Any reason not to go with SWG?

[dkw27]

Our pool builder offers it but said he doesn't recommend it. He said we will be back in 10 years because our equipment will be corroded etc. I have researched a little but the internet is cluttered with pros/cons for anything lol. Hoping for some experienced information from TFP friends. I see plenty of forums praising SWG and I feel like I am missing out if I don't go this route. I also love that it seems a lot more user friendly and less time consuming. Is it really "that bad"? Thanks in advance!

 

[Newdude]

He said we will be back in 10 years because our equipment will be corroded etc

Bullfeathers. Every major manufacturer makes a SWG for use with the rest of their equipment. Most make 2 model lines and some make even more than that.

Most liquid chlorine pools get close to 'salt pool' levels from all that 'sodium hyperchorite', aka bleach, used. Some have even had to drain to switch to SWG because their existing salt level was too high.

Salt pools are not salt water. Sea water is 10X the salinity of salt pools. Poor quality materials will degrade in either pool and/or from the elements alone.

. I see plenty of forums praising SWG and I feel like I am missing out if I don't go this route

This will be my 11th season with a SWG. They are the bees knees. I just ran savings and production numbers for a member and their SWG was the equivalent of 1006 gallons of bleach. That's alot of lugging. And Oh my that's alot of trips to the curb with garbage cans. How many jugs possibly fit in a garbage can ? 8 ? Lol. That's 125 trips to the curb.

Is it really "that bad"?

The only 'con' is that it breeds complacency. You test and it's fine. Over and over and over and over. And you get lazy and eventually get bit.

Obviously there are things like a lightning strike on day 3 that will ruin your brand new unit and change the equation, or factory duds that any manufacturer of *anything* has. But the majority of users are in the 100% win column.

 

[markayash]

Look at him in the eye and ask him “why do I have to add acid to my saltwater pool if it’s so corrosive? “ Say I never had to have to add acid when I used tablets.

Then walk off

 

[chapterthree]

Similar story, we asked the builder and he did not recommend it either. Wish I had found this site earlier.

 

[Turbo1Ton]

You would have to pry my SWCG out of my cold dead hands. If the cell dies tomorrow, I'll have another one on order within an hour.

I am ready for the water to warm up so I don't have to supplement with liquid chlorine any more. Granted, it is about once a week, but even that much jug lugging is too much!

The only down side is when the pool water gets too cold, you have to supplement with liquid chlorine because the cell quits producing. That is pretty much only if you live in a colder climate and keep the pool open in the winter. I see you are in KC, so I would think you would close for the winter.

--Jeff

 

[Randrx2]

Personally, I would X them off my contractors list if they make these claims about SWG. If they are not up to date on knowing the correct information, what else don’t they know about building pools?

 

[dkw27]

Thank you all for your replies and the detailed information + experiences. I appreciate the feedback. I reached back out to a few of the other builders we initially met with and they too offer SWG but do not recommend it. Maybe it's a midwest thing. Oh well, I told our builder we are going to go ahead with SWG and he was completely fine with it LOL. Relieved to have found TFP!

 

[Newdude]

they too offer SWG but do not recommend it

Some of the best builders out there don't know bupkiss about chemistry, or how to live with the equipment they install. They're busy doing awesome in their own lane.

We are all enthusiasts here who learned enough of both to bore people to tears with the details.

I also don't fault many builders who installed SWGs and turned somebody loose using it with no experience and no guidance but weekly pool store tests. Most of them became disasters and the SWG took the blame.

You're here before you needed your first test and it'll be nothing but roses. We got you.

 

[markayash]

Might have something to do with their buddies in the pool maintenance business not wanting to go broke.

 

[Mayorb]

I'd ask what is your primary purpose for wanting salt?
For some it's ease of use, less chemicals (which isn't completely true). For some it's mainly about the feel of the water.
I had a customer looking at getting a salt system, primarily for the soft feel of the water. I put a few bags of salt in the pool and turns out that was all they wanted, no cell installed. Loved it.
In my area we find that about half of the salt pools revert back to tablets in 5-7 years. Maybe less so now since the price of tabs has spiked. That alone pushed many people to salt.

