sample. I too find that the FC and pH are in line with my Taylor tests.
 
Steve_in_C said:
The Waterguru SENSE only does FC, pH, and temperature. The other chemistries are obtained by sending them a water sample. I too find that the FC and pH are in line with my Taylor tests.
Click to expand...
OHHH ok.. thanks so much! I was wondering.... I will do those myself then.. I still think having the cl and ph is awesome to have and will help me so much. so crazy as those are so easy to test.. but I forget...
 

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jseyfert3 said:
I think most electronic FC measurements get screwed up by the presence of CYA. I note it doesn't clearly list FC range of operation or anything about CYA. My suspicion is that it would not work for the FC/CYA levels recommended here at TFP.

On second thought it appears it uses "pads", probably similar to test strips, that it measures color on. These probably would not be affected by CYA, but could limit the range to one that's too low for most TFP pools. And they'd have the same accuracy issues that cause test strips to not be recommended here. And can't measure CC's, either.

I still find it suspicious they make no mention of FC range or accuracy, what combination of FC/CC/TC it can measure (or not measure), or what effect CYA has (if any). As an engineer, I would personally avoid buying a product that refuses to list the specifications related to the primary function of the product!

Honestly I'd spend the money you'd spend on that and use it towards SWCG instead. Way less work than manual chlorine additions and from what I've read, after you get it dialed in you're probably good with testing FC/CC once a week due to the steady production of chlorine. (y)
Click to expand...
yes the chlorine is the great part of the SWG but its the ph that is a bear... at least for me.... so I am seriously considering it mainly for that constant monitoring so I can do a better job at maintaining my ph... and TA prevent scaling and have better balance in general...
 
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On a weekly basis you should test TA and I would suggest testing your FC and pH to be sure the device is providing consistent data.
Depending on your fill water CH, you should be testing that monthly along with CYA.

You still need a proper test kit along with the automated testing device. See Test Kits Compared
 
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Waterman12 said:
Thanks! So I need a test kit to test CH and CYA. Didn’t realize I would have to test weekly pH and FC if Waterguru did that....
Click to expand...

I agree with Marty. You should have your own test kit and make sure that your Waterguru is giving you dependable numbers. I can't imagine having a pool without a proper test kit. Once I had a track record with mine, I cut back my testing to once every couple of weeks to make sure it's reading right. In the same manner that you would do quality control on a laboratory or medical instrument, I feel you would want to do that with Waterguru as well.
 
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I'm also interested in this device. It seems a little expensive, so I'm trying to determine if it's worth it. Due to the way my job works I'm only at home with the pool on weekends, so I'm really interested in the fact that this might give me some peace of mind to know that nothing has gotten too out of whack while I'm not there.

I obviously don't expect this to replace my test kit testing, but I've only been doing that on the weekend anyway, which is when I've been making my adjustments for the week. Thanks to following the TFP method that's been working o.k. so far, but I'm always nervous I'll come back to some major problem, and I think that even just these few tests are enough to alert me of the major issues that I could stave off with a little help from a friendly neighbor (who will help in a pinch.. but has made it clear he's not my pool boy..)

So.. are people happy with this? Is it reliable? Are there comperable or better products I should be looking at? I'm not sure I can afford a complete automation system any time soon.
 
brownchristian said:
I really want to give Water Guru a shot but first of all I am having a hard time reaching someone at WG to ask questions. So at first glance Customer Service seems lacking. But with the pandemic I am giving them the benefit of the doubt.

Maybe someone else could help answer my question. My skimmer covers are square and made out of stone. So I would not be able to just replace the skimmer cover with their device. I am wondering if there was another option. My first thought was to get a pool noodle and just float the Waterguru device in the pool. It appears the battery box is located in the skimmer cover so that would need to keep from being submerged in the pool but assume it is water resistant being designed for a wet envrionment.

Any thoughts?
Click to expand...
I hope all is well. Any follow-up regarding the comments you received? I did see they do offer a square skimmer adapter as an accessory. If testing is accurate, as a few have mentioned it is, it seems like a potentially reasonable option for interim testing of those select variables, if verified periodically, and if the up-front and recurring cost isn't an issue. AND if it lasts for some reasonable number of years, while maintaining accuracy and reliability.
 

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