[KJ1325]

We maintain our own saltwater pool and so far haven't had any issues until recently. We received a huge amount of pollen last week and then we noticed green algae when brushing the pool walls. Water was still pretty clear. Took water sample to our normal place and they said add a little shock and some algae rid stuff and clean the filter and you should be good. A few days later we still have algae. Another sample and was told to try same thing. Ugh. Took a water sample to another pool place and they said Shock hard ( 2 gallons for a 15,000 gallon pool), clean filter and see if algae clears up. It is reduced but still have a little. So they are saying add more chlorine (another gallon and a half) and and see where we are at. Does this sound normal? I'm wondering if the pool places are just grasping. And one place said you can still swim if its just a tad....Yuck. My initial thoughts are that it needs shocked to kill the algae. The 1st time got 80% of it but not all. So maybe 3 gallons of chlorine and then get PH and other levels straight. I have the salt cell running at 60% for 8 hours a day. And brushing and vacuuming twice a day.
Any thoughts?

[photo1902]

Originally Posted by KJ1325

We maintain our own saltwater pool and so far haven't had any issues until recently. We received a huge amount of pollen last week and then we noticed green algae when brushing the pool walls. Water was still pretty clear. Took water sample to our normal place and they said add a little shock and some algae rid stuff and clean the filter and you should be good. A few days later we still have algae. Another sample and was told to try same thing. Ugh. Took a water sample to another pool place and they said Shock hard ( 2 gallons for a 15,000 gallon pool), clean filter and see if algae clears up. It is reduced but still have a little. So they are saying add more chlorine (another gallon and a half) and and see where we are at. Does this sound normal? I'm wondering if the pool places are just grasping. And one place said you can still swim if its just a tad....Yuck. My initial thoughts are that it needs shocked to kill the algae. The 1st time got 80% of it but not all. So maybe 3 gallons of chlorine and then get PH and other levels straight. I have the salt cell running at 60% for 8 hours a day. And brushing and vacuuming twice a day.
Any thoughts?

The first thing I’d check is your salt cell, to make sure it’s working and is producing chlorine. If it’s not working properly, it won’t matter what you have it set to, including Super Chlorinate.

[Papa_lecki]

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[MACH7SS]

T-Cell is faulty. I had the same experience. I replaced the cell and my pool stopped having green on the walls and floor.

[photo1902]

Originally Posted by MACH7SS

T-Cell is faulty. I had the same experience. I replaced the cell and my pool stopped having green on the walls and floor.

Agree. My money is on a defective salt cell as well.

[KJ1325]

Originally Posted by photo1902

The first thing I’d check is your salt cell, to make sure it’s working and is producing chlorine. If it’s not working properly, it won’t matter what you have it set to, including Super Chlorinate.

The salt cell is working or at least according to T&D. But it appears that as quick as it produces chlorine something is eating up my chlorine. Again I'm guessing the algae. But I am skeptical that the salt cell is working correctly even though I was told it is. I'm not really sure how to test it.

[KJ1325]

Originally Posted by KJ1325

We maintain our own saltwater pool and so far haven't had any issues until recently. We received a huge amount of pollen last week and then we noticed green algae when brushing the pool walls. Water was still pretty clear. Took water sample to our normal place and they said add a little shock and some algae rid stuff and clean the filter and you should be good. A few days later we still have algae. Another sample and was told to try same thing. Ugh. Took a water sample to another pool place and they said Shock hard ( 2 gallons for a 15,000 gallon pool), clean filter and see if algae clears up. It is reduced but still have a little. So they are saying add more chlorine (another gallon and a half) and and see where we are at. Does this sound normal? I'm wondering if the pool places are just grasping. And one place said you can still swim if its just a tad....Yuck. My initial thoughts are that it needs shocked to kill the algae. The 1st time got 80% of it but not all. So maybe 3 gallons of chlorine and then get PH and other levels straight. I have the salt cell running at 60% for 8 hours a day. And brushing and vacuuming twice a day.
Any thoughts?

And I should mention that we did have our chlorinator turned all the way down to 10% a good portion of the winter based on our chlorine levels. Now I'm wondering if our chlorine levels actually got too low with the salt cell being turned down to 10%. It's only been back at 60% for 48 hours.

[Pondboy]

From google ;

How do you know if a salt water cell is bad?

If the salt cell does not bubble, then you either have no power to the cell or you have a bad cell. Further troubleshooting will be required. If the salt cell bubbles, but only a little bit, then you probably have a bad cell.

Why is my salt cell not making chlorine?
Water flow

The saltwater chlorinator needs a sufficient flow of water for effective operation. A dirty skimmer basket, clogged or dirty filter, and a clogged pump strainer, can cause insufficient water flow for the chlorinator to produce less chlorine.

I’d recommend “googling” your type of Salt Cell to see what to look for to confirm it’s working.

[photo1902]

Originally Posted by KJ1325

And I should mention that we did have our chlorinator turned all the way down to 10% a good portion of the winter based on our chlorine levels. Now I'm wondering if our chlorine levels actually got too low with the salt cell being turned down to 10%. It's only been back at 60% for 48 hours.

My chlorinator has been set on 15% for the past three months. That being said, you should be testing the water weekly to make sure chlorine levels (and the other checks) are ok.

When my salt cell (Turbocell) was suspected to be bad, the tech used a non-working unit, so he could run the system while mine was removed. He dunked my salt cell (still plugged in to the board) into a 5 gallon bucket of pool water, with the chlorinator set pretty high. The result was that there were no signs of life in the water.

[photo1902]

Originally Posted by Pondboy

From google ;

How do you know if a salt water cell is bad?

If the salt cell does not bubble, then you either have no power to the cell or you have a bad cell. Further troubleshooting will be required. If the salt cell bubbles, but only a little bit, then you probably have a bad cell.

Why is my salt cell not making chlorine?
Water flow

The saltwater chlorinator needs a sufficient flow of water for effective operation. A dirty skimmer basket, clogged or dirty filter, and a clogged pump strainer, can cause insufficient water flow for the chlorinator to produce less chlorine.

I’d recommend “googling” your type of Salt Cell to see what to look for to confirm it’s working.

You need to remove the salt cell in order to test it. See my post above

[KJ1325]

Originally Posted by photo1902

My chlorinator has been set on 15% for the past three months. That being said, you should be testing the water weekly to make sure chlorine levels (and the other checks) are ok.

When my salt cell (Turbocell) was suspected to be bad, the tech used a non-working unit, so he could run the system while mine was removed. He dunked my salt cell (still plugged in to the board) into a 5 gallon bucket of pool water, with the chlorinator set pretty high. The result was that there were no signs of life in the water.

This is an easy test and I can do this. And we have been weekly water testing at a pool place. Hence the reason we got down to 15%. We were continuously told that we were producing too much chlorine. Tomorrow morning I'll take a 5 gallon bucket full of pool water and stick my salt cell in there and turn it on and see what happens. Very good advice. Thank you

[Bogie Shooter]

What is the age of the cell?

[KJ1325]

Originally Posted by Bogie Shooter

What is the age of the cell?

6 months old. I'm going to test it tomorrow

[photo1902]

Originally Posted by KJ1325

This is an easy test and I can do this. And we have been weekly water testing at a pool place. Hence the reason we got down to 15%. We were continuously told that we were producing too much chlorine. Tomorrow morning I'll take a 5 gallon bucket full of pool water and stick my salt cell in there and turn it on and see what happens. Very good advice. Thank you

Do you have a dummy cell? The pump/system needs to be running to test.

[photo1902]

Originally Posted by KJ1325

6 months old. I'm going to test it tomorrow

Is this a new pool?