 

[markayash]

I'd ask what is your primary purpose for wanting salt?
For some it's ease of use, less chemicals (which isn't completely true). For some it's mainly about the feel of the water.
I had a customer looking at getting a salt system, primarily for the soft feel of the water. I put a few bags of salt in the pool and turns out that was all they wanted, no cell installed. Loved it.
In my area we find that about half of the salt pools revert back to tablets in 5-7 years. Maybe less so now since the price of tabs has spiked. That alone pushed many people to salt.

Interesting point and to be honest I love my SWG I bought in the early 2020 ( pre Covid ) but when it dies I will have to think about it since they are so expensive.

Buying when I did saved me money but with all the economy concerns back then I wondered if spending $850 was a smart idea

 

[Mdragger88]

Thank you all for your replies and the detailed information + experiences. I appreciate the feedback. I reached back out to a few of the other builders we initially met with and they too offer SWG but do not recommend it. Maybe it's a midwest thing. Oh well, I told our builder we are going to go ahead with SWG and he was completely fine with it LOL. Relieved to have found TFP!

Be sure to get one that is rated for at least 2x’s your pool’s volume. Don’t let them talk you into an undersized swg unit or an undersized filter for that matter.

How to select pool equipment - Further Reading

www.troublefreepool.com

 

[Jaimslaw]

An honest pool contractor would walk you through the pros and cons of both ways to address the pool’s chlorine needs…not fixate on one or another. As others have pointed out, a non explanatory “don’t recommend it” is suspect and should raise red flags. It would make me reluctant to put much faith in any other replies to your questions.

If you're happy to go the inconvenience of a DIY chlorine feeding routine or the cost of paying someone to do that, great. Alternatively, if you want an almost “set it and forget it” means of keeping that chem in line, and willing to incur minimal SWG cell maintenance and the arguably small risk of the SWG system going bad, than opt for a SWG system.

[I’m big time into convenience, which accounts for my having installed a simple DIY acid injection system along with a SWG system. Honestly , I don’t get why more savvy DIY chem maintenance members here don’t install a rig to handle the acid side of maintenance. It has a low difficulty installation curve …and plenty of posts here show how (mine among them). Did it years ago and never have had any issues..with PH levels always rock solid. ]

 

[Mdragger88]

An honest pool contractor would walk you through the pros and cons of both ways to address the pool’s chlorine needs…not fixate on one or another. As others have pointed out, a non explanatory “don’t recommend it” is suspect and should raise more red flags than a Chinese Red Square propaganda parade. It would make me reluctant to put much faith in any other replies to your questions.

If your happy to go the inconvenience of a DIY chlorine feeding routine or the cost of paying someone to do that, great. Alternatively, if you want an almost “set it and forget it” means of keeping that chem in line, and willing to incur minimal SWG cell maintenance and the arguably small risk of the SWG system going bad, than opt for a SWG system.

[I’m big time into convenience, which accounts for my having installed both a SWG system and a simple DIY acid chlorine system. Honestly , I don’t get why more savvy DIY chem maintenance members here don’t install an injector. It has a low difficulty installation curve …and plenty of posts here show how - mine among them. Did it years ago and never have had any issues..with PH levels always rock solid. ]

Lots of folks here have had/ do have them for chlorine but then you still have to source the liquid gold which has become a more expensive & tumultuous endeavor over the past couple years.

 

[Newdude]

I don’t get why more savvy DIY chem maintenance members here don’t install one

My man @PoolStored had a chlorine dosing system and in our friendly banter/debate about it, he totally convinced me that his system worked great for him and his needs. I changed my stance and happily told him he should keep it. So he ran out and bought a SWG.

On day 3, he was sold and said he'd fill in his pool If he ever had to lug another jug. (Or, enough of them to chlorinate the pool full time at least. We always need a spare on hand just in case).

 

[hwy17]

I resisted because I overflow a couple feet into the yard every year during rainy season and didn't want to salt the land.

