Seven Secrets Salt Water Pool Sellers Don't Want You To Know - EcoSmarte Pool System Manual

Seven Secrets Salt Water Pool Sellers
Don't Want You to Know
SECRET #1
Salt water systems corrode the pool equipment.
The Facts - The salt itself has issues of attacking the cement in the plaster and deck materials. This is a
relatively slow process when the salt levels are low. The salt also can kill any landscaping in or around the
pool as well as in the backwash area.
If the sodium hypochlorite levels are too high, the corrosion is caused by the chlorine being produced by the
electrolytic cell. Chlorine can bleach the test reagents, giving you a "false negative", and people can grossly
over-chlorinate their pool damaging equipment, the pool surface, lighting fixtures, and ladders. Over time
the salt will attack any area the water evaporates at.
A common problem is corrosion at the ladder. The deck anchors are usually cast aluminum and the lad-
der should be stainless steel. The salt water will corrode the anchors overtime and a "safety event" will be
pending.
Buyers should be aware that if you have salt water above 2800 ppm, (often 4000 to 5000 ppm), you will
need to reseal your coping every year, especially if it is a porous stone like limestone or travertine. Other-
wise, the salt will dry and start to etch the coping. Besides sealing the stone, it is also advisable and an
added precaution to hose down the coping at the end of any swim day with fresh water. Although the salt
water in the pool may not be corrosive at levels of 3000-3500 ppm, when that water hits the coping and
evaporates, it leaves pure salt behind. The pure salt is corrosive and is the main cause of the corroding cop-
ing. Most autocover manufacturers now void their track warranty if a salt system is used.
Some pool builders are now refusing to build any salt water pools with cream limestone or taupe coping.
Any customer that wants either coping for a salt water rock or gunnite pool must usually sign a release
form. Pool builders have said that they have had to replace a significant amount of both these types of cop-
ing this past year. Cantilever designs simply disappear as the stone dissolves away.
SECRET #2
Salt water systems require chemicals almost every week.
The obvious weekly use of muriatic acid is combined with the not so obvious need to use cyanuric acid to
guarantee your salt chlorine generator can achieve 1-3 ppm chlorine residual in your pool. Since salt water
pools produce chlorine, the sanitizing effectiveness of the system is impacted by changes in temperature,
bather load, sunlight and rainfall. CYANIDE based, the CYANURIC acid is euphemistically referred to as
conditioner or stabilizer and must be maintained between 35 and 85 ppm. Stabilized levels over 100 are
harmful to children, pets, older swimmers, the pool itself and of course the environment.
Occasional algaecide, clarifier, stain and scale control and shock will be needed with a salt chlorine pool
(maybe slightly more than a stabilized "puck" pool) and only the handling of the solid chlorine is avoided.
Numerous other sanitation devices will cut overall chemical use, a salt system may not.
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