Salt Pool Service, Maintenance, and Chemicals
Salt water pools generally use far fewer chemicals month-to-month than standard chlorine pools. Salt water pools still contain chlorine, however it is simply generated from the salt already in your pool water and not added to the pool regularly like we do in standard chlorine pools. These salt water generators (SWGs for short) can generally keep a consistent level of chlorine present in your water at most/all times. These levels do still need to be monitored regularly to ensure the following:
The SWG is operating correctly
The SWG is generating enough chlorine
The SWG is not working more than necessary (and hence decreasing the cell's lifespan)
The salt content of the water is in the appropriate range for the SWG to operate optimally
While a salt water pool does not require a sanitizer to be added regularly, it does come with a few extra ongoing monitoring and maintenance requirements that a standard chlorine pool does not have, including:
The SWG% is the percentage of max output for the cell that is used when the system is running. This means the amount of chlorine generated by your salt cell will be relative to a variety different factors including the cell model, max output for the cell model, daily runtime of your pump/system, salt content of the water, cleanliness of your salt cell plates, and more. All of our ongoing pool cleaning service packages here at Clean Wave Pool service will monitor all of these in addition to bather load, water cleanliness, water temp, time of year, and more to keep your water's chlorine content at the optimal levels. We will continuously increase/decrease your SWG% to adapt to changing conditions, and use the value as an indicator to cell health and need for cleaning/maintenance (see below).
Most salt water pools and systems require a salt content of the water between 3200-3400ppm. While higher then that of a traditional chlorine pool, these levels are much lower than ocean water, which is about 10x that at 35,000ppm or so. Most people will barely be able to taste the salt, if at all. Once salt is in your water, it never leaves (unless the water itself is displaced), so once the salt content is correct it will rarely need to be adjusted. All of our ongoing pool service packages here at Clean Wave Pool service monitor the levels multiple times a year and add salt as needed (typically once a year at the most) to keep the levels in the recommended ranges.
As your salt generator does the work of converting salt into chlorine, calcium will accumulate on the cells inside the unit. As this calcium (scale) builds up on the cells, the SWG becomes less and less efficient at the process of converting salt into chlorine. Cleaning the cells will remove the scale and optimize the unit's ability to generate chlorine again, however doing so will also corrode the metal parts within the cell, hence decreasing the overall life of the unit. Frequency of cleaning varies with each pool and depends on a variety of factors. A very important factor to reduce salt cell maintenance requirements is keeping your pool water well balanced. We at Clean Wave Pool service keep your water chemistry optimally balanced continuously to help ensure maximum equipment lifetime and operation. We also continuously monitor your salt system health relative to these readings and maintain your salt cells appropriately.
Chemicals added to a salt water pool on a regular basis in all of our ongoing pool service and maintenance packages include:
Primarily responsible for lowering the pH of your pool water (and alkalinity (TA) to a lesser degree). A low pH will lead to swimmer discomfort (stinging eyes, itchy/irritated skin) and can be harmful to certain pool equipment (metal parts, particularly copper heat exchange coils in a heater). High pH can lead to calcium scaling, cloudy water, and lowers the sanitizing ability of chlorine and other sanitizers. Many pools tend to see pH constantly drift upward naturally due to aeration (splashing, water features, salt generators, rain, etc.) and other environmental factors. In a salt water pool, a properly balanced pH is also key to an optimal SWG operation and lifetime.
Often referred to as stabilizer or conditioner, its primary role is to protect/keep the chlorine in your pool from being burned off by the sun quickly/easily. At the same time, it also lowers the effective strength of the chlorine in your pool (by essentially holding much of the chlorine in reserve under protection). The higher the CYA levels in your pool, the more chlorine you need to get the same sanitizing effect. CYA also never leaves your water (unless the water itself is displaced). For these reasons, CYA should be kept at reasonable levels in your pool water - high enough to help extend your chlorine life and decrease your costs, but not so high that it inhibits chlorine from doing it's job (or requires significantly more chlorine to do the same job). We target between 30-90ppm of CYA depending on your pool type, usage, and more.
Proper salinity levels (usually between 3200-3400ppm) are critical to the optimal operation of salt water generators. Similar to CYA above, salt also never leaves your water once added (unless the water itself is displaced). We at Clean Wave Pool service monitor your salt levels monthly and add salt as needed to ensure optimal levels and operation (typically once a year or less).
Liquid Chlorine
$7.00/gallon
Muriatic Acid
$12.75/gallon
Polyquat 60 Algaecide
$0.82/ounce
Cyanuric Acid (CYA)
$8.25/pound
Pool Salt
$0.43/pound
Boric Acid
$3.50/pound
Borax
$1.81/pound
Aluminum Sulfate
$5.95/pound