I had heard here that LC pools get just as salty but wasn't quite sure if I believed it.

This year prompted by LC price jumps I finally got curious enough to get a k-1766 and my pool is indeed at 2000ppm now after an original fill in 2020. That's not exactly just as salty, but it's close enough that I won't feel so bad about bumping it up a bit.

 

[dfwnoob]

Thank you all for your replies and the detailed information + experiences. I appreciate the feedback. I reached back out to a few of the other builders we initially met with and they too offer SWG but do not recommend it. Maybe it's a midwest thing. Oh well, I told our builder we are going to go ahead with SWG and he was completely fine with it LOL. Relieved to have found TFP!

Many, many pool builders also usually offer pool maintenance/cleaning services OR they have a buddy/family member who does. SWCGs cut into that profit big time. A pool using chlorine tabs will always - invariably and inevitably - turn into a green disgusting mess requiring someone to come clean it up. More opportunities to nickel and dime you, more opportunities to sell overpriced potions that don't work, more reasons to come out and look at your equipment and find some "problem" you need to pay big money to fix.

The other problem is that pool builders and pool maintenance companies actually have no idea how water chemistry works, and more importantly they don't care. A "professional" should know that sodium in the water is always a byproduct of standard chlorination processes, regardless of what method you use. The pool industry is rife with scammers and snake oil salesmen who exist to siphon money out of your wallet.

Frankly, I'm shocked the pool equipment manufacturers have embraced SWCGs given how friendly and greasy they are with their installer and maintenance "partners" in the field.

 

[dkw27]

One of the builders we interviewed with included this link in an email when I initially inquired about salt water pool options: Seven Secrets Salt Water Pool Sellers Don't Want You to Know Without any sources cited, I struggle to take it seriously. Would love to hear what you all have to say. I feel like if you look hard enough there is always information for or against any topic! It's frustrating. I much prefer hearing from others with hands on experience.

I want to enjoy the pool as much as possible due to the season being short (cries in all 4 seasons). I remember growing up and having days of not being able to swim because the chemicals were out of whack. It sounds like a SWG might be a little less hands on, however my goal is to provide a safe and clean pool for my kids to enjoy, so I plan to be very hands on. I will be the primary pool caregiver-I want to do a good job. I don't want to mess up and my husband have to hire someone to take care of the pool LOL. Thank you all again for the replies and information. I am taking all the notes!

 

[Turbo1Ton]

I remember growing up and having days of not being able to swim because the chemicals were out of whack.

I remember this as well. Along with all the $&#*&$&(##@ that my old man would speak when the pool was green. I really thought I was in for a battle with getting a pool. Fortunately with TFPC methods, I am coming up on my 4th swim season and there hasn't been a single day that my pool hasn't been swimmable. Some days, like today (57 degree water) you might prefer to be a polar bear, but even then, a quick dip is possible.

The SWCG makes it super simple, almost boring as Newdude likes to infer. Once I get the SWCG dialed in, I drop to a every 3-4 day checkup. I can't bring myself to go a full week, just because it only takes about 2 minutes and I don't want to have a green pool.

You can certainly use liquid chlorine and not have issues, but during the peak summer days, it will be a daily chore of adding chlorine. As well as making sure you have the supply of chlorine on hand. The SWCG handles that for you so you can spend your time on other pool related chores, like brushing and cleaning skimmers. Or there's always lounging on a float with a beverage of choice!

--Jeff

 

[Newdude]

I don't want to mess up and my husband have to hire someone to take care of the pool

OK. Listen up. And listen up GOOD.

No matter HOW bad you think you'll do, most of us felt the same way. And at least one of us had to do worse than you'll do. Their pool still got here : How Clear is TFP Clear?

Yours will too. We got you.


Also, that ecosmarte system is copper and other magic. You never EVER want to willfully add copper to your pool. The only way it comes out, is a full drain. I stopped reading their blatant lies where they said that salt absorption through the skin is harmful at salt pool levels. Fun fact : my sweat is give or take 3X salter than my pool. I am a sweaty dude so I guess I'm doomed.