buck12
Veteran Member
Pool companies do not recommend salt systems for 2 reasons.
1. an honest reason - corrosion is a concern.
2. a selfish reason - they won't be selling you pool chemicals very often.
When we ran our saltwater pool for 8 years, I generally did this:
open the pool
top off water
measure salt level
add 4-5 bags of salt $20.
Add 8 oz of algaecide $25 for 32oz bottle.
Add 3-4 gallons of bleach $12.
Add CYA chlorine stabilizer $15.
Enjoy pool for summer.
Add 2oz of algaecide each week.
End of summer, drain down 12" of water and add 3-4 gallons of bleach $12.
Cover pool.
Nothing added all summer long except weekly algaecide. Since salt can't evaporate, all you have to do is keep the pool water level at a relatively consistent level. If there's a drought, you have to add water. If there's a lot of rain and the pool overflows, you may have to add some salt and CYA. But that's rare here.
Now if a kid poops in your pool, or a squirrel dies in it, then yes, you have to shock it just like any other pool.
What I enjoy about the salt water pool is that it's soft water. Smooth and silky. Just a very slight tasted of salt, like your tears. You can open your eyes and not feel a thing, as it's the same salt level as your eyes. It's easy to monitor the levels. You don't get wild swings. The sun doesn't affect the chlorine levels very much. It doesn't wear out your swimwear. It's easy on your hair. It takes me about 10 minutes a week to maintain it.
Now while you save a bunch in chemicals, you spend a lot in electricity, because the salt water chlorine generator pulls some amps.
So I doubt that I save much money with salt water. What I save in chlorine and shock costs, I probably spend near in electricity, so it's probably a wash financially. It's just a lot nicer feeling water and less time messing with chemicals.
We are having a pool installed as soon as the installer gets to us and it will be salt water because the ladies (three of them) like the way salt water makes their hair feel. $2200 extra but happy wife, happy life . I can’t complain when I was buying my new tractor last year she insisted for me not to cheap out and get what I really wanted.