Pool chemical help needed

[kcflhrc]

I switched this year to a salt system as well. I truly enjoy the virtual no-maintenance of the system. Once you get the initial chemistry set, just use the pool. Salt levels, PH and CYA need to be adjusted, but basically once at startup, then no more work except an occasional eye on PH.

A warning to anyone using an Intex salt-chlorine generator, most units also add copper to the pool. This is done in a separate "cell" that consists of a couple of copper bars. Copper is a good algecide, but the Intex will keep adding copper. In noprmal conditions the copper ions do not dissipate, and the copper levels will continue to increase. Eventually you will start to get green stains on the liner and blond hair can also develop a green tinge. After researching, the consensus seems to be to get rid of the copper. You can unplug the copper electrodes, but still enough copper is dissolved by the salt-chlorine. I removed the electrodes but left the pins in, held by a couple of nuts. I then filled the area with RTV so the nuts and pins would not corrode. It has been working like a champ in this configuration, and no copper ions.

paul

Ours has those copper bars you are talking about. Do the test strips test for copper? We just got our pool and salt water system up and running this weekend.

 

[KubotainNH]

I switched this year to a salt system as well. I truly enjoy the virtual no-maintenance of the system. Once you get the initial chemistry set, just use the pool. Salt levels, PH and CYA need to be adjusted, but basically once at startup, then no more work except an occasional eye on PH.

A warning to anyone using an Intex salt-chlorine generator, most units also have add copper to to the pool. This is done in a separate "cell" that consists of a couple of copper bars. Copper is a good algecide, but the Intex will keep adding copper. In noprmal conditions the copper ions do not dissipate, and the copper levels will continue to increase. Eventually you will start to get green stains on the liner and blond hair can also develop a green tinge. After researching, the consensus seems to be to get rid of the copper. You can unplug the copper electrodes, but still enough copper is dissolved by the salt-chlorine. I removed the electrodes but left the pins in, held by a couple of nuts. I then filled the area with RTV so the nuts and pins would not corrode. It has been working like a champ in this configuration, and no copper ions.

paul

The last 3 seasons before this one I used the Intex SWG system that came out before the copper unit. Ran great and was painless that whole time as long as I kept the salt levels correct. Lots of rain throws it off of course. Near the end of last year it started tripping my circuit breaker. I have yet to figure out if it's the unit or the arc fault breaker sensing something that is not there. During a normal run cycle it draws very little current so nothing seems shorted. Adding chlorine manually gets old quickly after you've had a SWG.

 

[techman]

Ours has those copper bars you are talking about. Do the test strips test for copper? We just got our pool and salt water system up and running this weekend.

They give you some copper test strips with the unit. I also picked up a separate copper test kit for testing before I decided to "eliminate" the copper.

paul

 

[techman]

The last 3 seasons before this one I used the Intex SWG system that came out before the copper unit. Ran great and was painless that whole time as long as I kept the salt levels correct. Lots of rain throws it off of course. Near the end of last year it started tripping my circuit breaker. I have yet to figure out if it's the unit or the arc fault breaker sensing something that is not there. During a normal run cycle it draws very little current so nothing seems shorted. Adding chlorine manually gets old quickly after you've had a SWG.

I was interested in a salt system, but they were all $600-$800 which did not make sense. I then saw the Intex and got one on Amazon (they are now $ 99 on Amazon) and figured for that money it would pay in 1 or 2 seasons. I have to saw I am impressed with what you get for the money. Nice package and works well.

BTW once you get the salt in at around 3000 ppm, you should not need to add more all season. Only if you lose water will the salt concentration change. Although the salt is decomposed for chlorine, as the chlorine disinfects the chem reaction results in salt, which is returned to the pool. Only chlorine that is lost due to UV uses up salt, but with proper CYA levels, that should be minimal. Partial draining/pumping for winter will require more salt when you add water in the spring.

Paul

 

[KubotainNH]

Yep, even if mine is dead the 3 painless years I used it were worth it. Down to $99, hmm. They were $130 last week or the week before.

 

[MossRoad]

Just be careful. Cyanuric acid (stabilizer) does not get "used up", you only lose it when water is splashed out or drained. Adding more each year could get the levels above 100 ppm which can cause chlorine issues and is considered a potential health concern. Hopefully you check the CYA levels before adding more.

Paul

Yep. My pool gets about 1/3 of its water every year due to winterization and snowfall. I drain a foot off of it in fall to get it below the skimmer and return. Then the snowfall pressing down on the winter cover and air balloon usually pushes another foot out over winter. So I have to add about 20" of water every spring. I bring it up to level, add salt to taste (really, if it tastes like tears, I'm close!), measure the salt, adjust to 3300ppm if needed, run the salt water chloring generator for 4 hours a couple days, measure the CYA level and bring it up to the O.K. level on the test strips. Its good to go for the entire summer. Only problems occur if we get torrential rains and the pool overflows, which can dilute the salt and CYA a bit. Same with drought, but I have a head from my automatic drip irrigation system that dumps water into the pool everyday to make up for evaporation.

 

[MossRoad]

We just bought a 22' Intex Ultra Frame Pool, 52" deep. We went with the salt water system this time around instead of the chlorine tabs and all that crap. We will see how it goes. My wife is in charge of pool maintenance until she finds a pool boy.

I adapted probably the same salt water generator from Intex that you have to my 24' above ground pool. The only problem with it is that it loses its program during power outages and I have to run it so infrequently that it never reverses polarity, so my hard water builds up on the cell plates. If I flip over the connector to the cell every couple of days, it blows the calcium buildup off fairly well. If I forget, I have to remove it from the line and soak it with vinegar. Since it comes with an end cap, its pretty easy. I have to do that about 4 times a summer. Piece of cake. I got the generator for I think $165 about 5 years ago.

 

[MossRoad]

I switched this year to a salt system as well. I truly enjoy the virtual no-maintenance of the system. Once you get the initial chemistry set, just use the pool. Salt levels, PH and CYA need to be adjusted, but basically once at startup, then no more work except an occasional eye on PH.

A warning to anyone using an Intex salt-chlorine generator, most units also have add copper to to the pool. This is done in a separate "cell" that consists of a couple of copper bars. Copper is a good algecide, but the Intex will keep adding copper. In noprmal conditions the copper ions do not dissipate, and the copper levels will continue to increase. Eventually you will start to get green stains on the liner and blond hair can also develop a green tinge. After researching, the consensus seems to be to get rid of the copper. You can unplug the copper electrodes, but still enough copper is dissolved by the salt-chlorine. I removed the electrodes but left the pins in, held by a couple of nuts. I then filled the area with RTV so the nuts and pins would not corrode. It has been working like a champ in this configuration, and no copper ions.

paul

I have read that about the newer Intex units. Mine is pre-copper. I suspect the cell will die some day and have to be replaced, but so far so good. The LED panel is not readable in daylight anymore, but I know it by heart and just set it by the beeps now! hahaha

 

[MossRoad]

Yep, even if mine is dead the 3 painless years I used it were worth it. Down to $99, hmm. They were $130 last week or the week before.

Dang, that's dirt cheap!!! :thumbsup:

 

[aczlan]

I was interested in a salt system, but they were all $600-$800 which did not make sense. I then saw the Intex and got one on Amazon (they are now $ 99 on Amazon) and figured for that money it would pay in 1 or 2 seasons. I have to saw I am impressed with what you get for the money. Nice package and works well

Wish I had seen that 2 weeks ago before I spent $89 on a big bucket of chlorine tablets...

Aaron Z