Just had the pool converted to salt water...

so do you keep the pumps/filters and whatnot? or is that all changed out?

 

when's the pool party?

 

So just say the word when you're ready for out-of-town guests

 

DAMN! story of my life, day late and a dollar short

 

Now you've just GOTTA stop by a decent fish store & put a couple little sharks in there! Just how cool would that be?

 

It works by using Chlorine. Salt is Sodium and Chlorine. Nice pool!

 

Thanks for the heads up, I'm putting in a pool later this year and have been debating whether to go the salt route or not. I've heard that they have been in use in Austrialia and Europe for years but relatively new here. I'm sold.

 

Do you get that nasty dried up salt feeling on your skin after swimming in it? That would be my concern...

 

My parent's house has a salt system as well (I think most new homes are in Ariz.). Anyhow, it is great and totally safe for the dog too. No dried up salt feeling.

I think the salt is somehow converte dinto chlorine or vice versa or something. Maybe NaCl -> Na+Cl, who knows.

But my dog has a huge water bowl that she can swim in with no problems!

 

I did the salt thing too....about 2 months ago, along with solar: one of the best & most rewarding investments I've ever made!!!!! Extremely happy with it, recommend it strongly!

Salt is added to the pool. It's nothing like the ocean, in fact the amount of salt is on your "threshhold" of being able to detect by taste. The saline water is pumped through a unit that has titanium plates, this is where a control unit charges the plates and generates "Natural Chlorine", simple as that.

Natural chlorine doesn't break down into Chloramine....which is the agent responsible for making your eyes burn, your skin dry, your hair like steel wool and your wife's expensive spandex bathing-suits loose their luster.

Another upside is that the water is essentially "softened" and it feels GREAT, if not downright theraputic in nature. Your skin will be soft and much like the "healing properties" of mineral bathes, the mineral salt draws-out toxins, impurities and leaves you feeling "charged".....it's about 20% as good as the post-orgasm aura you feel after...well, you know.

There are some things to know: you'll have to make sure you have a filter system that is either plastic or fiberglass....no stainless steel, it'll corrode. My pool was plumbed in copper, so I had to re-plumb it with PVC, but this was partially necessary to facilitate the greater flow & pressure created by my adding solar (over 100-feet away from my pool).

If you have a heater, expect a shorter life from the core/heat-exchanger; while the saline water feels great to our skin, it has a bit of a corrossive effect on metals.

Lastly, remember: the largest organ in our bodies is actually our skin....and you'd be surprised how much our skin can absorb. A Natural-Salt pool is far more healthy and you never need to add chlorine, it generates it by itself. You just need to add a bit of salt periodically and maintain proper ph-balance.

Beyond that, enjoy.....I highly recommend it to anyone!!!!!!!

 

Thank you chase for the information.
My parents are in the process of having a pool installed at the moment.
It's just about done and we already have it set up for salt water. So I guess we made the right pick.

 

I love my salt system!!!

 

You should put some fish in it maybe a dolphin for the neighbor kids. Nice pool we Ive never heard of something like that.

 

hey doc, I know you did on FC, but how 'bout posting a few pics of your pool here?

 

Chlorine generator systems are the way to go for any built-in swimming pool. They guys above said it best.

Very true, however, if you are one of the lucky ones that bought, or plan on buying the Raypak heater with nickle cores, you need not worry. Raypack also claims that even their copper core heaters have a metal blend to withstand salt systems.

Kreepy Klear was the first salt system to hit the homeowner market in the early 90's. The problem with the Kreepy Klear was the unit had to be installed on the side walls of the pool to create the chloring generation. And it was very expensive! Recently, somebody figured out that all you had to do was put the electronic generator plates into a small section of PVC pipe, mount the circuit board on top in a cool looking panel with LEDs, run a wire to the main computer and it was good to go! Commercial size and Resort pools all have them now.


Also of note;
A Polaris rep explained that come wintertime, the best way to prolong the life of your pipe-salt generator is to unfasten it from the pool pipes if it has union fittings, unplug it and fasten a straight pipe of PVC in its place. The purpose is that, in winter, you don't have needless calcium to build up on the electron plates. Use chlorinating tablets, because they last longer in the winter and most pools will hold their chlorine level for some time in the winter as well. So while the salt generator sits out the winter season in the garage, you prolong its life when spring and summer come along, the season when chlorine usage counts.

 

Very cool idea, using salt in the pool ... we have a whole house water filter and softening system that utilizes potassium chloride (KCl) instead of the sodium chloride (NaCl). Based on what I've read and have experienced, the potassium chloride is prefered over the sodium chloride.

I love the feeling of the water when I shower ... so smooth ... soft. I don't taste any salty aftertaste either.

I pay about $8.00 a month for a 40 pound KCl bag from Home Depot.

Where do you get the salt necessary to replenish the correct pH level and how much do you normally use a month?

 

Actually.....I did replace my old heater with a Raypack unit, and yeah...the guy told me it would withstand the salt no problem.

Good idea on changing-out the "cell" during winter!!!! The only thing I'm concerned about is how the water changes when regular chlorine is used....will all the chloramine and all the residual chemicals go away come summer time when I re-install the cell?

Cells are $500 and generally last about 5 years, especially if cleaned regularly....would regular cleaning pretty much extend the life enough?

 

It would help, as long as as the plates haven't deteriorated. Otherwise you're golden.

 

All the chlorine from tablet/bottle use will eventually evap out of the pool when the warm weather hits. The only thing that stays behind in the pool is the hard minerals, which is why all pools over time will have that line of calcium on the tiles. Everything else goes away! The only item of concern is when using "unstabilized" chlorine, the Ph may go a little out of whack. Winter months usually tip over to the alkaline side. All you do is re-adjust it to neutral.

When you reconnect the salt generator, add the salt needed to get it going again. For me to say toss a bag of Mortons in the pool is not completely correct advice, as different salt generator manufactures request different dosages.

 

I thought Krispy Kremes made your sife spandex suit lose its luster??? I HAD the salt system when I bult my pool 6 years ago, but gave up on it after having to use acid to clean the plates in the converter every two months or so. Plus with the huge amount of rainfall in Florida I had to keep adding salt due to the dilution and overflow siuation. I did enjoy the water feel and not burning my eyes. I just use goggles now.
BT

 

Okay, let me get this straight.

I use about $50 of chlorine and $20 of shock each month. If I convert to the salt system my costs will drop to just the cost of the salt? And how much of that is requred monthly for a 21,500 gallon pool? I have a 60 sq. ft. Nautilas DE filter that uses 10 filter screens. Will the salt work okay with the type filter I have now? I have PVC pipes so I assume this is the best type for salt, correct?
What will be the downside, alkalinity, acid use, etc?????

Questions may be redundant but I did not read every response to this thread, just the beginning.........

 

No downsides, only a chlorinated pool all the time!

DE and Sand/Zeobrite filters are optimum for salt generators.

If you have the Pac-Fab stainless steel tank, the tank will corrode from the inside over the course of several years. What that means is yes, you can go ahead and install the salt generator with your existing tank, however the life expectancy of the tank itself, not the filter grids, will be shortened. If you have the Pentair Nautilus(Pentair bought out Pac-Fab years ago) in the fiberglass filter tank, you're ok.